Sorry, I should have spelled it out, not my sister-in-law, but my
son-in-law - *HER FATHER* - is the one calling her porker. He makes a huge
issue of it every time she puts something into her mouth. He's always been
this way with my daughter, too. She always wore a size *negative* one, then
she had some problems getting off of Effexor and gained about 10 pounds

Well, for what it's worth, my mother cried and said that I was 'too fat
to lead a normal life' when I was a whopping size 16 as a teenager.
Parents are remarkably stupid when it comes to knowing the effect they
have on their children. My mother sent me down a path of bad self-esteem
that led to a suicide attempt or two, a breakdown, years of therapy,
finally ending at a size 32 and no desire to ever diet again. I exercise,
and eat healthy and that's as far as I'm going. Never again am I going
to let the number on a scale tell me how I should feel that day. Never.

My 6-yr-old niece is already feeling the pressure, and comes home from
school saying that kids are calling her fat. She is tall, and pretty,
and very smart, and nobody in her family will ever put her through what
our mother did, but she's getting it from school. Furthermore, her
little pot belly is caused by the liver transplant when she was
7 months old, and the swollen spleen from later problems. Absolutely
nothing to do with her eating habits. But kids are cruel, and this
country is constantly pushing out the message 'better dead than fat'.

Oh dear, do I sound bitter? You betcha.

Jane
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