When I see someone who is quite over weight my overriding response is to think that they simply lack self-respect. *Very few* people a medical condition that results in obesity. Therefore, something about thier lifestyle makes them very overweight. If they respected themselves they would take care of themselves and maintain good health. It is very unlikely that you can be very overweight and in good health. Therefore, they are not taking care of themselves. I show them the same respect they show themselves which is, with respect to thier body, not much.
User Detail :
Name : Chris, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Agnostic, Age : 27, City : Salt Lake CIty, State : UT Country : United States, Occupation : Student, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,  I believe that this is the most honest answer that i can give. I believe that the general appearance of fat/obese people is sometimes unpleasant and upsetting. Personaly i have never ridiculed a person for being overweight, but it does bother me to be in the direct presense of someone who is very obese. It seems as if they give off an unpleasant smell or something. I do not feel good about it but it is unfortunately how I feel.
User Detail :
Name : Tyry, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Age : 18, City : Lithonia, State : GA Country : United States, Occupation : Full Time student, Education level : High School Diploma, Social class : Lower class,  I yo-yo dieted and dealt with overeating and other eating disorders, but I've always been farely thin, if not tiny. I understand how hard it is to stay thin and all of the societal pressure on women to be perfect, so I don't treat fat people rudely. But when I see an obese person I too wonder how they could get so fat and feel disgusted if they eat unhealthy foods. I think I do that because I'm obsessed with my own weight and the things I eat. In general, I don't think it's a stigma to be somewhat 'thick' (unless you hang out with complete jerks). Many men like curves. But when it gets to a certain point it indicates to others that you're unhealthy, both physically and psychologically, and that's a turn-off. People have different standards of course, but in general clinical obesity is a clear-cut signal to others that you're depressed, inactive, lacking self-respect. People don't want to be around someone that seems unable to control themselves or is indifferent about their own well-being, whether it's a drug addict, food addict or whatever. It sucks that we pre-judge eachother that way but it's part of our 'filtering' process as humans. Please correct me if I'm wrong but how many morbidly obese people do you know that weren't having psychological problems that coincided with their weight gain? I know that my issues with food were a product of anxiety, depression and self-loathing. The jolly fat man is a myth; a healthy mind and body are intertwined.
User Detail :
Name : Ella25325, Gender : F, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Agnostic, Age : 23, City : Phila., State : PA Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College,  Although I think the majority of people feel better about themseleves when they degrade others, since your asking honestly what I think of a fat person, I would sey that I think that they are unattrative. Of course I would never personally tell any fat person this because I know it would hurt their feelings
User Detail :
Name : Vannessamariah24523, Gender : F, Age : 20, City : Fredericksburg, State : VA Country : United States,  One of the posters on this thread had it right as far as I'm concerned. Regarding the obese, he said: ********************************************** I think of a lack of self-discipline, self-respect and self-control. I think of a drug addict, where the drug is food. ********************************************** In my case, this is very true. I was chubby during my teens but extremely self-concious and depressed about my weight (I was very active but tended to eat too much of the wrong foods). That depression in my adult years led to periods of inactivity and weight gain. I am a binge-eater - always in private, always guilt-laden - after the 'high' of indulging. I use food for so many reasons, chiefly numbing feelings and soothing myself - even though rational thought should intervene and tell me the eating is only causing more pain in the long run. The short term relief of soothing with food is something I desperately crave. So, YES, it's like a drug for many overweight people, and it involves extreme psychological addiction. I hope to conquer it one day - for good, instead of the yo-yo dieting I've done for years. Please be kind to overweight people - they are generally hard enough on themselves. And do realize, while our appearance my bother you - if you could see the smoker in the offices lungs blacken with each puff or the drinker's liver disintegrate - you might have the same reaction. We're not so different after all.
User Detail :
Name : Kristy26301, City : Dallas, State : TX Country : United States,  Well, I'm average weight but I don't think it's that bad or disgusting to be fat. I don't see why people make such a big deal out of it.
User Detail :
Name : Dave25423, Gender : M, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 28, City : Cleveland, State : OH Country : United States,  being overweight is different than being obese. height is also factor. if you are very short, say 4'9, weighing 250 lbs you will appear to be alot larger than someone who is 5'9 weighing 250 lbs. even in cases where the weight problem is caused by a medical issue, the weight can still be controlled by medicine, diet and light exercise. to me, when i see a 'fat' person i see lazy. most fat people i know sit on their butts all day, eat two large pizzas for dinner, never exercise. my sister in law weighs about 450 lbs and she does jack to help herself. she doesnt work, she is always sick because of her weight and lack of control with food. i ahve witnessed her eating a full meal at my mother in laws, followed by going to the local pub we liked to go to and eat about 30 wings, large order of fries and a couple beers. yeah, she is not trying to ontrol her weight one bit!
User Detail :
Name : Kimberly, Gender : F, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Catholic, Age : 29, City : Knoxville, State : TN Country : United States, Social class : Middle class,  Look at this link http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1077/is_n9_v49/ai_15518312
User Detail :
Name : David, City : Baltimore, State : MD Country : United States, 
MeParticipant
I was a size 24-26 a few years ago due to a medication called Prednisone. I started out at size 16-18. I lost all the weight by not eating after 6pm, swimming laps and replacing all drinks with water or diet soda. I am now size 14. It is true people will treat you differently based on weight. You can keep the weight off, I am praying for you. But when you react to people who are treating you differently because you lost weight, they will say losing weight changed you. Ignore them. They are either jealous, or mad that they no longer have that hanging over you
User Detail :
Name : Me, City : Milford, State : CT Country : United States,  Hi Jenny, The big question is I have in my mind is: do you want to be accepted at the weight you are now by yourself and others or do you want to lose the weight? When you said you wanted people to submit their feelings about fat, what was your objective? I agree with Assata - it's not a matter of fat, it's a matter of taking care of yourself. Some people naturally carry more weight around. I didn't used to have a weight problem until I hit 50 - now, it's very difficult to keep it under control. The problem I encountered when my metabolism began to slow was: no matter what I did to lose weight by dieting, as soon as I went back to my regular food, it would all come back, and a little bit more. The diets weren't sustainable: meaning, I felt I was starving to death which limited how long I could stay on it. I would get cranky and irritable and just be a total pill to be around. Food became an obsession. If you do want to do something about your weight, you might want to have a look at controlling carbs. This method has worked for me, and - key point - I never felt hungry. As a matter of fact, I still eat that way, and I *still* never feel hungry. While my over-all cholesterol has risen a bit since I started controlling the carbohydrates two years ago, my HDL (the good cholesterol) has almost doubled, whilst my LDL (the bad cholesterol) has more than halved. My triglycerides are a third what they used to be, my blood pressure has gone from 145/92 to 110/60 and I sleep better, feel better, get sick less. I have been able to even start walking - I only do 20 minutes a day, but that's better than nothing. You can make a change if you feel you want to. You will feel better for it. However, the most important thing is: respect yourself now. Do nice things for yourself. Set yourself attainable goals. Take good care of yourself - no one can do it as well as you can. Cheers, Robyn
User Detail :
Name : Robyn, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Christian, Age : 54, City : Parkinson, State : NA Country : Australia, Occupation : Registered nurse, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,