Tess Holliday Responds to 'Fatphobic' Messages, Says Her Mental Health Is 'Fragile': 'I’m Really Doing My Best'
“Some of us are just holding on so strong and we’re trying and that’s not helpful,” the model said of body-shaming comments
Tess Holliday is letting all her critics know that she’s doing her best.
On April 15, the 38-year-old model and body activist posted a TikTok video addressing the “fatphobic” messages she’s received on the social media platform, admitting that they aren’t helpful for her mental health.
“One thing I’m learning on this extremely fatphobic app is the minute you mess up, you can count on everyone to tell you how fat you are and that you should die. It’s great. I’ve honestly been loving it,” she said sarcastically. “Don’t keep it coming because the mental health is a little fragile right now. But sometimes some of us are just doing our best. Sometimes we do make mistakes and we are never gonna be perfect.”
“Maybe if we mess up or make a mistake and own it…maybe we could just not say that they’re the most disgusting person on the planet and the fattest thing to ever walk the earth,” she continued. “Some of us are just holding on so strong and we’re trying and that’s not helpful.”
The mom of two added in the caption, “I really am doing my best and I love y’all sm.”
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Holliday has never been shy about calling out and shutting down critics who body shame her. She previously posted a TikTok video addressing a person who commented that following her made them "grossed out" enough to lose over 150 lbs.
"You are seeking out content of larger-bodied individuals as a way to make yourself feel better, which is kind of a weird thing in general, especially when I can guarantee a lot of the larger-bodied individuals you're following have happy, full lives not despite them being fat, but they just are," she responded.
"I'm used to people using me as their 'before' pictures and inspo but the reality is that I've gotten fatter over the years, my weight's fluctuated, but the one thing that I have maintained through all of this is my joy," Holliday continued. "I'm fatter right now than I've been in awhile, but I'm also happier."
Related: Tess Holliday Is 'Really Struggling' with Her Body Image: 'It's Been Almost Debilitating'
In April 2022, Holliday said she was working on repairing her relationship with her body after she was diagnosed with anorexia, and had been "really struggling."
"I'm gonna be honest, I've been really struggling with body image in a way I've never experienced," she shared with her followers on Instagram. "It's been almost debilitating because even though y'all see me out having fun, it sometimes takes so much work and energy just to be able to leave the house."
The star also previously told fans about her struggle with body dysmorphia — a mental health disorder in which people obsess over perceived flaws in their appearance.
"My body dysmorphia has been really trying me lately and when photos from previous years pop up while I'm scrolling through my phone, it causes me to spiral a bit," Holliday wrote on Instagram at the time.
But Holliday said she tries to remind herself the body she misses in those photos are from a difficult time in her life when she was struggling in her marriage to ex-husband Nick Holliday and dealing with anorexia.
"I have to check myself and ask: 'Why are you really sad?' because I like how I looked there — but I was also in the throws of my most disordered eating, in an abusive relationship, and so deeply unhappy."
Holliday said that "now, my body is different but my heart is fuller."
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