About The Piece: “When Did Having a Body Become So Hard? was inspired by years of my own struggles with body image, food-related struggles, and weight. I was bullied most of my childhood about my weight and appearance and throughout middle school, high school, and early college career fell victim to the ruthless and disgusting world of diet culture. My piece is a culmination of the impact those years have had on my emotional, physical, and mental health. I wanted to write this because for many years I suffered silently and never knew how to talk about what I was feeling. I want my piece to serve as a letter to those still struggling with body image and diet culture that healing is not a linear process. articulate. After almost 4 years of work in therapy, I gathered the courage to finally speak about my journey to healing and continuously working to find acceptance of myself.”

About The Author: “I’m a Senior Creative Writing major at Illinois State with plans to pursue a Masters in Library Science and Information at Texas Woman’s University. I’ve always had a love and passion for creating and writing as a child, I was always heavily inspired by my grandmother who pushed me to pursue the arts whether it was through theater, music, or writing. Euphemism has been an amazing experience not only as a committee member but as an artist as well. I’ve always believed in sharing one’s work with a community even if it only resonates with one or two people. Writing has been an outlet for me to express my creativity and thoughts and I’ve been fortunate to be surrounded by people who have believed in me and my work.”