Our words have the ability to hurt or heal.
If there is one value all parents should instill in their children, it’s teaching them to think about what they say and how their words can affect somebody else.
Shauna Arocho has shared a message that encourages everyone to think about what they say before they say it.
Arocho has been on weight loss journey over the past few years and it hasn’t been easy. This week, Dairy Queen in the US celebrated free ice-cream day and Arocho decided to indulge in an ice-cream date with her husband. But what should have been an enjoyable treat, turned into dismay as she was intentionally fat shamed.
Arocho explained in a Facebook video,
“Today is free ice cream day at Dairy Queen if you haven’t heard. I’ve been eating mostly paleo since June of last year. I’ve lost about 60 pounds since starting, but 120 pounds overall. It’s really hard sometimes giving up sweets, giving up all this kind of stuff you just love to eat but is so bad for you.”
But sometimes a treat every now and then doesn’t hurt.
“I decided to sit outside because it was really warm out today, even though it’s not very sunny. And as I’m sitting out there enjoying my ice cream cone, a car full of men stopped in the middle of a busy road, just so they could roll down their window and say, “Eat that ice cream, you fat B I T C H.”
“I just don’t understand what people get out of tearing other people down?”
“What do you get out of making me cry for the last fifteen or twenty minutes? I finally calmed down enough to make a video, and I’m only doing it because I think sharing this kind of thing is important. Because what do you get out of it?”
Arocho is visibly upset by the words, but she turns her experience around to drive home a message to everyone about love and acceptance of one’s body and current situation.
Her video post has resonated with Facebook users and has been shared over 100k times. In fact the response has been so overwhelming, with the video being viewed by over 10 million people.
Everyone has a vice or challenge they try to manage or deal with every day. People who are overweight are often shamed for their appearance, and the judgement has to stop because these people have value and no one knows the reason behind their health battles.
Words do hurt and no one should be judged for their appearance. It has to stop.
