Body

If we aim to be perfect like God (Matthew 5:48) - and not perfect the way that fitspo influencers and judgmental members are selling it - we need to liberate our understanding and practice of the Gospel from fatphobia.

The first time I was diagnosed with breast cancer was in 2011. I was fortunate to have access to excellent medical care in a...

This piece was commissioned as part of the In Our Own Words series, which seeks to share the voices and experiences of marginalized individuals....

The dress was white with blue flowers. It was a simple long shift dress in standard late nineties fashion, with a slight cling and wide tank top like straps. When I tried it on and looked in the mirror of the dressing room, I cried. My stomach was rounded instead of flat and I crumpled under waves of self-loathing.

I was plucking my eyebrows one morning last fall when she walked into the bathroom. “Mom, does that hurt?” she asked with big eyes. I hesitated as I thought about whether it was hurting, “Um, I guess it’s not comfortable. The first time I did it, it definitely hurt, but now it doesn’t hurt too bad.”  She looked at me incredulously, “Why would you do it if it hurts?”

I of course had no idea what my mother was (or wasn’t) experiencing when I asked my dad that question. I’m older now than she was then, and do I comprehend it yet? Barely.

Parents, leaders, friends. Anyone who reads this, please don’t shut down the feelings of anyone around you. We are all human. We all experience things differently and see different things throughout our lifetime. Kids should never have to wonder what’s wrong with them.

I was scared. I didn’t want to lose my libido. I didn’t want to lose my ability to orgasm. I didn’t want to lose that physical intimacy in my marriage. Surgical menopause felt like jumping off a cliff into dark waters and I didn’t know what I would find below. . .