31 Comments   

Think lesbians don't have the same body issues straight girls do? Not true, says writer Margeaux Watson, whose recent piece, "I Kissed a Girl," in Marie Claire magazine reveals how being with another woman actually brought out body insecurities that she never had before.

Watson claims she was never self-conscious about her "large breasts, tiny waist, and curvaceous hips" when she dated men. But when she started hooking up with skinny chicks, her self-esteem nosedived. Instead of surrendering herself to the caresses of her bedmate, she began panicking over her extra pounds.

Watson says she made constant mental notes about how to hide her flab. "Keep back arched and stomach sucked in at all times; while lying down, bend legs to avoid unflattering thigh spread; whenever possible, sit upright to prevent breasts from running off in opposite directions," she writes. In fact, Watson's same-sex skinny girl experience left her so scarred she didn't kiss another woman for six years.

Click here to read about the surprising response to Watson's piece.



Some in the LGBT community are miffed that Watson chose to insert her insecurities into a topic that is so rarely covered in the mainstream media.

"This was not the piece I expected," says lesbian blogger Trish Bendix. "Even in a magazine for women who are concerned about the latest products to hide wrinkles before they've sprouted and how to smother imaginary fat rolls, I didn't think the idea of lesbian sex would present itself as yet another experience in which women would compare themselves."

Is "Accepting" a Stereotype Too?
But is Watson's sensitivity to her shape common in a community that is supposed to be "accepting?" Yes, says Kelly Leszczynski, managing editor of The Lesbian Lifestyle.

"I agree with the author for telling her story ... I can remember thinking that once I came out that my world would be flooded with women 'just like me' that would accept me for all that I am," she told Lemondrop.

"Ten years later, I can tell you that I was wrong," continues Leszczynski. "What I found was that the lesbian community in my area was riddled with cliques, drama and scandal. Some women check out other women just like men do. Hell, even I'm guilty of that. For whatever reason, even as hard as I try to fight it, my mind seems to be programmed to find thin, tall, model-type women the most attractive. I walk around all day feeling like a hypocrite because of it."

Focusing on the Wrong Thing
But blogger Renee Gannon, who publishes Lesbiatopia, doesn't think Watson is speaking for the majority of lesbians.

"In my experiences, lesbian women place less importance on physical beauty. Most have an appreciation for all shapes and sizes. When it comes to lesbian sex, there is something so intense and so powerful about connecting with another women's spirit that the last thing we are thinking about is the shape of our thighs or the amount of cellulite on our hips," says Gannon.

"This article is taking one woman's narrow perspective and rigid view of sexuality and applying it to a community of women who are so diverse and unique that the whole topic of body image being an issue just seems downright silly when you think about it."

Tell us: Was Watson wrong to harp on her hang-ups, or should she be lauded for showing that bad body image is not just a straight-girl thing?