Gum on My Shoe

By Rebecca Lombardo I couldn’t stop staring at the pictures. I’ve pulled them up on my phone more times than I can count, just trying to convince myself they’re real. The first time I saw that “before” picture, I was completely flabbergasted. I knew I was overweight, but I had no idea it looked like that. We didn’t even have a full-length mirror in the house at the time, so I never really saw the full picture. But seeing them side by side? It stopped me. More than a year apart, and it feels like I’m looking at two completely different lives. Back then, my day-to-day life was the best I could make of it while living with crippling depression and constant pain. My knees were so bad that just getting to the restroom meant using a walker. Some days, even the smallest tasks felt overwhelming. I knew I was struggling. I knew my quality of life had changed drastically. But the pain was so intense that I could only focus on getting through a couple things each day. Even something as...

Hosted by the Mental Health Foundation , Mental Health Awareness Week took place from 13-19 May 2019. The theme this year was Body Image – how we think and feel about our bodies – and I thought it would be good to draw together some of the things we’ve been involved with. There was a lot going on at work (BPDTS Ltd) through the week, including a number of excellent posts on our corporate blog. There was a company-wide dial-in call on stress, and a lunchtime meet and greet. I also attended a meeting of Mental Health First Aiders. I was invited to contribute three articles, including one for the main DWP Digital blog. What Mental Health Awareness Week Means to Me , hosted by DWP Digital Body Image Q&A for Mental Health Awareness Week , hosted by Aimee Wilson at I’m NOT Disordered What Does Mental Health Awareness Week Mean to Me? , hosted by Beka Lombardo at It’s Not Your Journey Fran and I had the privilege of publishing two brilliant guest articles here at Gum on My Shoe...

By Charlotte Underwood This is my body. What I see: Scars Fat Imperfections What I feel: Fear Vulnerability Disgust What I know: A body that’s kept me alive for 23 years A body winning against binge eating A body that is mine and no one else’s A strong ass woman The thing with body positivity and body image is that it’s hard work. Most people can’t stare at a mirror and force themselves to love what they see. Many people have a love/hate relationship with their body. But over time, we can learn to be proud of our bodies and our skin. When I was a teenager, I literally stopped eating properly and I worked out a lot because I felt like I was being judged for my weight. I felt I wouldn’t be loved as a larger girl. And you know what? I wish I never had to feel like that. I am learning to look after my body and my mind for myself. I do not let anyone tell me that I should lose a few pounds or sort out my appearance, because it’s not their right. Your bod...

By Jen Evans When I think about body image, the first thing that occurs to me is that women seem to have to deal with this more than men. But I’ve never chatted with a man about this subject so I don’t know how valid that is. On a daily basis, men and women are confronted with ideas and images about what they ought to look like on magazine covers and in the world of celebrity. In my thinking, all of these images are airbrushed and not realistic. From the Middle Ages to the Renaissance, a larger woman was considered normal and of noble status because she could afford to feed herself. If we take a look at the Mona Lisa we can see that she’s no Twiggy. She’s full-bodied and buxom. That was what people considered attractive at that time. Somewhere along the catwalk, I feel we went horribly wrong. Even in the Fifties here in America, women like Marilyn Monroe were more like an hourglass than a Barbie Doll. Maybe it’s because of ladies like Twiggy that the unrealistic body image man...

I wasn’t disappointed in you when your weight went up because you ate all the girl scout cookies. Although maybe it seemed that way when I suggested you throw them away or gift them to someone next time, and lectured you about average daily calories. As though that would fix your relationship with your body. I wasn’t disappointed in you when you told me you cut yourself. Although maybe it seemed that way when I said remember I’m here. Don’t ever feel you’d be a burden or that I’d be too busy or asleep. As though I can make the demons go away. I wasn’t disappointed in you when you went back to sleep after our prearranged wake-up call. Although maybe it seemed that way when I started calling a second time or a third to make sure you were up. As though your day starts better in my hands. I wasn’t disappointed in you when you told me there’s no hope, no job, no friends for you so why bother trying. Although maybe it seemed that way when I pushed suggestions in your face you’d trie...

  May I be light. May I be thin. May I be fit. May I be whole. May I be patient. May I love my body. May I love my food. May I love my light.   By Fran Houston  

By Charlotte Underwood I hate my body. I just do. I can remember looking into the mirror and hating my body as a child. Even as a teenager, I hated it. As an adult, still not a fan. I’ve been so many different weights, my body’s changed with age. I’ve worked out, dyed my hair, got tattoos and piercings. But nothing makes me happy. The thing is, self love is more than a mirror. It’s deeper. Self love is mental. When you judge someone for their appearance, they remember it. When you call someone fat, they feel it. When you break someone’s confidence, they know it. My low self-esteem comes from years of being called ‘fat’, ‘obese’, ‘ugly’ and ‘unlovable’, all by people I trusted. I actually didn’t hate how I looked, until someone told me where to look. That’s important to remember, this whole epidemic of people wanting to change how they look, doing diets, hurting their body’s to be ‘perfect’... is because we created it. We made that. We made people feel this way. So I don’t c...