The reason why I started writing about my experiences as an overweight person is because I think that the hardest thing for me was feeling all alone in my ongoing struggle for losing weight. I think that feeling stigmatized stems not only from the outside, but also from the inside. I cannot count the number of times that I’ve felt ashamed for my body or the way it looks. I wear loose shirts just so that it doesn't look too fat. I've come to realise that this way of thinking is not good. You might think that this statement is obvious. However, one thing that I share with all of my other friends is that even though we know we should be proud of the way our body looks, not all of us feel that way. It is very hard to learn to love yourself, both inside and out. 

There is this one thing that happens everyday that reminds me about my feelings of being overweight. Everytime that I climb stairs with my friends or anyone really, I don't like breathing hard or being obvious that I am panting. I mean, I feel a bit ashamed that I have to pant so much while climbing stairs while the other person is not as affected as me. When this happens, I usually just try to not show others that it was hard for me to climb the stairs because I feel like others around me are going to judge and make assumptions based on it. I think another hard experience for me is when my friends compliment on my features or appearance that I find it hard to accept them as true. Because if we truly define beauty as something that's on the inside rather than the outside, why do we compliment some people for looking beautiful when they have a pretty dress or shirt? To be honest, I don’t know the answer to that question. I’ve told some of my friends that they look pretty sometimes but after I’ve said that, I’ve wondered why I said that. 

I think that it is not only overweight people who face problems with self love and body image but every single person has faced it. This is why it is important if we all speak up. I also think that we should take this more seriously than we do now. Making fun of people based on the way they look or what they eat is not something that should be encouraged. I would not say that my journey of learning to love myself is complete or even close to completion. I still have a long way to go before I feel content and satisfied with the way I look or rather whatever way I look. But I think choosing to take part in My Story has really made me feel like I have a voice so I can bring to light the way that people like me feel sometimes. I am in no way a professional on this subject but, from my experience, one step to loving yourself is talking to people. Tell your friends if you’re feeling insecure or not beautiful. Ask for help. Speak up about it.