What 15 Eating Disorder Survivors Think When They Hear The Word 'Fat'

"Me. That’s pretty much what I’ve been all my life."

"Failure."

"Unlovable."

"Me."

These are just a few of the heart-wrenching responses people gave when asked how they felt about the word "fat."

A new video created by media website WatchCut, featured 15 eating disorder survivors doing word association with the term "fat." The video was published during National Eating Disorder Awareness Week, which was created by the National Eating Disorder Association to help educate people on the dangers of disordered eating.

Each person's response revealed a powerful insight into how survivors deal with body image and manage their disorders.

One woman in the video said the word fat made her feel afraid. "With bulimia it’s really hard because the thing I fear most is being fat," she said.

"I associated skinniness with being happy, and I associated being bigger with being unhappy, which is also bullshit," another woman said. "Because you’re super unhappy when you have an eating disorder."

Towards the end of the video, one woman pointed out that the word fat shouldn't be thought of as a bad term. "There are lots of good fats," she said. "And I don’t think fat on your body is a bad thing and I don’t think fat in your food means fat on your body, but it’s been used as hate speech."

If you're struggling with an eating disorder, call the National Eating Disorder Association hotline at 1-800-931-2237.

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