"I am fatter right now than I've been in a while, but I'm also happier."
Tess Holliday hit back after one TikTok user said they started following a number of "really big fat [people]" on the platform as inspiration to lose weight, explaining to them and all her followers that weight loss isn't a shortcut to happiness.
Responding to a user who wrote, "I've been following really big fat ppl so I could see how others see me. was so grossed out, I lost over 150 pounds so far," Holliday posted a video to her page on Thursday night and responded directly to the comment.
"That is all happening in a bubble. You are seeking out content of larger-bodied individuals as a way to make yourself feel better, which is kind of a weird thing in general, especially when I can guarantee a lot of the larger-bodied individuals you're following have happy, full lives not despite them being fat, but they just are," began the model and body positivity activist.
"I'm used to people using me as their 'Before' pictures and inspo but the reality is that I've gotten fatter over the years, my weight's fluctuated, but the one thing that I have maintained through all of this is my joy," she continued. "I am fatter right now than I've been in a while, but I'm also happier. There's so many people commenting lately saying they can see my joy radiating and that's how other people see me."
"They see the joy. Yeah some people are going to see the fat and not pay attention to the joy, but if you're putting out into the world that you're grossed out by yourself, then more than likely that's how you're going to be perceived," said Holliday.
Tess Holliday Reveals She's 'Anorexic and In Recovery' Before Hitting Back at Toxic Trolls
View StoryThe model noted that while she may be "fat and happy," the world at large still won't treat her "like I have sunshine shooting out of my ass, because that's not the case" and the majority of people are still "unkind to fat people." Holliday added, "But I'm also not going to shrink myself and be something I am not to make people happy and comfortable."
She concluded her video by telling the original commenter, "Glad you can use us fat folks as inspiration for you not being fat but I would really check the inside on your journey to thinness because I can guarantee that's not going to bring you the happiness that you're looking for."
"And heaven forbid you gain all that weight back. What are you gonna do then?" she asked. Holliday also captioned the post, "happiness is from within baby."
In April, the mother-of-two revealed that she had been "really struggling with body image" recently "in a way I've never experienced" before.
"It's been almost debilitating because even though y'all see me out having fun, it sometimes takes so much work & energy just to be able to leave the house," said Holliday, who revealed in 2021 she was "anorexic and in recovery."
"I'm the kind of gal that always wants my photo taken, until lately… & these are some of the first photos I've taken in a while were I saw myself in them & was kind," she wrote. "(I;m working on it.) Soaking up this family time & feeling grateful, even when it's tough."
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