Abbie Chatfield has called out followers for “picking apart” her body and the bodies of other influencers and women in media, urging them to “f—king stop”.
Taking to Instagram on Thursday night, the new Masked Singer panellist revealed she’s constantly inundated with comments and DMs about her body.
While not all of them are “negative”, the messages leave her feeling objectified and picked at in a way that can be deeply triggering for some people.
“People are very comfortable picking apart your body and not in a ‘negative’ way or in a malicious way, it’s just bizarre,” she explained in a frustrated video.
Abbie Chatfield is fed up with people “picking apart” her body online.
(Image: Instagram)
Abbie explained that people often leave back-handed compliments on photos of her body or send her private messages when they notice she’s gained or lost weight.
And she’s not the only one experiencing it, the star adding that most women in the public eye have to battle messages like these every day.
“The first category is people pointing out things about my body and saying things like ‘I could never be as confident as you to show my stomach like that’… or ‘the fat rolls on your stomach love heart [emoji]’,” she said.
“It’s not that I’m offended about the term ‘fat rolls’ … it’s that you have picked apart my body… and a photo of me or a video of me has now become all about me making a statement by just existing.”
Posting something as simple as a photo at the beach or posing in a crop top can lead to a flood of messages congratulating her for “daring” to exist in a body that doesn’t always fit the “traditional media’s” beauty standards.
But what some people would consider flattering, Abbie just finds frustrating.
“I don’t like it, it makes me really irritated. It’s also giving me props for just standing there and existing. There’s no need,” she told followers.
The messages often leave her feeling like people are saying she’s attractive “despite how she looks” or that her body has to be “a political statement”.
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“I’m glad that you feel inspired but please don’t point out specific things or mention on my body at all in comments,” she begged.
The reality TV icon also urged fans to stop messaging her when her weight fluctuates, revealing that she gets a flood of “concerned” messages any time she slims down even a tiny bit.
“First of all, there’s no need for any of you to keep tabs on my weight. I don’t have an issue with my weight or eating habits but if I did imagine how triggering that would be,” she said.
“I don’t need a stranger to make me think that people are noticing me losing or gaining weight.”
No one wants to have thousands of people constantly commenting on their body, and while Abbie assured fans it hasn’t damaged her body image, this behaviour can cause a person’s self-worth to plummet.
Abbie urged followers to stop commenting on her body as if it’s a political statement.
(Image: Instagram)“Please stop picking apart my body and other people’s bodies. It’s really not okay,” she concluded.
Women in the media have been speaking up in recent years about how the constant pressure and focus on their bodies has affected them.
This isn’t the first time Abbie has added her voice to the cause and her latest message may cause fans to think twice before commenting on her figure in the future.
If you or someone you know has been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, help is always available. Call The Butterfly Foundation’s national helpline on 1800 33 4673 or visit their website
