I have been fat nearly all my life and the one thing that annoys me most (apart from my size 20 (UK) clothes) are the people who discriminate against 'big' people.

I read in a newspaper article a while back that 'big' people are far less likely to get a job if they are up against a 'normal sized' person. ETC ETC....

I have seen first hand that when you are big you are treated differently in society, in my opinion we are sometimes seen as being intelectually slower than 'normal sized' people or sometimes we can be seen as being lazy etc..

I believe that society should not be allowed to discriminate against obese people just as you are not allowed to be racist or discrimitive against people's age, sex etc..

Over here in the UK there are some NHS hospitals that will not give some treatments to obese people because they are obese!! It is disgusting. My mother needed an urgent scan and she was in an NHS hospital for 1 week. The nurse asked my Mum how much she weighed, soon after this each day the scan was cancelled (without explanation) I believe it was because my mother was classed as obese. Also people who need hip operations etc.. are being turned down because they are classed as obese (this particular lady was 14 pounds overweight)

We need to stop this discrimination now, obesity is a illness that is affecting more and more of us, we should all live in harmony no matter what we are like on the outside.

Lauren xx

That's silly to think the people who are discriminated against and it's a "real" problem in our culture should be the ones to change!!! Some of the worse discriminators are current fat or previously fat people. Sizism is "real" discrimination and people should really think long and hard about this one. It affects all of us.:tongue:

There's all sorts of bias. Unless you're a young, thin, pretty/handsome individual, you can about forget it. :tongue:

But we can help by not worshiping thinness or youth. Going back to aging gracefully like our grandmothers did and didn't have to be thin once they hit menopause or get botox or plastic surgery or have larger breasts. I feel bad for the next generation. I know this topic is way too volatile for a WLS forum so I will leave before I start a war, lol!

Anyone wonder how much yo yo dieting attributed to our weight gains and if we had only ate normally and not had to try every diet out there we may be much thinner and healthier than we are now and possibly WLS would never have entered into the picture? Doing my part tomorrow by removing the collar and leash and going back to being a normal human being who doesn't spend 100% of her time worrying about how she looks or how many points are in that and getting her life back!:tongue:

Nanook: "Some of the worse discriminators are current fat or previously fat people. Sizism is "real" discrimination and people should really think long and hard about this one. It affects all of us."

I agree with this statement. I've even seen it on here, which really suprises me, as I would expect those who want or have had the band would be more understanding. However, it's almost like those (and this is a weird comparison, but I'm a bit weird) serial killers that kill gay men, because secretly they are gay and cannot deal with it. I think some people are discrimatory those who are overweight because they hope they are never in that situation (or back in that situation, in the case of some)

I feel that no matter how much weight I lose, I will always be fat inside. I have 2 boys that I have raised to never call a woman (or anyone actually) "fat", the word was not allowed in our house.

Do you think there is discrimination against obese people?

I don't know- I'm not going to be fat anymore to find out!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yes. There is discrimination. I have always been one who has a great super-friendly attitude and that has gotten me far in life. BUT, I AM treated differently since losing weight. People hold doors for me if I am going into a store, they look at me in the eyes, they TALK to me more now. Yes. Talk to me. In my retail job, I am treated with more respect. It is an odd thing, the obese discrimination. Even in my obesity, I'd sometimes think to myself, "That person is fatter. At least I have more self control" type mentality. But since the band, and with my change in perception, and in my KNOWING that my obesity was due to being hungry and not being out of control, I no longer see people that way. I hope more science comes out that will wipe those thoughts out of people's heads. It is a sad, sad thing.

I was not always fat. I grew up "normal" sized and stayed "normal" sized until I had my first child at 25. I got a bit chubby and couldn't take it off, then after I had my second child at 33 I got a LOT more chubby and switched to a very stressful job which added more pounds on until I eventually got FAT and reached my highest point of 213 which had me RUNNING to the lap band surgeon.

I will admit that while I have sympathy for fat people (being one myself now) I have been prejudiced against fat people and still am to a certain degree. If I see someone who is really obese, it shocks and turns me off. Then I see a mirror and wonder who the hell is that fat chick. It's a sad, sad thing. . .

Although I have not personally experienced this, I know it does occur.

Yes I think that we are discriminated against, but I also think that it is engrained in all of us. Whether or not we realize it or admit it, I think that we all have some small degree of prejudice engrained in us.

For example, I never thought of myself as being biased one way or another (especially being over weight myself). Until one day I was watching someone’s picture slideshow online. In one picture there were a group of people, and one was very overweight. I didn’t take a second look at her. In a later picture there was a group of friends together and there was one very pretty girl who looked like she was having an especially fun time. I thought to myself, wow, I bet she would be a really fun friend to have! I later learned that that was the same woman as the earlier picture, after she had lost weight! Imagine how terrible I felt! I never realized it until that point, but I am somehow prejudice against fat people sub-consciously. And I think that everyone is to a point. It’s so sad :-(

Nobody's girl,

you seem pretty aware of what's going on by your own experiences. Our society is completely weight biased and it is wrong. Maybe in our PC world the only place that appears safe to still poke fun at are fat people All you have to do is turn on the TV and every commercial tells you in one way or another why people of size are bad or ugly or lazy or unacceptable in some form or another. We've learned this behavior. Not every culture learns that fat is bad or ugly or wrong but ours definitely does. Fat people have to hate their fat and thin people are always in fear of becoming fat. I suppose the more we're aware of this and understand how wrong it is it's possible to one day change how we feel and treat others and ourselves. Nancy:thumbup:

oh god yes! i lost 104 pounds about 6 years ago and EVERYTHING changed, men were looking at me, people would smile at me, hold doors open for me, super nice to me etc....then i noticed as I gained weight people would stare at me, not hold doors open, treat me like I was a brick wall or being ignored at...the thing is I am fat because I ate AND because I have PCOS which makes my body hard to process sugar and it caused me to gain weight....I don't think a lot of people stop to give thought to that they automatically assumed i got fat for eating 10 mcdonald's meal a day when in reality yes, i was eating more than i should but i was also making smarter choices (i.e. grilled chicken, veggies etc) and yet some people YET to see this....however I know that men are HUGE contributors to discrinimate against larger women...I've been through enough rejections and have been told a few times on occasion "your a really nice girl but your size isn't my type...good luck". It gets frustating and its no wonder why some people revert back to their old habits...its their "comfort".