Fat

I have a confession.

About 75%-80% of the time I think I am fat. I am absolutely convinced that I have rolls of fat hanging off of me (okay, that was gross). Why is it that I think this??

I am constantly told how thin I am.
I fit into all the small sizes.
I often have to alter my clothes smaller to make them fit.
I am in the normal/healthy weight range for my height and age.

And yet, I walk around convinced I am fat. Even though I avoid magazines with thin models, and I don't watch a lot of tv, I still somehow find a way to compare myself to anorexic models and actrices.

Last summer I lead a discussion about Body Image with a group of 20 teenaged girls. We asked them to close their eyes, and raise their hands if they think they are fat. 19 out of 20 of the girls raised their rands; about 2 of them were actually over weight. That sucks. Why do girls think like this? When I told them I thought I was fat, they couldn't believe it. They all told me how skinny I was! It made me so sad to look at these beautiful, healthy girls and hear about how they think they're fat. They are absolutely convinced that they are disguistingly overweight, and yet they sit there telling me how thin I am...most of them were the same size as me!

What is up with that?