Monday, June 13, 2011

Who Said Looks Don't Matter?

I lost weight for myself and my children. I was unhealthy due to the excess weight and I wanted to set a better example for my kids. Those were my main goals. However, it would be a lie to say that I didn't also do it because I wanted to look better. There aren't too many people who don't want to be able to look good and feel attractive to the people they are interested in. Those who say that don't are probably lying. I only know a handful of women who are truly 100% happy in their own skin. I think that's fabulous and I hope to find that in myself before I die.

If there's one thing I've noticed since losing weight it's that looks sadly do matter. I recently read an article about overweight women earning less than overweight men. This doesn't shock me. But I have to admit that it's interesting to observe these types of things in person. I've always been a little slow to recognize when a guy was hitting on me and things of that nature, so it took me a while to notice the difference in the treatment I receive as a thin person versus when I was heavy.

But I've started to notice...a lot. I've lived here my whole life. I shop in the same places and interact with the same people on a regular basis. It's amazing how many people looked straight through me when I was heavy and jump to help me now that I've lost weight. It's not like I've changed much else. I've always tried to look my best, smell good, and I'm pretty outgoing. The difference in my treatment is very obvious and while it is flattering sometimes, it's also disturbing. It's hard to tell your children that looks don't matter when it's so obvious that they do.

I wish I had some magic solution to this issue. I want my kids to know that their value is not in how they look, but who they are. But at the same time, I know I think about how I present myself to the world and I know that I take advantage of the benefits that my new appearance brings me. People can say that looks don't matter...but they do, and I'm just not sure how I feel about that.