Lily Allen Says She Has Body Dysmorphia
February 8, 2010 in Beauty & Body Image, Celebrity Quotes, Lily Allen by Versus
The Daily Mails has the scoop:
The singer claimed that when she looks in the mirror she sees ‘someone who is considerably more overweight than I am.
‘It’s body dysmorphia. I think I look like Michelle McManus.’
Speaking to Love magazine, she added: ‘The reason the fashion world has embraced me is because I lost a stone-and-a-half last year. They probably wouldn’t have when I was heavier.
‘I’ve been on shoots where it’s been “Lunchtime! OK, Lily, do you want a cigarette?” instead of eating lunch.
‘Don’t make me feel guilty about the way I look.
‘Compare me to Kate Moss and all of those supermodels and, yes, I probably am on the podgy side. But in reality I’m fine.’
Miss Allen attacked fashion photographers and stylists for trying to make her feel bad about her size.
When she was younger she had to wear tiny ‘samples’ – early designs released to stylists – on various shoots. ‘You can’t fit into them, and they’re rolling their eyes at you as if it’s your fault.
‘Hold on a second, I’m a pop star, not a model. Don’t make me feel s*** for not being really skinny and having an eating disorder.’
Miss Allen said she had recently gained weight due to steroid injections to treat laryngitis. ‘People say, “Ooh, she’s in love, so she’s put on weight.” No! I’m ill.’
Share your thoughts!
I love Lilly – I like how she’s so down to earth and outspoken, most young women are afraid to speak up, but she’s not.
I can totally relate to her. When I look in the mirror I see someone quite pudgy even though medically speaking my bodyweight is perfect for my height – I think it’s the same for most girls too. Luckily I live a regular life where my family, friends and co-workers don’t expect me to be a size zero. It must be awful turning up to fashion shoots and not being able to fit into the beautiful clothes. She’s a singer, not a model – she’s helping sell the magazines and clothing by appearing in those shoots. You’d think they could at least bring her the right size.
i love her too. I feel the same about my body sometimes. And even my face. No matter how many times people say im beautiful, i will still see all these Miranda kerr type faces and me as a gaunt, big noses, odd faced alien lol.
Plus, lily is cute as! gorge face! and i like her bod! i think she is sexy!
I second what Sophie said.
thats not body dysmorphia thats the true reality of just how distorted our perspective on body issues has become. i would also describe myself as pudgy, am also perfect weight for my height, but if i were to post my photo on here, loads of people would agree that i look pudgy. most wouldn’t be quite so nice about it. and so so so many would go on and on about me not being healthy!
until a model steps on a pair of scales in front of my eyes, i will maintain none of them have BMI’s over 18. they are NOT healthy role models. if you like how they look fine. but don’t try and trumpet the image under the guise of it being ‘healthy’
totally know what you mean. i so know if i were famous everyone would bash my body despite me being healthy and a size 8, sometimes 10 us. i feel as if we have been conditioned to believe that you have to look a certain way to be considered thin and that’s not true. i just wondered to what happened to being healthy. and i mean healthy as in eating a balanced diet and working out moderately.
I love her sense of reality
So in one breath she says she looks like Michelle McManus (who I am assuming is the lady on the right), and then in the next breath she says she is a bit on the podgy side but in reality is fine. I’m sorry but the lady on the right is very overweight, not podgy. The way she defends herself and talks about how she used to be on the heavier side indicate she has a pretty realistic view of her body. There really are people with body dysmorphia, and based on what I see and hear, she doesn’t have it.
She said she PERCEIVES herself as looking like Michelle McManus, but she’s not blind you know? She can intellectually realise she’s just pudgy but okay, but AT THE SAME TIME, she looks in the mirror and feels huge.
Well, when I look in the mirror I see somebody that is very chubby/ overweight. My BMI is 17.9 so I do realize that I can’t possibly look overweight. But I can’t help what I see.
She knows that her weight is healthy so she can’t possibly look obese. But that is how she perceives herself
Welcome to life on planet earth Lilly: Where you can’t win no matter what you do.
