This is Thin Privilege

and like. do we have to keep gently phrasing things to protect naturally-thin people's feelings. in my life it has never been fashionable to be fat. "fat" is still a bad word. there has never been institutional power pushing people to gain weight; no trillion-dollar industry to "fix" skinny people. a larger body type has never been over-represented in models, influencers, celebrities. sure, people might say "i'm worried for your health," but they do it with respect and gentleness, like they're talking to a scared deer.

every single fucking time i talk about this, i have to be so careful with what i say, in case i offend even one skinny person. it is just true that skinny people have social capital across many cultures. there is a reason you almost never hear someone say "i wish i was fat," but you will constantly see people say "I wish i was thin." and yet inevitably some skinny person will tell me: i thought you wanted body positivity. it is the same fucking attitude as when a cis man says "when you say men have power, well, i've been bullied for being a man. i thought you believe in mental health awareness. don't you know men have a higher suicide rate?"

two things can be true at once: your experience being bullied for being thin was terrible. and people with larger bodies probably have it worse.

i have been big and small. i know many other people who have been big and small. trust what i'm about to tell you: being small is much easier. the world is kinder to you. people treat you better. honestly, this pattern occurs pretty much regardless of gender - my guy friends have confided that they'd rather be bullied for being thin than be bullied for being fat. if you're skinny, the pressure might be to gain weight, sure, but it's often to do so in a way that keeps you skinny - to gain muscle, specifically.

thinness is seen as innate and natural, genetic. whereas carrying any fat - that is a moral failing. it is assumed to be related to your character, your personality. i have seen people equate it to discipline, to hygiene. that bias is why we need to talk about this.

uh anyways if anyone has any good resources for chubby n fat reference photos uh drop it pls

Figurosity has a variety of body shapes in their library!

Fat Photo Ref is password protected to keep out fetishists (which ... Okay time to password project libraries of thin people pose references to keep out the skinny fetishists. Whatever. Just be respectful ig) but you can request access

Morpho of course, which is a print book you have to buy, but I bet you can find pages from it online

Pinterest is good for references. I searched "fat Photo reference" and found 12+ fat people in beautiful poses. There's a lot of ads and AI on there but still. I searched for boards but couldn't find any so maybe someone can put together a fat Pinterest board with many different sizes and shapes, or share if you already have one?

This site has some good examples (NUDE FIGURE PHOTO REFERENCE AHEAD) specifically for female references.

Here's one for sale from a model's kofi for $5 (I accidentally reposted this while trying to share. Pray for me)

Also have you considered using one of the many beautiful fat people on Tumblr that post pictures? Many fat tgirls specifically. @feedeekate and @softwheeliegirl come to mind first. If you DM them asking if it's okay to draw them I'm sure they'd be delighted

I miraculously managed to find a weight neutral OBGYN recently for my own PCOS. You may have some luck if you search for fat positive Facebook groups for your area. I've seen some local fat positive Facebook groups, and those groups have been very helpful for finding weight neutral healthcare and other resources as well as talking about our experiences as fat people. Those groups can also sometimes be a way to buy plus size clothes.

I'm not completely sure, but I think an OBGYN who is educated on the queer community and healthcare for queer people may be more likely to understand medical fatphobia. That's definitely not 100% a given, but I know that my OBGYN is most known for her understanding of queer people, and her office hadn't even realized that fat people were recommending her services as well.

I'm really glad you know that starvation and weight loss are bullshit. That will help you navigate the medical fatphobia. It's so fucked up that we have to actively protect ourselves from being harmed by supposed "medical professionals." I hope you're doing okay, and don't forget that you deserve to exist without abusing your body into unsustainable thinness!

🏺🫧🗡LONG REST🗡🫧🏺

A soft, peaceful illustration with fun lighting I really enjoyed creating.