Lifestyle

Plus-size woman branded a ‘whale’ by trolls refuses to stop celebrating her body in bikinis


Megan spent years following fad diets (Picture: MDWfeatures / @mmmeganfisher)

For years Megan Fisher used to obsess over weight loss.

She even considered surgery to change her body, having spent her teens being bullied for her size.

But now, at a size 26, Megan is the most confident she’s ever felt, and she’s enjoying her new sense of self-love by posing in her collection of 50 bikinis for Instagram.

Teacher Megan, 28, always felt insecure in her body growing up. Throughout her teens and twenties she thought that happiness depended on losing weight and tried every fad diet she could find.

She was living with a boyfriend who didn’t make her happy, working at a job she hated, and felt absolutely miserable.

She even considered surgery to change her body (Picture: MDWfeatures / @mmmeganfisher)

In January 2014 she was getting prepared to have a gastric bypass when she discovered the body positivity movement and was immediately inspired. Megan realised she could be happy at her size and didn’t need to lose weight to change her life.

She left her boyfriend, quit her job, and moved to New York. It was the scariest thing Megan had ever done, but it changed everything for the better.

Through learning to love and look after herself and accept her body, Megan is now confident in her looks, and feels comfortable showing off her bod on Instagram in one of her 50 bikinis.

She faces cruel messages from trolls who call her a ‘whale’ and tell her she’s going to die young, but Megan refuses to stop celebrating her body. She hopes that by sharing her photos she’ll let other women know that their weight shouldn’t hold them back from feeling great.

Discovering the body positivity movement changed everything (Picture: MDWfeatures / @mmmeganfisher)

‘I was unhappy with my body because I did not know what happiness even was,’ says Megan.

‘I would never have worn a bikini until I moved to New York and found my new mindset of self-love. In high school, I was so self-conscious of my body and truly believed I would never be able to have a boyfriend until I lost weight.

‘I was too afraid to talk to guys in high school because of how I felt about my body at that time.

‘I never had plus-size role models in my life growing up. Sure, I had plus sized people in my life who I loved but they were constantly trying to lose weight themselves.’

Now she shares photos of herself wearing bikinis with her 9,000 followers (Picture: MDWfeatures / @mmmeganfisher)

Megan is grateful to have found the body positivity movement before she went through with surgery, and hopes that she’ll provide that moment of inspiration and support for other people struggling with body image.

‘If I post pictures of myself normalising things society says fat girls can’t do like wearing a bikini, crop tops, travelling, dating attractive men, hiking, being fashionable, being happy and eating food in public, [I can] help others as well,’ she says.

‘My goal is to be the role model I needed when I was younger.

‘I first went to the beach in my bikini with my family on a small lake so it was kind of a stepping stone to being at a large public beach. The first time I did that, it felt freeing. I got some stares, but I was so happy that I didn’t care why they were staring at me.

‘I think one of the hardest things has been trolls on the internet who will find certain pictures of me and comment hateful things calling me a whale, a cow, telling me I’m going to die, or that I’m promoting obesity.

‘At this point, it’s so played out and my health is between my doctor and I. I block all trolls, but I had a post go viral from the movement @i-weigh where I was not in charge of moderating the comments and it was tough to see how far we as a society have to go with our mindset of fat people just enjoying their lives.

She wants to show everyone that fat girls can do anything (Picture: MDWfeatures / @mmmeganfisher)

‘Currently, I’m living my best life and posting it online for all to see.’

Megan’s 9,000 followers are given photos of the teacher unapologetically living her best life – travelling, wearing whatever she likes, and having fun with friends.

She wants to show everyone that fat women can do anything.

Megan says: ‘I am truly my most confident in short jean shorts with a crop top or in a bikini. I love showing off my skin now. If you don’t like it, you can look away.

‘If I can inspire any woman to try on a bikini, or wear a crop top, or try anything that scares them a bit, then I believe my work is worth it.

‘I think some of the best advice I could give others is first of all, if someone isn’t paying your bills, then they get no say over what you do with your life.

‘If it makes you happy, then go for it. You truly cannot make everyone happy, even if you’re wearing a large paper bag hiding all of your curves, so why not wear something that makes you feel amazing?’

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