Dustercat: great points. I work in a middle school and see/hear beautiful, healthy, vibrant kids--boys and girls alike-- complain about their weight, their looks, their hair, their everything on a regular basis. I try to help them see how the media are manipulating their viewpoints (sometimes this "older than your mother" teacher embarrasses the kids, but they also remember the important stuff) and how they look at themselves. But it's hard. Middle school (11+-14ish) is a tough, tough age to live through.


And yet, knowing that perspective is important, it still bugs me when someone who is my height almost exactly and is starting at or below my goal weight either condescends to me in posts (or real life) or whines about how hard this WOL is (again--either here or in RT). So, I post here and in the Induction Challenge thread, 'cause at least when we whine we know what we're talking about!

Jude