This week we are introducing Christian Vella, thank you for joining us and sharing your story.
"Growing up, all you want to do is to be accepted by the social normal which tend to dictate how you are meant to look, feel and act. Coming to terms with the fact that you are different from others, and that you would never really fit such expectations seemed like a constant struggle. From being the ‘fatso’ at school and being bullied cause of it, has pushed me towards unhealthy eating habits, which has landed me to the other extreme, that of being underweight. I remember many factors contributed to the shift in my body weight, part of it was that I wanted to break my mould, while another was that of the realisation and coming out to myself as gay. The images portraying a gay person out there was that of having the perfect body, whether muscular or slim, anything but ‘being fat’ did not feature. Having lost weight, and feeling that I would fit in to the gay profile, another body issue emerged. That of being “possessed by the spirit of perversion” – according to a therapist who had a direct connection with an evangelical church here in Malta.
By participating in this project, I hope to raise awareness about the constant pressures that we are faced with. Our need to constantly measure up to other people’s expectations is having a negative effect on our wellbeing and ultimately making ourselves our worst enemies.
- Christian