Katie Storino (38:18)
Yeah, I. I have always been an advocate for health at any size. Take care of yourself. Go to the doctor. Find a doctor who listens to you. Don't find a doctor who just tells you to, like, go on a diet or tries to prescribe you a GLP one because you, you know, have, like, an eye twitch. So that's one thing I want to say personally. As I've, like, gotten older, my A1C started to go up. And this is so nuanced. So I'm just. I'm. I'm just prefacing that because I have gotten so many messages, positive and negative on this topic, and I understand why. But as my A1C started to go up, my cholesterol also was going up. And I was like, you know what, Katie? I think you gotta make some changes. So I engaged a food coach. And I think there's also, like, there's a lot of disordered eating conversations that need to happen in the background of the GLP1 conversation. Also that I don't even know that I have words for yet. I wore, like, a monitor, like a glucose monitor to see, like, what foods work with my blood. And I altered my movement and tried all these different ways to change my blood work. And after over a year of that, my blood work had not improved. Not only did it not improve, it went up. And I was just right on the border of diabetes. And I was like, yeah, you know what? I have a family history of diabetes. I don't want diabetes. I'm gonna try this drug that is made to help people. Now, I will say this My insurance does not cover. I pay out of pocket. That's a privilege. This medication should be covered by all insurances for people who need it. That's another thing. Yes, it should. And it's BS that it's not. So that was my decision, was to try this and see if it worked. And I have a lot of positive feelings toward this drug because I think back to that eating disorder space. I don't think I ever realized that my brain wasn't operating. And Oprah has said this. My brain doesn't operate the way that other people's brains work. So she's talked about how, you know, your friend Kelly can have, like, quote, unquote, willpower and has a piece of the pie and is like, wow, that was great pie. But there's something in my brain for my whole life that I have. I'm like, wow, that pie was good. And not only I'm going to have a piece of the pie, I'm going to have, like, most of the pie, and I'm not even going to feel full or sick. So it's just this, like, endless feeling that I've always had that I have never understood. And one of the things that the GLP1 has done for me is kind of shown me maybe what it's like to have a brain like everyone else is having. I think the conf. So I haven't talked about that before. That's like. That's something that's new to say out loud. And I think something that is hard is that people look at you and they're like, you made your. You made your living off the back of, like, talking about your plus size, and now you want to lose weight, and it's just not true. I thought I was a size 20, like, sometimes a 22. I thought I looked awesome. Like, I certainly wasn't shying away from posting photos in my swimsuit. I don't look at those photos now and say, ew, you're gross. I'm like, God, like, I really loved my curves and the way everything was balanced out. And, like, I love the way that, like, my cheeks had, like, more lift in them because, like, I had, like, more fat in my face. And, like, there's all these. There's all these things and these misconceptions, and it's so. And I understand why, because a lot of people feel abandoned. I mean, ever since Adele emerged from the pandemic, like, in a different body, we've had this feeling of abandonment, of. It's like, oh, I'm only Big girl left. And it's simply not true. And by the way, I started my journey at a size 12, 14. Like, I'm not ever gonna be like, I, I, I'm a size 18 right now. I'm not trying to get to a 12 to 14. I'm just saying, like, I've always been big. Like, this is just my body. And I think it's just been. And I know I sound defensive, but it's, it's kind of how I feel I have to be at this moment. I have to over explain things because people are so quick to just be like, you are a sellout. And it has nothing to do with that. And it's not. And it's like the clothes I post are size inclusive. Like the, like the people I feature. Like, I, it's, it's, everything is. My messaging is all the same. And I find it so hard and hurtful. And then I will add another layer, which is that people who medically need this drug and are wanting to try it are ashamed because they have people in their lives who are saying that's a cop out or like they're scared because of all the stigma. And I'm gonna say one more thing, which is that when you start to lose weight on this drug, which is what it will do to you, you get a barrage of comments you don't want and everyone should, you know, everyone probably looks at you and they're like, no, of course you want to hear, oh, you lost weight. Oh, you're so skinny. Oh, no, no, I don't, I don't want to hear that. And I know a lot of people who follow me are so deeply uncomfortable with that part of it too, because it's like, it's, you can't hide from it. It's visible. And, and, and it's uncomfortable to have strangers and people you're close with and everyone just commenting on your body the whole time. So it's, it's such, it's very, it's a long answer, but it's very complicated.
