This post would also fit on my college blog, but I find it more relevant to this one.
Firstly, I am very frustrated.
There are a couple lose weight things I’ve witnessed lately (okay, two). First was when I went to see this hypnotist guy the other night. I was getting excited for the show, it seemed like it would be good. We where in the second row, right up front. The guys comes on stage, he seems funny. Does a trick. Again, funny. Then we says he’s selling CDs, yaddayadda. That didn’t surprise me. Then he reads them off, and the one he says is “Lose weight by hypnosis”. WTF? Seriously, way to put a damper on the show. After he said that, I just kept remembering he’s cashing in off of people who want to lose weight. He’s trying to get fatties like me to lose weight, because obviously we want to. Ugh… The show was really good, but after knowing about that CD, I no longer felt the desire to volunteer, nor did I enjoy the show as much as I could have if he wouldn’t have said that.
The other time was last night. I went the freshman Nursing students went to a Student Nurses Association meeting, and got to meet 5 girls who are in this group and are nurses, who are also older than us and have some experience. They were giving us tips and telling us about classes and teachers and that kind of thing. They answered questions. That sort of thing. So I stuck around once everyone else had left- there were other girls who were asking questions and I wanted to hear the answers. So I just kind of stood there listening and not doing much else. We were all getting ready to leave when one of the students asks the older girls “I don’t want to ask this if it’s too personal, but did you gain the freshman 15″….
Me: WTF does this have to do with being a nursing student?
Ugh! Seriously.. I wanted to leave that instant. I don’t like to be around these types of conversations. I don’t know anyone enough to feel comfortable going on a diet rant or something of the same type. I couldn’t just leave in the middle of a response either, so I was stuck. The whole conversation changed to how food is shameful, eat in moderation, don’t eat ice cream, if you eat ice cream use the treadmill, I want to lose 15, etc. UGH! It was painful to have to listen to. It just made me feel bad. Where are the other girls who don’t give a shit about that crap? I certainly haven’t found any. Thankfully, there was one of the older girls who said something like “It doesn’t matter if you’re overweight, so long as you are healthy”, and while those choices of words may bother me, her message was a good one. So I am happy there was one girl who didn’t seem too obsessed with it.
Seriously, are people so obsessed with this freshman 15? Like it’s the end of the earth if you gain 15 pounds? The girl who asked definitely wasn’t fat or even slightly chubby, and they want to lose weight. Blargh. That question was so out of the blue I really wasn’t prepared for it, and I couldn’t believe they asked these women that.
Yep. Freshman 15. Heaven forbid that happens. Of all the worries you have at college, it’s those damn 15 pounds. Not to mention that if you still gained those 15 pounds, you’d probably weight half of me (or whatever). Maybe they don’t see that question as offensive to other people, like me. Maybe they just don’t realize that some people don’t rest their self worth on their weight, or think that 15 pounds will be the death of you.
I have more important things to worry about at college- getting to class on time, totally revamping my study habits, missing my family, missing my friends, feeling alone, feeling stressed and overworked, figuring out what to do on my own, trying to make new friends… Like I have time to worry about something as stupid as the freshman 15. There are more important things in life.
I still have a bad feeling I will be coming across more fat hatred/weight issues in the future here, which I am not looking foreword to, especially considering when I was here for orientation I saw a sign that said “Go from Flab to Fab!”… Ugh.
Hi,
I totally understand your feelings and your anger while listening to that kind of talk. I feel the same and I feel more confortable knowing that other people are aware of the fact that weight is not the most important thing in life. I’m brazilian and I live in Rio de Janeiro. It’s a beautiful town to live in but it’s kind of hard because people here, men and women, are very worried about size, weight, diets and all that jazz.
I don’t consider myself very fat but I’m fat to the brazilian standards and I’m learning to be okay with it, but everyday it’s a new test because my friends and almost everybody is freaking out about weight whether they are fat or not! It’s very annoying and it makes me feel sad a lot of times just listening to that kind of body hatred (regarding other people and also self hate). To know that other people have a different reaction it´s nice. Sometimes I feel very lonely! Kisses Patricia
By: Papumorgado on August 25, 2008
at 7:15 pm
I think I saw in one of your other posts that you were looking at joining the women’s collective on campus, so I am probably just saying what you already know. But anyway, definitely go and check out the women’s collective/room and get involved in that and I really think you’ll meet like minded people. The women’s room was my salvation in college, they get involved in No Diet Day and all sorts of great activities.
Reading your posts lately takes me right back to my first month at college and all the anxieties and stress, but don’t worry, I really think you’ll be fine. It just takes time to settle in. It is one of the biggest things you’ll ever do so there will be hard times, but there be lots of good times- I promise!
By: Tully on August 25, 2008
at 8:36 pm
These girls are probably still trying the whole “Oh, I’m SO FAT” and yet they are tiny. This is an attention getter that a lot of girls use. I’m a size 26 and those comments do not fly with me! haha.
At any rate, you’re still going to find a lot of the freshmen girls who will be stuck in high school for a while. I always made friends with people older than me or at least people my age who were much more mature than average for their age. It sounds like you’ll be looking for those type of people to hang out with too. Waiting to find friends you really fit in with, when you aren’t trying to be like everyone else, can take time and I know it sucks. But, when you find those friends that you really click with it will be worth the wait!! At least you have new classes and stuff to occupy you. Sounds like you’re already getting out there, so good for you!
