Comments on: Lying About Gastric Bypass: Star Jones Edition

By: Liza

Liza — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 19:47:41 +0000

Katharine – even having lost weight on purpose, the comments get old. I have lost a whole lot of weight over the past year and a half or so and while I’m happy with it and feel good and all that, I get annoyed when that’s the #1 thing people comment about. In the same time I’ve also figured out what I want to do with my life and done it by taking part time classes, writing and editing for my school paper, getting two separate internships and (most recently) getting into grad school. But being less fat is somehow still more important.

And if one more person replies with “well, that’s because the weight is visible” I’m going to scream. Just because you can see a difference doesn’t mean it’s up for discussion. How about a simple, “what’s new with your life?” Then we can discuss what’s of the most significance to me.

By: Punchy

Punchy — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 15:59:21 +0000

Sorry I don’t mean it if I came off snarky – in writing there’s no way to indicate that I genuinely don’t understand. :) I guess I can’t relate, I’ve never been more than 200 lbs and every time I have lost weight it was because I was on some Jenny Craig or another. But the compliments were always welcome because even after losing 50 lbs once and dropping like six pants sizes I felt like I looked exactly the same and it was good to hear that it showed.

By: Katharine

Katharine — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 13:04:26 +0000

Punchy – it is as bad. I lost a lot of weight once – not through WLS, but through severe depression – and the constant stream of compliments was like death to me.

Not only did I feel as if “hello, CAN’T ANYONE SEE THAT I’M COMPLETELY MISERABLE??” but it was so very much praise that it obscured every single other thing I’d ever done with my life. So bam, not only was my unhappiness being completely missed in the flood of OMG YOU’RE SO FABULOUSLY SKINNY, but it was very clear to me that absolutely nothing I had ever done was worth anything if I was fat. And nothing was more worth doing than being skinny, since nothing else had much value.

By: Punchy

Punchy — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 16:02:58 +0000

“When your body — specifically, the weight and shape of your body — has been a subject of unwanted commentary for the greater part of your life, these nosy, intrusive questions, this unrequested praise, just feels like more of the same.”

I’m as anti-social as they get but that seems strange to me that someone trying to praise you for making a big change would be as bad as like a kid pointing at you for being big.

By: Kudret

Kudret — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 12:14:12 +0000

I think that Star Jones did have a right to privacy in the situation and the media’s obsession with how she got so thin just demonstrates how obsessed we are with physical appearance and weight gains/losses, usually as it pertains to celebrities. I think though that Star Jones did have a hand in making it seem like it was pilates and good food, and instead of vehemently denying the fact that it was brought on only by exercise, she added flames to the fire by playing coy about it and asking her coworkers to cover for her. It does show how gastric bypass has a type of stigma in this society that it really does not need to have.

By: Susan

Susan — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 02:31:40 +0000

Unless you are genetically blessed (which, granted, some of them are), you don’t get a body like that without a lot of work.

True. But then most celebs want to give the impression that they come by their looks effortlessly. If they admitted to training like a Marine, they would lose their “allure”.

By: class factotum

class factotum — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 15:34:21 +0000

It is her business, but at the same time, I am so tired of reading about these thin actresses who say they work out for 45 minutes! a day! and eat a healthful diet.

Please.

Unless you are genetically blessed (which, granted, some of them are), you don’t get a body like that without a lot of work.

So it ticks me off to think that I work out way more than 45 minutes a day and am very careful about what I eat and I still am not as lean as they are. IT’S NOT JUST ABOUT A LITTLE BIT OF EXERCISE AND PORTION CONTROL!

By: Susan

Susan — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 09:13:10 +0000

When your body — specifically, the weight and shape of your body — has been a subject of unwanted commentary for the greater part of your life, these nosy, intrusive questions, this unrequested praise, just feels like more of the same.

Totally agree.

As for “Pilates and portion control”, please…. if anyone thinks Pilates will create enough calorie burn or muscle mass to affect their weight, they are delusional. (Spoken as someone who loves Pilates!)

By: kitty

kitty — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 07:58:01 +0000

By: Punchy

Punchy — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 21:56:59 +0000

I think maybe some people are too sensitive about people commenting on their weight loss. The people commenting probably assume that you are trying really hard and they want you to know they notice. “What did you do to lose weight” is just a dumb question people blurt out when they don’t really know what else to say, like “Where did you get that shirt?” They aren’t going to run out and buy that same shirt. I don’t think the question is rude, just clumsy.