Why do strangers think it’s okay to comment on someone’s body, especially when they have no idea what someone is going through? Lately I have been experiencing more judgment than I ever have because I work at a public restaurant, where I see regular customers quite often. I’ve been at this job for almost a decade and I started here as a teenager, so obviously my body has changed over the years. But, what annoys me the most about working in the public eye is that people are just genuinely rude and judgemental. I’ve been asked multiple times by my regular customers if I’m pregnant, or if I’ve “let myself go.” I’ve also had two separate people, who I don’t even know, ask me if I agree/ also think that I’ve gained weight. People have asked me if “covid’s got the best of me” or just tell me that I “look bigger and my face has more weight to it.” What I think is the craziest part of all of this is that I think I’m pretty skinny. Am I the 100lb girl I was when I was 15? No, and am I only 130lbs? Yes. But, it has been proven to me that people only categorize girls to be skinny based off of what they have seen on social media. 

To make this story even worse, the only people who have ever commented on my weight or acknowledge the change in my body have only come from the mouth of WOMEN. I feel like it is really hard for me to  wrap my head around the idea of women supporting women because I constantly deal with people like this. It frustrates me because the pressure from social media has caused more division in women, rather than solidarity. Which is upsetting because in today’s society we are in desperate need for true women’s support. 

I brought this up though because I want to tie it back to our class when we talked about how we think work can shape our bodies, in week 6. 

My body is the way it is because I am a growing and developing young female, where I automatically am going through biological changes. Plus the damage of 60 hour work weeks, and the overstimulation from mentally drainage from being a full time college student, and all the environmental changes have taken a toll on my body. No one tells you that your twenties are the hardest years of your life. Personally, people have glamorized what my twenties were going to be. My parents and grandparents would explain that your twenties are the best times of your life and to enjoy every moment because you’ll be in your prime. I’m in my twenties, half way through and I am still waiting for when the best times will start. It blows my mind that no one talks about how your twenties are the HARDEST times of your life. Your body changes dramatically in your twenties, and you have no choice but to just adapt to the changes and continue on with life. These changes could be environmental, biological, physical, or mental changes. Your twenties is the time where you are simply just figuring things out, and that’s not the easiest. I actually find it to be the messiest. 

Anyways, all of these factors have an effect on the physical appearance of my body. The body that represents me and the body I have to show to the world. I know it’s okay to go through these changes and I don’t really let the thoughts of other people bring me down or hurt my self-esteem. But, what’s sad to say is that I didn’t think like this until recently. My job has shaped me into this tougher person because working with the public is hard and can affect people if they let them. I used to let others’ opinions crush me, but now I truly don’t care what people think. People are entitled to their own opinions and I respect that, the only thing I don’t respect and will not tolerate is the pure rudeness from strangers. And I thank my labored body for allowing me to become like this.