As I write this, I’m 36,000 feet in the air, flying from New York City to San Diego, California. Before I left, I made plans to meet up with a bunch of new friends, some of whom I’d met at the NAAFA Convention just weeks ago.

Finding My Community

Going to the NAAFA convention felt like coming home, in a way. Before I left, I was nervous about going by myself and whether I’d find people to connect with. As soon as I got there, however, it was so fun and easy to connect with the wonderful people there, that I couldn’t believe it.

It was only about a year and a half ago that I began to acknowledge the importance of community. Before then, my social circle consisted largely of friends I’d made in high school and college. Even in law school and nutrition school, I never really focused on making friends who had the same interests. I loved my old friends and didn’t see a reason to make more.

I used to feel that the best way to navigate my world was, essentially, alone. I thought of communities as groups of people who all thought the same way and required that sort of compliance. I wanted friends and social interactions to be on my own terms. As a result, I didn’t see the value of community. I didn’t see that you could be yourself in a community with others, and that having that sort of community could be supportive and empowering instead of oppressive.

Through my connection with the School of Womanly Arts and my involvement in the fat acceptance movement, I’ve begun to realize how important it is to have a community of people around me that shares the values that I hold dear. In the last 18 months, I’ve become friends with so many people who are allied with my way of thinking about the world. They’re not a homogeneous group, and, of course, we may disagree on certain things, but knowing that I have a community of people that is dedicated to what I’m dedicated to has really bolstered me in continuing on the path that feels best to me.

Getting More Community into Your Life

So this week, I’d like you to seek out types of communities that support you and where you’d like to be. If you’re looking for other positive fat people, you may want to join your local NAAFA or NOLOSE chapter or search Meetup.com for fun events near you. If you’re looking for people who are into what you’re passionate about, look for them, and if you don’t find them, consider how you can create a fun and easy place for them to congregate. Perhaps you’ve always belonged to a community, whether a religious one or a volunteer organization that you love, but you’ve just drifted away from them. Consider rekindling those community ties and interests if you’re still passionate about the causes that they supported (or find new groups that better understand you and support the same things). Please share what you did to create more community and how it made you feel.

Please stop by my Facebook group and become a member of the Body Love Wellness Group! Also, follow me on Twitter.

And check out the other experts great tips this week.

 

Golda is a certified holistic health counselor and founder of Body Love Wellness. She counsels women and men throughout the country on how to get off the dieting roller coaster, give their bodies what they really crave, and love their bodies and themselves. Golda's counseling and activism work have been featured on CBS's The Early Show, ABC's Nightline and Time Out New York. For more support with healing your relationship with food and your body, sign up for the Body Love Wellness Newsletter and receive your free download — Golda’s Top Ten Tips For Divine Dining.