WHAT WE'RE ABOUT
We are constantly redefining our own perspectives, and therefore tend to write a lot about our personal experiences. Many followers and contributors are living with anorexia, bulimia, body dysmorphic disorder, depression, and a variety of other body image disorders or mental illnesses, so please be respectful and remember that health applies differently to everyone. Any and all potentially triggering content will be prefaced with a trigger warning.
RBI supports all races, genders, classes, and sizes. We try our best to make this a safe space for everyone. If we are not doing our job or checking our privilege, we invite you to please inform us.
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We are not health professionals. Any and all advice provided on this blog is supported only by our own research, studies, and personal experiences; nothing more.
This blog is part of the Safe Space Network.
d i sa b i l i t y : differently abled, not disabled.Can we stop with this?
Disability is not a dirty word. Let me repeat that. Disability. Is. Not. A. Dirty. Word.
It’s not a slur. It’s not an insult.
I firmly believe that we can not get rid of the ‘dis’ in ‘disability’. As a disabled person, my life is full of things I can do, things I can’t do, things I might be able to learn to do, and things that I might lose on the way. I’m a wheelchair user. I CAN’T walk for more than two steps unassisted. I CAN wheel my chair. See? Two parts of the same word. DIS and ABLED.
I want people to stop hiding from their fear of DISability. I want people to know that there’s nothing wrong with needing help, that you will have to ask for help, that you’ll have to accept help sometimes, that you’ll have to relearn things you learned as a child. And I want people to know that that’s okay.
I think people who take the ‘dis’ out of ‘disability’ are trying to take my identity away. And yes I do identify as a disabled person. It’s a huge part of my life whether I want it to be or not. The last thing I need is someone making my life seem like sunshine daisies just because they think I can do ANYTHING if I ‘JUST TRY HARD ENOUGH’.
Take away the DIS and you take attention away from the drama. You take away notice of prejudice, mockery, and injustice. You let discrimination roll of your back because it doesn’t bother you because you know that everyone’s ‘abled’ just sometimes ‘differently’ so.
I can’t reach things off the top shelf. I can’t go up and down stairs. I can’t work full-time. I can’t live without pain. I can’t wear certain clothing or eat certain foods. I can’t run miles or park in regular parking spots. I can’t jump or kick or stand for long periods of time.
And that’s okay.
There’s nothing wrong with that.
I’m disabled. That’s all. That’s okay. It’s okay.
Don’t take away my DIS. I need it. It reminds me of what I can and can’t do. It reminds me that it’s okay to live how I need to live.
Here here!
Three things determine health: genetics, physical activity and food intake. You cannot judge any of these three things by simply looking at a person. You can be 100 pounds and be healthy. You can be 300 pounds and be healthy. It all depends on the individual. Humans are not monolithic.
And you call fat people lazy when you assume they are unhealthy just by looks? Your brain is lazy… and prejudiced.
Massive amounts of truth.
Rachel’s bows!!!
Genevieve is so talented, she was able to make my super sexy legs even sexier. I am going to wear hot pants and tap shorts and mini skirts from here on out, exclusively.
Getting these bows was a long process— not only because we’ve been working on this since January, but because it took me a very long time to get to a place where I was comfortable with my gams. Even though it’s not always comfortable (emotionally or physically), making a concerted effort to decorate and enhance parts of my body that once made me feel uncomfortable, hypervisible, “unattractive,” and all around bad has been a powerful experience. I am reclaiming pieces of my body, tattoo or fatkini or crop top or photo shoot at a time.
So much beauty!!
it seems that today is the day that prominent tumblrs decided to say they think FA is fascist and is anti-dieting. see, the thing about fat ACCEPTANCE is that the whole point is to say its ok and acceptable to be whatever size you are, even if you do not ever care to change it! dieting is the norm, even for non-fat women, especially in the US. dieting refers to the industry of convincing women they can drop those pesky 5, 10, or 25 lbs keeping them from actualizing their lives as awesome, sexy babes like those ladies in the magazines. dieting needs no champion. it has its hold. it seems that the original poster who said she disagrees about diets not working is mistaking this multi million dollar industry with just changing her eating habits. she keeps defending her stance by saying FA taught her to eat nothing but junk food and resign herself to saying she couldnt change anything anyway and she will be fat and unhealthy forever. this is a cop out. own your actions! im fat without eating junk food. my eating habits are none of your business and yours are none of mine. if you believe switching from fast food to healthy foods is dieting, then i think you may be leading a charmed life. dieting is the culture of deprivation, while healthy eating is EATING! FA does not make you fat, nor does it encourage you to do nothing to change your life. FA encourages you to love yourself as you are, whatever that may be. in fact, i just call the whole movement BODY acceptance, because i think its an important thing for all women to come to terms with. (and men, too.) i work hard at loving myself, eating healthy for me and keeping my body strong. dieting talk has no place in my life. you wanna talk about it? fine. but do NOT take away the positivity that this movement has brought to so many.
A+
I also tend to call it “body acceptance” over “fat acceptance” for that very same reason. A+ indeed.
I’m feeling particularly fiery this fine afternoon…I thought I would jot down some things that I hold near and dear, and things I feel everyone should realize/consider/practice.
