Previous post on weight & health: Fatness equals happiness?


Yesterday I saw my doctor for a regular exam. I hadn’t seen her since last fall or maybe it was summer. I was looking forward to the weigh-in because I’ve gained so much weight and I wanted to see the big total, but the nurse forgot to do it this time, so I saw the doctor first.


“They didn’t weigh me this time,” I told her from the examining table as she sat in a chair taking notes. “And I’ve gained thirty pounds since the last time you saw me.”


Dr. Jguenti looked up and said, “You look great!”


I smiled, “Yeah, I feel good.”


“It looks really good on you.”


“Thank you.” I felt relieved that she wasn’t scolding me and grateful for the confirmation that yes, this was the right thing for me to do.


Dr. Jguenti went on to say that weight gain can look really good on women our age while losing weight can leave the face not as pretty. I totally agreed.


So there it is! A professional medical opinion about how good it is that I’m now a size 16 instead of a size 10. Dr. Jguenti (pronounced “yuh-GEN-tee”) is Russian, so she probably has a different cultural context for her view and that’s great. I’m not sure an American-born doctor would have responded the same way, and I really doubt an American-born male doctor would have supported me.


I love my doctor. I want to send all my friends to her!


Next post on weight & health: Someone asked me about being pregnant

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