Why is it that women are expected to wear all things uncomfortable for the sake of fashion and/or to simply to be accepted by society? A prime example: Spanx?! Other offensive “fashionable” items we are expected to wear for one reason or another include nylons, heels (or for that matter any “fashionable” shoe made for a woman) and thong underwear (because teenagers can walk around with their boxers hanging out all day long but Heaven forbid a women’s panty line shows through her pants). And before you get started with the comments, I know it’s completely not acceptable for the kids to be walking around with their pants around their knees, but as much as people complain about it, nobody has marketed an item that entails said teens shoving a string up their ass all day long to correct the unsightly problem!
And yes, I also know that there are plenty of women who prefer to wear thongs and have said that they’ve gotten used to wearing them along with their heels, nylons and girdles. However, I still maintain that there’s a huge difference between “getting used” to these items, and actually being comfortable while wearing them in the first place.
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While looking for a picture of the dreaded Spanx Girdle I found this horrifying picture. Spanx for pregnant women! Seriously? I thought pregnant women were supposed to be fat, but I decided to do a little more research to see if I was missing something (perhaps these garments held the belly up in order to relieve back pain or other discomfort). Sadly, this was not the case, see a quote from an OBGYN on a different blog below wherein someone asked if it was safe to wear these “garments” while pregnant. I’ve placed in bold the most offensive part of her response.
“Yes. There's no reason why wearing a piece of Lycra "shapewear" over your butt, belly, or thighs would harm your baby – regardless of how far along you are.
That said, it might not be the most comfortable choice for your growing body. But if it feels okay to you, go for it. Because your baby is cushioned by a sac of fluid, real harm would come from something like a blunt-force trauma (a fall or a car accident, for example). A bit of squeezing from an unyielding undergarment may simply result in an uncomfortable day at the office for you – and some reddish ridges on your belly when you take it off.”-Carmit Archibald
Honestly, from what I hear about being pregnant, it seems hard enough without having to add any additional discomfort by wearing a squeezing undergarment that may or may not leave you with reddish ridges at the end of the day!
To be fair they do make Spanx for men. I looked into it, and what I found was disturbing. Aside from the picture, which is almost as frightening as someone telling me I would have to wear Spanx, I found this guy’s blog post below. He thinks Spanx should be designed strictly for women. Note that he doesn't appear to give any consideration to the fact that women hate wearing those damn things too. But, again proving my point that women are expected to wear (without complaint) these medieval (if not "mid-evil" as these contraptions come up to your middle section and feel like garments of Satan) torture devices. His argument, if you don’t want to read what I copied below, is simply that Spanx are meant to shape the body and women are supposed to be shapely, and thus only women should wear Spanx (not men)!
“SPANX for Men - Well I don’t mean to single out ONLY SPANX, I want to go ahead and say ALL SHAPEWEAR for Men just is not the right thing to do. First of all, it’s designed by a women’s underwear designer, Sara Blakely….that by itself should be enough to keep a man from purchasing the product. The company mainly manufactures footless pantyhose and other undergarments for women, particularly “body shaping” undergarments and bodysuit shapewear intended to give the wearer a slim and shapely appearance. The term “body shaping” and “man” shouldn’t be used in the same sentence, ever. Working out should be the man’s body shaper.
I have a quick question for my female readers…let’s say you meet a guy, take him home, things start getting hot and heavy, then he undresses to reveal this picture to the left….how do you feel about this “sexy” guy now?”
That picture of men's Spanx is going to give me nightmares. All of the "bodyshapers" I've tried over the years only managed to do one of 2 things. 1) nothing or 2) pinching and red marks during what felt like an asthmatic evening out. Great post!
ReplyDeleteSpanx are made by the devil himself! Could be used as torture devices for war criminals!!
ReplyDeleteOMG! Both of those pictures are horrifying. I remember thinking I had to look a certain way to fit in and that certain way meant perfect. Now I know perfect doesn't exist and this is just sick to think this is an image being pushed on women and men these days. DISGUSTING!
ReplyDeleteI just read something about Jessica Simpson wearing Spanx while she pregnant. She said they hurt her so bad and hated wearing them. What an idiot, I would never wear something like that I'm general but especially when I'm pregnant it seems so unhealthy.
ReplyDelete