Please realize that body-shaming is a multi-billion dollar industry.
Please consider the sources of “studies” and news stories- Realize that the news you read is sometimes paid for by companies that want you to buy their products. Fat-hate and fear sell products very, very well.
Realize your body is no ones business but your own. Do not allow others to police YOUR body.
Instead of focusing on people’s “unhealthy” bodies- why are we not shaming greed, homophobia,sexism,hate?
Fat and other “non-normative” bodies are currently public property to discuss and dissect and shame. Take your body BACK!!!!!
Take healthy steps if they work for YOU, not because someone shames you into them.
Loving & accepting your body is a revolutionary thing. Please realize that at the end of the day- you are the only one in your head, the only person you have to answer to. Live by your own standards, and not for anyone else.
So many amazing thoughts and messages here.
I think everyone should take a minute and read this article. Beautiful girls like us should never feel like we need to be “perfect.”
http://www.danoah.com/2010/09/disease-called-perfection.html
“Poor nutrition and a sedentary lifestyle do cause health problems, in people of all sizes…”—
Kate Harding (via rebrandingbodyimage)
An important distinction. I’m repping the “thin people who eat crap and don’t exercise” group. Fatness and unhealthiness aren’t necessarily concomitant (and neither are thinness and health).
I am loving all the reblogging and responses to Miss Harding’s quote I posted!
“Poor nutrition and a sedentary lifestyle do cause health problems, in people of all sizes. This is why it’s so fucking crucial to separate the concept of “obesity” from “eating crap and not exercising.” The two are simply not synonymous — not even close — and it’s not only incredibly offensive but dangerous for thin people to keep pretending that they are. There are thin people who eat crap and don’t exercise — and are thus putting their health at risk — and there are fat people who treat their bodies very well but remain fat. Really truly.”—
Kate Harding (via rebrandingbodyimage)
how does this not get through people’s heads?
That is the very question I am trying to answer.
- “You look like you lost weight” being considered a compliment (plus it’s a shitty compliment — it makes me wonder what you thought of me before I lost weight)
- Losing weight automatically being considered a healthy choice
- People policing others’ bodies, health, etc.
- Weight loss commercials
- Fat people being seen as inherently unhealthy
- Fat people being seen as inherently unattractive
- People assuming at no one finds fat beautiful, sexy, etc.
- Being reminded that I’m fat (you think I don’t know that?)
- …and that being fat is considered inherently a bad thing.
My high school theatre director recently lost a LOT of weight and when I saw her for the first time I was like “Oh. You’re so skinny,” and it did come out like an “eh” thing, and she was like “Thanks!”, clearly overjoyed. I mean, she looks fine. It was just a sudden difference that I wasn’t prepared for. Anyway. This. All of this.
Truth.
Whenever I describe myself as fat, all I hear in response is “You’re SO not fat.”
I am, in fact, fat. I own the fact that body has an abundance of fat. I am on the “slimmer” side of fat in that I still have the privilege of going to a straight-sized store and sometimes coming away with something that fits me, but I am a size 16 and my tummy can not be controlled. FAT.
The other day I said “Bella is getting so fat!” (referring to my cat) and all I heard in response was “You leave her alone, she’s not fat, she’s fluffy!” - as if I had deeply insulted her character. She’s a goddamn cat and she’s filling out, gaining a healthy amount of weight and maturing as cats often do, and she has a fat little tummy.
“Fat” is a descriptive word, not an insult.
In todays society, people (both male and female) are coaxed into thinking a particular type of body is ‘better’ than the rest.
When I was in my early teens, I was completely fixated with my weight.
I also self harmed. At first, it was a rage release and I did it because I loved the way the scars looked. However, as I got older I started to do it more often based on how much ‘fatter’ I was than other girls. Truth was, I wasn’t, but that’s how I felt.
There was a period last year where I could not stand to look at my own body without breaking into hysterics. I would feel guilty if I ate and even felt ‘sexier’ if I hadn’t eaten in a day or two.
It was fucking ridiculous.The worst part is that I have good friends who suffered far, far, FAR more than I in this respect. Fading away gradually as a cause of warped perception.
They can’t stop themselves and all society seems to do is make crude jokes about anorexia, bulimia and other body-perception related disorders like it’s not really a ‘big deal’.Well guess what? It fucking well is.
Nobody should feel like they are worthless just because they are a stone or two heavier than their next door neighbour, or that women who works at the corner shop.It is our duty as fellow human beings to stop giving out these disgusting messages.
Personally (and thankfully) over the past few months, I’ve grown up immensly.
I’m no longer painfully insecure about how far my stomach sticks out, or how wobbly my arms are. I’m not scared to eat a 3 course meal and damned well enjoy it.
It took time and a lot of effort but now I’m like ‘You know what? Fuck your ideal weights. Fuck your imaciated corpse figures and your plus-size hatred’As long as somebody is happy with the way they look, it shouldn’t matter whether they are a size 4 or a size 24.
After all, isn’t the point in living to be happy and to spread that happiness to others? Screw what other people say about the way you look.
Everybody is beautiful in some way.