A woman has shared the rude feedback she gets from customers at work since gaining weight.
Cassidy Lane, who works as a bartender in Iowa, is recovering from an eating disorder and recently explained how it has changed the way that people interact with her.
Cassidy, 28, shared how regular customers now treat her differently after she got the lifesaving treatment she needed.
She said: "So I work in the service industry right, I'm a bartender. And if you are unaware, the way you look influences it a lot. Whether that's tips or how people treat you... it just does.
"And when I tell you that my whole life changed when I started getting help for my eating disorder which resulted in weight gain after the pandemic."
Breaking down in tears, she continued: "I really didn't expect this to make me cry but, people don't even look you in the eye anymore, they're not nice to you, especially men.
"Like I would walk up and say, 'Hey, how's it going y'know, how are you?' and I used to get, 'I'm doing really great honey, how are you?'
"Now it's a little more [blunt order]."
The body-positive influencer admitted that these interactions can make her feel "hopeless, adding "am I ever going to be worth more than my looks?"
Speaking to Newsweek, Cassidy said: "When you've served the same crowds of people for over four years it's not difficult to see how the attitudes change as the weight comes on."
"We are all so quick to accept that people can be naturally skinny, but nobody wants to acknowledge some people could be naturally chubby.
"I'm healthy, I exercise, I eat well for my body, and yet my body just exists as a 14/16.
"But even if I wasn't doing any of those things, I shouldn't be ashamed of my body. There are plenty of thin people who live an incredibly unhealthy lifestyle and no one ever comments on their body," she added.
Cassidy’s video has been seen more than five million times and thousands of people shared their similar experiences in the comments.
“My weight has fluctuated my entire life. I am 100% treated nicer when I weigh less,” one wrote.
Another said: “This is real. I gained a lot of weight during the pandemic and people just treated me differently. It's a cruel world.”
A third added: “This is absolutely the truth and it is so hurtful."
If you need help with an eating disorder, charity Beat has a helpline and can be found here.
