I know it sounds like a bold statement but in many ways social media really has changed my life. I feel like without the discovery of the plus size world online I would be a very different person and for that I'll always be grateful.
As a chubby teenager I grew up without any real role models. Yes, I had teen idols and boyband crushes but I could never open up an issue of Sugar magazine and see someone like me staring back. Surrounded by thin friends and people who told me I should lose weight, it sometimes seemed like a lonely place.
I was lucky in that I had an amazing family who have always told me to be happy with how
I am so I have never been miserable about my clothing size, but I can see how main stream media can make you feel like that.
A Whole New World
Thankfully I discovered the world of social media and plus size bloggers - even looking at big beautiful women (BBW) dating websites helped. I know many people aren't comfortable with the term BBW but for me it was that term that helped me first realise that guys found girls like me attractive and it seemed like such a revelation!
Being able to read plus size blogs and join in websites where other fat girls existed was fantastic. Even back in the days of Myspace groups and Live Journal online spaces I knew that something special was being created. Text based chat rooms were a start but then when we saw Facebook and social media how it is now I was blown away!
Carving Myself a Life Online
Since then I have been actively involved in many aspects of the 'fat world' online and I really enjoy it. I run a Facebook group with over 4,000 members - plus size people sharing stories and positive chatter, which is really the type of space I needed online. Then I use Facebook and Twitter to follow plus size bloggers and surround myself with fat fashionistas - people who have taught me that I can dress well and have every right to be proud of how I look.
Of course I now write my own blog which really helps too. I love writing my blog and putting myself out there. Interacting with other plus size females is something I'll never, ever get bored of. Social media has taught me it's OK to market myself and put myself out there! I've even won an award for it!
Changing The Way I See Myself
One of the things social media has done has changed the way I view myself. I look in the mirror and see someone that is absolutely fine exactly as they are. To many that might not seem like much, but for me it really improved my life and I am so glad I discovered it.
Even now I use social media to enhance my life - even if its often just expanding my wardrobe by reading reviews on blogging platforms and being tempted to spend too much money on dresses I don't need. But you know, it makes me happy and for me that's the most important thing in the world.