The Dark Side Of ‘shrinking Girl Summer’ | Letters

I publication Rose Stokes’ article pinch awesome sadness (I thought we’d entered nan property of assemblage positivity. Then came ‘shrinking woman summer’ – is everyone getting smaller isolated from me?, 10 August). Once again, a healthy, intelligent female is made to consciousness not bully capable by nine because she is larger than a size 10.

Then came anger, not pinch Stokes but pinch nan media and brands that propagate a civilization of skinny worship. I was calved pinch a uncommon beingness disablement and person spent years coming to position pinch nan measurement my assemblage is. I look disabled, I person scars from operations and a spinal curve surgeons couldn’t straighten, and I usage mobility aids. To me, Stokes presents arsenic an attractive, successful, patient female who is non-disabled (although this is her backstage business) pinch nan bully luck to person 2 children. I wish Stokes and others could spot themselves successful that vein. Granted, it took maine years to beryllium happy successful my ain tegument and spot nan strengths of my body, everything I’ve been done and nan pleasance it tin springiness and receive, but it’s doable.

We are surviving successful acheronian times erstwhile non-disabled women and men are wrecking their intelligence wellness and putting their beingness wellness successful threat pinch fad diets and weight-loss jabs, shrinking themselves to an ever-hungry and acold position to please others’ gazes and get likes connected TikTok and Instagram. As a nine we should beryllium ashamed that we are engendering this, putting group astatine consequence of eating disorders, malnutrition and intelligence wellness issues.

We only person 1 assemblage and if you’re fortunate capable to person 1 that useful properly, you’ve won nan jackpot.
Name and reside supplied

Self-loathing, shame, isolation and nan desire for slenderness are not an intrinsic aliases inevitable facet of being fat, arsenic features such as Rose Stokes’ look to suggest. They are caused by fatphobia. This has been ruthlessly exploited by weight-loss industries, including nan modern manufacturers of GLP-1 drugs. These purveyors are not called to relationship erstwhile their products neglect aliases harm their users. Instead, fat group are made to consciousness responsible. We should person tried harder.

For a much balanced view, I invite Guardian editors, writers and readers to see a societal activity that has been progressive for astatine slightest 50 years and which takes a captious position of nan obesity‑industrial complex.

The scholarly section of fat studies and nan nationalist wellness exemplary known arsenic “health astatine each size” are offshoots. There are galore of america moving successful these areas, providing a much nuanced and hopeful knowing of fat subjectivity.
Charlotte Cooper
London

Rose Stokes’ article strikes a chord crossed nan femisphere. I would adhd that assemblage dysmorphia has ne'er been confined to women whose bodies don’t conform to skinny standards. The body-positivity activity liberated each women from these intolerable strictures. It’s nary coincidence that as soon arsenic it arrived, and women began to return up much and powerful space, narcotics were pumped retired to make judge we return less.
Danuta Kean
Hastings, East Sussex