The curse of being skinny: Why all body bashing has to stop

If you're naturally curvy, you've probably experienced plenty of times when you've felt the injustice of being unable to fit your hips, bum or womanly thighs into an outfit. You've probably cursed the fashion and beauty industry for representing mainly extremely slim, smaller women, calling them 'unrealistic' and 'not real women.'

DAGGDR

by Ellie Hooper |
Published on

Since when did being naturally smaller make you any less of a woman?

In a recent body confidence campaign, women who are counted as plus-size (but are actually in fact only from 12 to about 18's), speak about the unrealistic expectations placed on women by clothing companies.

Whilst I completely understand this and think that, yes, some shapes are less represented in the mainstream media than others; what is said next is enough to make my blood boil.

'If a smaller woman were to liken a larger one to a whale or an elephant, everyone would go mad. But somehow doing the same to a slimmer woman is OK. No-one minds.'

One girl uses the word 'stick-insect' to describe her smaller contemporaries.

The use of this word can hardly be called complementary. They're not saying these smaller, slimmer women are lithe, or beautifully lean - they're likening them to something ugly, unattractive and awkward.

If the reverse were true - people would be all over it. If a smaller woman were to liken a larger one to a whale or an elephant, everyone would go mad. But somehow doing the same to a slimmer woman is OK. No-one minds.

As a naturally skinny teenager, I can remember the injustice of girls being able to say I looked anorexic and unattractively thin - one girl even said no boy would ever sleep with me because I looked like 'I'd break in two' if they did - when I would never be able to make a similar comment to someone larger.

I wish all women - not just slim women - would stop having to insult a shape that's different to theirs just to champion another.

You might have a lovely, size 18, curvy figure. Good for you. But can you not equally admire a size 10 girl who has a completely different, but just as attractive figure - without the need to call them boyish, 'like a child' or unwomanly? I really hope so.

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