Woman Slammed for What She Said to Neighbor About Weight Loss
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
A spouse has been backed by internet users after calling out their partner for making unsolicited comments about a neighbor's noticeable weight loss.
Under the username u/Emotional-Clerk8028, the original poster said that their 45-year-old neighbor had recently lost a visible amount of weight. However, the post read that the neighbor hadn't been seen exercising, which led their partner to assume she must be using a weight-loss drug.
After seeing the neighbor, the partner commented: "You better not lose too much weight, too fast."
"But I know what my wife is doing," the poster wrote in the Am I The A****** (AITAH) subreddit. "She wants her to tell that she's been taking prescription meds. My wife also thinks her statement comes off as a compliment."
In private, the poster told their partner: "Mind your own business, she's a grown woman, she knows what she's doing. She does not look unhealthy, she's just thin." The post received over 11,000 upvotes from users who agreed with their stance.
The poster said the comment sparked an argument, and their partner became angry. They repeated their concern, saying: "Mind her own business."
The poster added: "Maybe she wants privacy, don't make her self-conscious." Concluding the post, they asked: "Am I the a****** for considering my neighbor's privacy over my wife's inquisitiveness?"
Expert Insight
Dr. Lara Zibarras, known as the Food Freedom Psychologist, said she supports the poster's approach.
"You have absolutely no idea what's behind the weight loss," she told Newsweek. "Yes, it could be intentional, based on a new regimen or weight-loss injections, but what if it's to do with illness, stress, grief or an eating disorder?" Zibarras added.
With the rise of weight-loss injections such as Ozempic, Zibarras noted a growing pressure to be thin—often judged by how people achieve it. She added that respect and privacy should come first, even in private conversations.
"There's also a new kind of judgment emerging: people may be praised for losing weight, but then criticized for how they did it. It creates this impossible standard where people are expected to be thin, but only through the 'right' methods," Zibarras added.
"If you wouldn't want someone making those kinds of comments about you, then don't make them about someone else," she concluded.
Stock image: A man sits on a couch fed up with his partner.
Stock image: A man sits on a couch fed up with his partner.
PeopleImages/iStock / Getty Images Plus
Reddit Reacts
Many Reddit users shared their own painful experiences with unsolicited comments about weight.
"Do you have any idea how many times I have seen a friend of mine with massive health issues have to explain I am not doing it on purpose," one commenter shared.
Another wrote: "Yup, I had unintentional weight loss. It was really irritating to hear people say how 'good' I looked. Thankfully not cancer—just GI issues and lifestyle changes. Also wasn't even overweight to begin with."
A third added: "I was complimented on weight loss. It was from being hospitalized and throwing up multiple times a day for over a week, almost 2. I lost over 20lbs pretty quick. I was like uhh? Here I was thinking my eyes looked dark and sunken, looked pale and not well, and all the focus was on my weight. It was weird."
Newsweek reached out to u/Emotional-Clerk8028 for comment via Reddit. We could not verify the details of the case.
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