The Weight Of Their Words
Many people have struggled to live up to and conform to society’s standards. Without acknowledging that they are merely subjective standards. There is no definitive definition of what constitutes the true standard. It is up to us to give it meaning. She should never listen to their unwanted criticisms and worthless words.
Trigger Warning: Body-shaming, body dysmorphia
Losing Weight Journey
At a young age, she feels different. She felt like an accused in a room full of a jury simply because her body shape did not conform to society’s norms.
And when time is supposed to change anything for the better. I believe that society has become more toxic and ill-gotten in terms of desiring the ideals of a perfect body. Society has ingested that having an ideal body equates to the approval for us to be accepted.
Elaine vividly recalls the first time she wore a fitted dress during their Christmas party. She was confident and did not mind her exposed fat. However, her classmate called her fat. She panicked instantly as everyone laughed at her.
The Power of Words
Words are powerful. They have the capacity to create and destroy. For Elaine, that was the time that she felt being fat is worthless. That one word was enough to lose her confidence.
Because of those derogatory nicknames, she forgot herself. She became insecure, worried, and scared. Admittedly, it was never fun to be called names.
Society has made her feel rejected and from then on, she despised the figure she sees every time she’ll look in the mirror.
So she decided to lose weight. She tried numerous times to obtain the body they desired for her. There were several times she would pass out from not eating for days in order to be acceptable and pass for society’s norms they created.
However, she did not lose weight. Instead, she learned to accept her flaws. Their words became weightless as she got tired of everything. And that is how she regained her confidence.
Words can be both powerful and meaningless depending on how we take them. Only take the words that will help us grow. We must be more powerful than the words they speak.
Now, Elaine is striving to lose weight again, but this time she’s doing it for herself and not to please anyone.
Everyone will have something to say about everything. And no one will ever be good for their own standards. It is on us to decide whether we should make their words powerful or meaningless.
What matters is how we handle the words they threw at us.
