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by Golda Poretsky, H.H.C.
www.bodylovewellness.com

Last week, fat activist and blogger extraordinaire, Marianne Kirby, asked her twitter followers to share some fat positive affirmations.  I loved watching my twitter account flutter with fat positivity!  Affirmations like, “Every body, fat or thin or whatever, is worthy of basic human respect,” “I’m awesome at any size I happen to be!” and “Happiness is not a dress size,” intermittently popped up on my screen throughout the day.

I loved seeing these affirmations, not only because they are positive, but because, to me, they represent the truth, and it’s a truth that we rarely hear.  People will have a reaction to statements like “Happiness is not a dress size,” whether they agree with it or not, because it goes against the grain of conventional wisdom.  Those of us who are steeped in fat acceptance might react with a “right on!” or a “I really want to believe that for myself” and those who don’t believe in fat acceptance would probably tack on a bunch of caveats or flat out say that it’s not true.

In the world of logical reasoning, statements are either true or false. The cup is either red or it isn’t.  Being fat is unhealthy or it isn’t.  But these statements aren’t true due to any inherent truth, they are true because we’ve deemed them true.  In the world of simple logic, we decide that certain statements are true and we proceed from there.  What we call statements of truth are really just assumptions of truth.

Similarly, so much of what we believe to be the truth about ourselves, our bodies, and our health is based upon assumptions that we believe to be fact.  That drum of “but fat is unhealthy” is just an assumption that gets beaten a gazillion times a day, so much so that the assumption seems like truth.  We do the same thing to ourselves, deciding that it’s the truth that we’re “too fat to _______” or “need to lose weight before we can  __________.”  When you look critically at what you take as irrefutable fact, you can break down any assumptions that may be limiting you.

Addressing Your Assumptions

Take a moment to fill in this blank for yourself.

“I believe that I am too fat to
___________________________________________________.”

(If this statement doesn’t apply to you, take a moment to think of some beliefs that you have about other areas of your life, such as relationships, work, or creativity.)

Let’s say that you came up with a number of things, and one of them was “I believe I’m too fat to wear sleeveless clothing.”  We’ll use that as an example.

Now let’s break that down by thinking about the assumptions that underlie the belief that you’re too fat to wear sleeveless clothing.  You might assume:

Wearing sleeveless clothing will make me look fatter.
People will notice how fat my arms are.
Fat arms aren’t socially acceptable.
Fat arms aren’t attractive.

Now let’s take a look at these assumptions.  Are any of these really the truth?  Can you think of situations or instances where these statement were untrue?  I know that I can.

Looking at your assumptions, particularly when those assumptions are limiting, is helpful when you can recognize that those assumptions are not the truth. They’re just assumptions that you heard enough or believed enough that you decided that they were true.  And, therefore, you can decide that they’re untrue.

Letting go of assumptions that hold you back is incredibly freeing and important for your well-being.  Clearing away negative assumptions about who you are or what you can do allows you to pursue and create your desires.

What are some assumptions you’d like to be free of?  Let me know in the comments below!

Golda is a certified holistic health counselor and founder of Body Love Wellness, a program designed for plus-sized women who are fed up with dieting and want support to stop obsessing about food and weight. To learn more about Golda and her work, click here.