Fat and Happy

In the article “Fat and Happy: In Defense of Fat Acceptance,” Mary Ray Worley, also a member of the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance (NAAFA), talks about being accepted in America as a fat person; she tells us her personal experiences at the NAAFA Convention, her points of view of being a fat person in American, and even gives us information from doctors and researchers about weight loss. Worley talks about how America sees fat people and how they are just totally against being fat; she even says “Many of Americans would rather die or cut off a limb than be fat….” (Worley).Worley also explains how people who are fat become very ashamed of their bodies; all because of how America views them. For example fat people aren’t always so comfortable when working out because of the rude comments they may come across and the never want to wear swimsuits or shorts or sleeveless shirts because they are afraid of offending the delicate sensibilities of others. Often fat people try to become something that they are not and hide who they really are, and what cannot be hidden. One of Worley’s personal experiences was attending the NAAFA Convention. This convention was very empowering to Worley and other fat people. She often referred to this convention as a “different planet” because of how free these fat people were in being themselves, which was fat. The NAAFA Convention included shopping, like Worley had never experienced before, because on her “planet” it’s always been hard for fat people to find clothes that are stylish and fit them just right, belly dancing voluptuous women, and singing a number in musical called “The Ladies Who Lunch”, she even threw out all her old assumptions about what fat people could and could not do. Worley also touches on the fact that, to fat people, doctors can be some of the most prejudiced people around. The doctors are constantly telling fat people to lose weight, knowing that their own findings, like depression and not working out, never match up with the real solution, genetic makeup Worley even wanted to know what’s the big rush when it comes to losing weight? She knows that they are going to eventually regain the weight all over again, and losing this weight the way the doctors want it to be done can be very expensive. Towards the end of the article Worley tells us how after years and years of trying to lose weight that she had come up with a new way to lose weight, by simply decreasing the amount of food she eats. She says your body will slow its metabolic rate to fend off possible starvation. She also mentions how she has become more active, losing weight the right way, and becoming more comfortable in her own skin.