The Facets Of Body Positivity That Needs To Be Addressed Actively

By Ruchika Verma

• Body positivity is a beautiful and very empowering concept
• However, it is slowly becoming constantly flawed because of stereotyping and shaming
• Body positivity is a two-way street where we don't need to tear down one body type to make the other feel better

Body Positivity is a beautiful concept. It encourages one to feel confident in their own skin. It is all about celebrating ourselves and our body. Body positivity is all about loving and accepting our bodies as they are, ignoring whatever standards society tries to dump upon us.

But are we really going that way?

One may think, yes. The world is definitely becoming more accepting of all body types and skin colours, but at what cost? Most of the body positivity movements that public is aware of are the people who are on the 'healthier side' of the body-size spectrum. 'Fat' has almost become an insult. But what about the 'Thin'?

Be it Nicki Minaj, Meghan Trainor, or any other mainstream artist who people like to listen to, they all have just one thing to tell – Big butts are in and 'skinny bitches' may go out.

Where does that leave the body positive movements? Isn't it highly ironical that we put down one body type in order to empower the another?

Appreciating one body type is good, amazing even, but when one body type is getting empowered while putting the other down; that's when we need to think about the hypocrisy that we indulge in.

Blaming skinny people for the fate of chubby people is not only irrational but also extremely ridiculous. There is no denying in the fact that thin people have the benefit of being perceived as more healthy and beautiful by the society throughout the years, but we need to understand that it is not the case anymore.

Plus-size individuals do need more encouragement and empowerment for all the stigma they have attached to themselves but doing it at the cost of self-esteem of other body types is certainly not the way to go.

To remove the stigma from one body type, do we really need to attach it to another body type?

If fat-shaming is brutally hurtful, the skinny-shaming hurts no less. We are disillusioned to a point where obesity has become a major concern whereas half the population is clueless about disorders like Anorexia.

Body positivity is slowly becoming a highly confounded concept where asking someone to lose weight is seen more as an insult than a health concern. And then the hypocrisy of the fact that asking someone to lose weight is insulting, whereas asking someone to eat more is not.

Curves are beautiful but that doesn't mean skinny arms aren't. The hypocrisy with which everyone sees body positivity needs to change. Also, we need to understand that body positivity is not gender specific.

If insulting a girl for her body is not fair, then insulting a boy for the same is just as unfair. Shaming a guy for being too thin while appreciating a girl of the same is where we are going wrong with body positivity as well as equality.

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Body positivity needs to be a two-way road. It is all about empowerment. However, the concept is getting lost and is becoming muddy water for many to understand.

The size of shirt or dress you wear doesn't matter more than your own health. Eating what you like and when you like is absolutely okay as long as you're healthy. Body positivity is all about embracing our bodies and being healthy. We don't need to tear other body types down in order to feel good about ourselves.

Not all chubby people are cute and not all skinny people are attitude-ridden lads. It is high time we gave up stereotypes and learn to co-exist with others as well as ourselves.

Our body is much more than what exterior form, it is the home to our essence and being. It needs to be loved, admired, and most importantly accepted as it is. If we are to change anything in our body, it should be because we want to and not because we need to under the pressure of the society.

Society and media have made our bodies a taboo, but we need to rise above all the stereotyping and shaming. Body positivity is not just about physical health but also mental, psychological and spiritual health. Our bodies are our own and only thing which matters is its health along with our own.