I called my little sister fat...and feel so bad now!

Hi all, well I have got a little sister, aged 6 and she is rather chubby! Anyway, all she has done all day is eat then eat then eat and you would never guess what she did? Eat some more. :colone:

She's getting fatter by the day! Its not that I love her any less, im scared for her health, nevermind when she goes to high school and the fact she might get bullied. :frown:

Anyway, my mum was eating something today, and my mum give her some of it. Baring in mind this was just before she was going to bed. I was like 'mum, no wonder she's fat, you don't know where to draw the line, she's only 6, she should only be eating half of what she is'. Inevitable to say, I ended up in a big argument with my parent's. So once again my little sister thinks its ok to eat this much. :angry:

Was I right or wrong? I feel so bad now and Im going to apologise first thing in the morning. Its all out of love aint it? :colondollar:

Thanks.

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I don't know what dynamic your family has, but if she's a fatty you're right to want to do something about it.

Took my brothers teasing amongst other things to make me realise what a little chubster I was and I'm glad he used to do what he did, it gave me motivation to lose those pounds.

Reply 3

FelixFelicis

Your heart is in the right place, but that probably wasn't the best way to handle the situation.

Reply 4

Down.to.a.Tea

Your little sister probably eats so much because she does it to feel better about herself after her big sis tells her she is fat.

She'll forgive you.

I've done the same in the past. It is wrong. It wont help her that is for sure. It will only exasperate the cycle of depression and comfort eating. What you need to do is educate her. Explain to her nicely what a calorie is and how many she should be having per day etc etc . The importance of exercise. It's a lot of responsibility but if you can try to get her to do exercise i.e. go for walks routinely say twice a week for an hour and get her to stop eating junk food (again explain why its bad for her). It's good that you are concerned because if she accepts her obesity then she will never get rid off it in later life.

Reply 7

nuttyteen

Nah you didn't do anything wrong.

Nothing wrong with reminding her of what could happen from a young age.

My family used to tell me I was getting 'chubby' when I was about 5/6 and taking biscuits and from then on I was very conscious of my image and how I looked and I stayed pretty slim for the rest of my life.

Reply 8

KateMP

You weren't wrong to point it out but you shouldn't have done it in your sister's presence! She's young - she probably doesn't know much better.

Reply 9

user settings

Original post by Anonymous

Hi all, well I have got a little sister, aged 6 and she is rather chubby! Anyway, all she has done all day is eat then eat then eat and you would never guess what she did? Eat some more. :colone:

She's getting fatter by the day! Its not that I love her any less, im scared for her health, nevermind when she goes to high school and the fact she might get bullied. :frown:

Was I right or wrong? I feel so bad now and Im going to apologise first thing in the morning. Its all out of love aint it? :colondollar:

Thanks.

Tbh, I think her health is more important. You should really talk to your parents more and tell her to cut down on how much she gives her. If she continues at this rate, and when she's a teenager, she may get bullied for being chubby. I know a REALLY obese student in my class, he gets bullied quite a bit. Other chubby children are laughed at in the changing rooms. Also higher risk of heart problems and so on with more fat.

And yes, do apologise to your sister for calling her fat. Calling a person fat won't help their problems, instead you should work with your parents to cut down on her eating habits, and help her lose weight.

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 10

emdo

Apologise and maybe do something nice for her? She's 6 she wouldn't old a grudge...or will she? :colone:

On a serious note, maybe take some positive action regarding her diet if she's that chubby, maybe speak to your parents too...

Reply 11

xoxAngel_Kxox

Look, don't call her fat to her face. It can be hugely damaging to a child, which you don't want. The person to blame is whoever is feeding her, in this example your Mother. My parents used to feed me a lot of a child, food as treats, ice cream when we went out, chocolate as a reward etc, and seeing food as a reward is a dangerous thing really. You need to talk to your Mother and say that your sister doesn't need as much food as she does. Just because she eats it doesn't mean she's hungry. Children will eat as much as they're given.

I know you might not think it's your place but honestly, I've struggled with my weight my whole life and wish that someone had said something to my parents when I was younger. Now I'm old enough to do something about it and I'm getting there but it's bloody hard- much easier just to watch what she eats in the first place, as it'll save her from an entire childhood of bullying (physical and psychological) and depression because of it like I had to go through.

Reply 12

Sarawrr

It's important that you look out for her, but you could have been more tactful :P

Reply 13

besomebody

I think you were right. If you apologise, I'd make sure they know that you're apologising for the way you said it, not what you meant.
(i'm assuming you were having a go at your parents, not your sister).

Edit: why the neg? I'm curious.

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 14

coca

Well your parents should be looking after her health so it's them who are in the wrong.

Reply 15

Sabertooth

Original post by y2k1

What you need to do is educate her. Explain to her nicely what a calorie is and how many she should be having per day etc etc .

This sounds like an awful suggestion. The idea of a 6 year old counting how many calories in what they eat is quite frankly scary.

It's the parents' responsibility to stop feeding her so much, let the kid have her innocence.

Reply 16

slacker07906

agree with others posts really. Your heart was the right place, maybe it just wasn't the right way to convey your point.

Reply 17

RaHiNa

im sure you meant well but it would have been a lot kinder if you said it when your lil sis wasn't there. plus if she is to get bullied she needs your support not more name calling

Reply 18

misharos

Do not make her think "Oh I am fat and nobody loves me not even my brother", stand by her, understand her and do something for her to forgive you.
You are brother and sister :smile:

Live lovely and happily together

Reply 19

username812432

try and arrange sports for her to do. also maybe get her involved in cooking classes, emphasising the healthiness of the food. Let her eat the spare fruit and veg, not cake mixture etc.
Hopefully, and it will take a lot of time, your actions may guide her preferences.
Remember if she doesnt lose weight now theres just more chance of her developing an eating disorder when shes old enough to have self consciousness she will probably feel worse.