“I am not my stomach”

As a child growing up, I always was overweight. This was something I was constantly aware of and even as I grew older and lost weight, I still felt like I was not skinny enough. This often resulted in me feeling like I was not in good enough shape for anyone to notice me.

When I walk into a room, I find myself thinking that the first thing people notice about me is my stomach and how I look. I often look around the room and compare myself to everyone else thinking, “Where do I fit in”, am I the largest person in the room?

This has resulted in me often spending extra time choosing my clothes, going to the gym, and being extra conscious about what I eat. I analyze every interaction I have with other people, in comparison to how they would think about my weight. This is something that I let eat away at me everyday.

I’ve come to realize that I do fit in, and that is by just being me.