By: Amy on August 26, 2008
at 12:12 pm
OMG, I totally understand what you mean by all of this. When I was struggling to get through my first year at college, I ended throwing up frequently–I was just that homesick. So, I went to the nurse’s office for some help, and one of the first things I was told by the nurse was, “Well, make sure you are eating right and getting plenty of exercise. You don’t want to gain that freshman 15!” Um, yeah… like staying on top of all the classes and adjusting to the new living arrangements were less important. At the time, I wanted to say, “I just told you I’ve been throwing up (also, NOT eating cuz I’m nauseaous all the time), and you want me be careful not to gain weight? Because that will make me more depressed/more homesick?”
And it takes a LONG time to find those special people who you can share this kind of stuff with. The first semester is mostly just getting to class and doing laundry and trying not to kill your roommate.
Don’t worry–just from reading your blog, I know you’ll make some great friends! And, who knows? Maybe you could be the one to initiate programs on campus that advocate fat and size acceptance? It’s hard at first, but don’t lose hope!
By: DollyAnn on August 27, 2008
at 12:24 pm
Hi Liz, i have been following your blog because i find it very interesting.
I wanted to tell you about something weird i found on the internet, it was powered by a google ad! I can’t believe it…
http://www.truthaboutabs.com/flat-sexy-stomach.html
I can’t stand how people can talk against miracle diets and stuff, yet they sell books to “fat” people saying the same as the miracle exercises and diets. .I don’t know if that thing works or not…i just find it plain weird o_O
Oh well, i hope you are doing alright at the moment, see you around :3
By: Janna on August 28, 2008
at 2:25 pm
It’s been a while since I was a college student (*ahem*) but I do know that stress – any stress – can cause your biochemistry and habits to change so that you gain or lose weight.
I am currently suffering from the “dead-parent 15″ zomg I gained about that much over this past year…after the sudden death of my mom!
You can be sure of one thing in life…..however you are now? Thin, fat, pretty, old, young….you won’t be that way forever. People’s bodies are constantly changing, whether we feel or realize it or not. And one day we’ll all die.
So.
Good for you saying F*%K YOU to the “freshman 15 fear”
By: hope505 on August 28, 2008
at 3:07 pm
I compleately agree with you that hearing people constantly talk about losing weight is annoying, but with that being said, you are in college. Be prepared to hear a lot more, from a lot skinnier people. I get so sick of it, but sometimes you just have to put things in perspective. You decided not to buy into the bull that you must be skinny to be worthy, and they did buy it. I have a friend that weighs 103lbs and wants to lose 5 more lbs. To me, thats insane, she already looks like a skelleton but she does not feel worthy to be on this planet unless she weighs less than triple digits. I feel comfortable at 200+ lbs. She doesn’t eat most days so that she can “feel comfortable” at less than 100lbs. She tells me all the time she wishes she had my confidence. BTW: Im happily married, have a great job that I love, own my own place, and consider myself successful.
You tell me who is lucky.
You tell me who has the better life.
Please, gaining or losing 15 lbs will not effect my life, and I will not let it.
By: Melissa on September 1, 2008
at 8:55 am
Oy, the freshman 15. The persistence of that particular meme made me totally freaked out about food my own freshman year in college, my eating issues flared up like they hadn’t since I was ten (yeah, I was “precocious” that way) and I wound up losing like 8 pounds (on top of the 5 I’d lost for similar reasons when I first went on the pill). Turns out losing 13 pounds can in fact affect your life–for the worse, at least. Turns out my body 13 pounds lighter than it had been for a pretty long time at that point doesn’t work very well. It gets tired all the time and it loses bone density and it generally feels like crap. If I’d had someone like you around… well, it probably wouldn’t have helped much at the time, I had a lot of issues going on. But I would have appreciated it all the same.
(also, hi, found your blog, love your blog, will be reading your blog in the future)
By: Isabel on September 5, 2008
at 6:06 am
I always felt the “freshman 15″ thing is so overdone and it made me cringe to listen to people talk about it even before I was into fat acceptance.
I however, gained the “freshman 40″ which I doubt was very good for my system. It’s been 7 years since then and I have gained and lost in cycles since then (and I’m trying very hard to find a “set point” which has always been very elusive to me.. I tend to believe my body doesn’t have a natural set point and I just fluctuate rapidly in either direction never staying one weight more than a couple months). So I guess I have the “university 55lbs” on me now haha.
I wish someone like you had been around me to reassure me that my body was ok whether or not it looked like it did in high school. Find girls who may drive you nuts with their diet talk, and let them know that they don’t have to feel ashamed about food or their bodies. They need your voice of reason.
By: gnomeprincess on September 8, 2008
at 5:44 pm
These girls are looking at shit all wrong!
The only time you should be concerned abot the freshmen 15… is if you gain it in a day, in which case you either need a new scale, or there might be something wrong with you.
ARGH, ladies, GET IT RIGHT.
By: The University Princess on September 24, 2008
at 3:57 pm