Recently I posted a video to my YouTube channel that I started making in the early months of 2016, shortly after starting a Ketogenic Diet. At its inception, it was titled “Fattie”, but I changed it to “TRUTH” shortly before posting. It marks the beginning a weight loss journey that would, unlike many efforts in the past, ultimately see success. I never intended for this little video to see the light of day, but after winning my lifelong battle with fat, it seemed appropriate to share it with the world. It was a little pat-on-the-back I decided to give myself after reaching my goal weight, staying there for two years, then having abdominoplasty to remove the loose skin left behind. I didn’t plan in the beginning to have to need a tummy tuck. Matter-of-fact, loose skin wasn’t even in my lexicon in 2016, but it became what I deemed to be one of the final steps in my transformation from moth to butterfly. I thought it appropriate to share the video with the world, and once and for all let go of the shame.

A friend pointed out that the original title “Fattie” is a shaming word, and I agreed. I decided that “Truth” was a better title, since this was my truth. Thought the fat acceptance movement began in the 1960’s, by the time I was born in the mid 70’s, it had been pushed to the back of the room by health concerns like heart disease, diabetes, and cancer. In the 2000’s, it started to make a comeback, and here in 2020 has experienced something of a rebirth.

Personally, I knew nothing of all that. What I did know was that I was not happy as a fat person. I did not want to be a fat person, and I was, in fact ashamed that I could not control my eating or make myself exercise so that I could not be a fat person* I want to make it perfectly clear that I don’t give a flying fig what others do with their bodies. If a person accepts and loves their body in whatever form, then I am happy for them, and will join them in celebrating their self love.

Let’s face it, self love is a difficult thing to accomplish, and I am over-the-moon happy for those that can do it; I am defiantly not here to shame anyone. My role in this world is to be a helper.

I love most things about myself, but there are things I don’t, and I am working on acceptance of those. Though I had surgery to correct something about my body that I didn’t like, I love my body; now that I’m not carrying extra weight. It is folks like myself, the ones that aren’t happy carrying around extra weight, that I am here for.

*One of the first things I learned when researching the ketogenic diet, is that it isn’t as simple as calories in/calories out (CICO), but that is another topic for another post.