I want to talk to you about a nonsensical statement I hear all the time – “I feel fat”.

This statement is meaningless because fat is not a feeling.

Eyelashes are not a feeling. Cellulite is not a feeling. Toenails are not a feeling. You don’t wake up in the morning and think, “ugh, I feel so armpit hair today.”

What most of us mean when we say, “I feel fat” is that we are feeling some kind of loathing towards ourselves that we can’t seem to label other than using the word fat. Fat has become synonymous with sadness, loneliness, anger, frustration, fear, shame, failure etc. Expressing these emotions through the word “fat” only instills a sense of body shame and hatred towards a part of your body.

It was so important for me to reclaim the word fat and start using it in a neutral connotation. I encourage you to do the same!

Much like fat is not a feeling I think it’s equally important to know that “thin” is not a feeling.

When we intertwine a body type with our emotions, we seek out these feelings by manipulating our weight or appearance. Our happiness becomes conditional on our body, which is the antithesis of self-love.

{Sidenote: Having positive body image means you have unconditional self-love and compassion for yourself.}

Often clients will say to me, “I like feeling thin”, to which I respond, “what does ‘thin’ feel like for you?”

Marinating on this question can help you create the separation from what you are truly desiring (i.e. peace, love, joy, pride) versus what you think a certain appearance will give you.

It is here where we can start to build your worth from a different lens and truly achieve unconditional self-love.

Be Smashing!