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For the last few months, the world has been gripped by a scary and infectious disease. The public have done their best to practice social distancing, flatten the curve and lessen the spread of coronavirus.
Loneliness and isolation have been one of the hardest parts of lockdown for many, and fortunately, the internet has provided connection to others and laughter amid the bleakness.
But between the funny memes and tweets about exes sliding into DMs, theres a repeated joke that has harmful effects.
From a slew of before and after photos, to have you gained the Covid 19 pounds?, youve probably seen some form of fat joke come up on your timelines.
They all roughly follow in the same vein - the quarantine 15 is the new freshman 15, or Ive finished all my isolation snacks, or Im not going to be able to fit into my clothes after lockdown! - and they all contain the underlying themes of fatphobia and disordered eating.
This obsession with staying thin begs the question - why are we worried about gaining weight in a time as scary as a pandemic?
Ultimately, the idea that gaining weight is bad and losing weight is good is a message that everyone, especially women, are taught from a young age. The message is then consistently reinforced via the media and pop culture, who intrinsically link weight to health - even though you cannot tell how healthy someone is just by looking at them.
Weve been taught diet culture since birth, says Grace Victory, a columnist and TV presenter who is well-known for her inspiring words and fierce fashion sense. We have ingrained in us that your self-worth is pinned on what you do, what you achieve and what you look like.
Diet culture, as Megan Crabbe explains it, is our culture's obsession with fitness and weight loss, and one certain body type being the route to happiness.
Megan runs bodyposipanda, one of the most successful body positive accounts on Instagram. Her goal is to normalise varied body sizes, shine a light on other marginalised bodies, and help everyone, especially young women, know that having a few rolls is not a bad thing.
Be wary of the companies that are using the pandemic to capitalise and sell products that don't work - diet pills, detox teas, wraps, whatever it is, Megan says, Be wary that they are trying to trick you - it is only about making money, it's not about making anyone any happier.
Since lockdown started, Megan has been posting reassuring messages to her followers, such as I will not blame my body for changing during this time and Hey, your body is trying its best to carry you through a really f**king scary and uncertain time. Maybe give it a break if it gets a little softer in the process.
At the beginning of lockdown, we were getting lots of posts through from Italy about what people were doing in their communities, Megan said. People were playing instruments on balconies. And I saw something that said, figure out what your instrument is and use it.
For me, my instrument is how I try to make people just be a bit kinder to themselves. And Instagram is the main place that I do that. So I figured I'm just going to carry on doing that, amplify it to match the level of anxiety we're all feeling, and do my best to keep putting out some comforting, reassuring stuff.
Among Megans messages have been that jokes about leaving lockdown 100lbs heavier arent funny, theyre fatphobic.
I think people dont realise that every little joke adds up to our perception of fat people, she says, using fatness as a punchline won't make you feel any better about your body, but it will reinforce oppressive belief systems that lead to stigma and prejudice against fat people. Peoples bodies aren't punchlines.
I understand people's fear of gaining weight, says Grace Victory, referencing the lack of education around food and exercise. Women are now being told not only to be slim and toned, but to have a flat stomach but also big boobs, a big bum, but slim thighs - do you see how ridiculous this sounds when saying it out loud?
Weve been sold a dream - some people have woken up from it, and some people havent. And this is why I spread the message of really streamlining and using social media for you, and only following people that uplift you.
On the weight-gain memes that have been circulating, Grace says: I know that people don't mean it to be offensive a lot of the time, and people will say its just banter. But it's not. It's just banter until someone takes their own life. It's just banter until someone's got suicidal thoughts, or until someone develops an eating disorder.
"On Twitter or Instagram, people think it's just jokes. But unfortunately, often those memes are of real people. A day-to-day person, or a person who could be working for the NHS or be on the frontline. And you're mocking them because of the way they look.
Michelle Elman, an author and life coach who runs the popular account @scarrednotscared, is also making social media more varied place.
I think it's really indicative to how pervasive and powerful diet culture is that we're all focusing on body image in a pandemic. There are way larger things in the world going on. If the main thing youre focussing on is your body, its largely because it's a coping mechanism - not because there's actually something wrong with your body.
In a pandemic, weight gain should not be your main concern ##iaminmisery ##bodypositive ##bodypositivity ##bodyconfidence ##bodyconfident ##plussize
Its possible an increased focus on body image came as peoples exercise routines got thrown off in lockdown. With gyms closed and with exercise regimes limited at points, people werent able to rely on their normal exercise schedules.
This increased pressure to work out and make sure your exercise routine is the same as it was prior to the pandemic is unrealistic, says Michelle, We're having to process more emotions on a daily basis than we ever would need to prior to a pandemic.
We have so many more stress hormones, adrenaline and cortisol pumping through our bodies - simply to just exist and survive this period.
Michelle has been taking to TikTok to counter harmful narratives and negative body image. Its even subtle things, like filming TikToks without make up, to show its okay to be lounging around the house, its okay not to be dressed up.
You know what they say about assumptions... ##blessyoursoul
A lot of people arent just worrying about weight, theyre worrying about grey hair or that they cant get their nails done. Those will bring up insecurities, so showing those off is just reminding people - it's normal, it's natural, it's human, you're beautiful no matter what.
I would be lying if I said that the constant jokes about leaving the pandemic with a six-pack didnt affect me, because people are so obsessed with leaving this pandemic not looking like me, Grace says.
But diet culture is just a way to keep us small, keep us rigid, and keep us in line. And when you you break free of it, you have all this emotional brain space to actually create a life that you love.
"You can't do that when you're trying to maintain a body that no one actually gives two damns about. Its a long process that will take years and years to unlearn. But you dont have to live with unkind thoughts about yourself all of the time.
Theres a life waiting for you if you would just stop trying to be small.
If you are struggling with an eating disorder, you can find help here.