Yup. That is why at the end of the day you have to do what makes YOU happy, it’s useless trying to please everyone, because you will never please yourself.
And yes that reads like a “that’s what she said” joke hahaha.
Someone who thought they were morbidly obese would NOT wear the outfits she does!! Have you seen her on stage?!? In that pic she seems to be wearing underwear as outerwear…oh yeah you clearly hate the way you look!
and what she has said is a complete contridiction!! She just wants attention!! I like her style and music but shes just such an idiot!!
Ha- good point.
I think she’s just looking for attention here- I mean who in their right mind wants to announce their insecurities to the world? What’s the point in that? Is she looking for sympathy?
And is it me or is it kinda rude to mention a fat person directly like that!!
yes I do think its rude for her to mention a specific person but then again lily allen IS a rude person.
lol I always wonder how person can say they are very concious of their body but then go around i skimpy clothes or topless as lily often does.
I’m just thinking.. if you truly don’t like your body wouldn’t you want to cover up more?
I think she just wants attention as always
You guys took the words out of my mouth, when I read the article I was thinking – wow what a douchey thing to do, mention some other poor women in relation to your “supposed” body dysmorphia!
I also agree about her stage outfits and what not… I think Lily is probably the same as most women, they have days when they feel hot and others when they don’t feel to sexy. She seems like a major “self loather”, and those kinds of people are annoying. It’s like, if you don’t like what you see in the mirror, get off your ass and DO something about it. You can change how you look it just all starts from within.
I think the picture your talking about is the one where she has lost the weight.
i was about to say the same…if she really has problems why dress like that?
i have my own body problems and i’d NEVER go out unless i’m covered from the neck down…she’s an hypocrite
Wow…she was all over the place. I think it was kind of unnecessary to say she looks like Michelle McManus…she could’ve just left it at she feels like she looks heavier than she is.
I also don’t get that if she truly thinks she’s heavier why she wears such short shorts and dresses on stage?
I LOVE her music but I don’t think she’s the sharpest knife in the drawer.
so true kelli, why bring michelle into it?
michelle mcmanus is such a nice girl, who i have met and is from my home town. she could have just said fat or obese, why be horrible? that’s just rude and nasty.
ugh, i hate it when women put other women down for no reason!
she didn’t have to mention any names (sigh) that’s an ugly move
Michelle has actually lost a lot of weight and is now probably UK size 16/18, she hosts The Hour show in Scotland.
I don’t know her or what she goes through, but based on this interview and what I know of her through the media, she’s just seeking attention.
I mean, body dysmorphic disorder? No Lily, you don’t have that. If you did, you would feel so terrible about your apperance that you wouldn’t go on stage, and wouldn’t be able to. Don’t trivialize it. What you have is called, “being a woman,” because every woman felt that way at some point, looking in the mirror. Your experience is not special, worse, or unique in any way.
Based on the above, I find it very hard to find sympathy for her.
though i do love lily and her music, i agree. i mean, everyone has her own perception of self, but to say it’s BDD is a bit too extreme.
and also i find it so cold that she called out a heavy woman like that. that was such a low move — tasteless, and disrespectful of someone who is probably going through her own body issues. i’d like to know how michelle mcmanus feels about the comparison.
guess she is used to being abused about her weight, sad but true.
lily just loves attention. wasn’t she giving up tweeting, then next day was back on it? supposed to be giving up music aswell. we can only hope..
that came out harsher than i intended. don’t hate her music or anything, just get a little sick of the whole Lily allen speaks her mind stuff, ‘ doesn’t conorm to the usual plastic pop puppet like every other young star’ tag is a little tired and cliched. not entirely her fault but i think she milks it a little. i have my own mind and speak it, constantly seem to find myself running against the tide, but i manage it without offending people, or running them down. theres a difference between having an opinion and just opening your mouth and letting the first thought you have fall out!
I struggle with this sometimes, what you said at the end of your comment in relation to speaking your mind. I sometimes spill TOO much lol, I tend to forget that other’s don’t see things the way I do and I hate when I do that. I am still learning how to find the balance of voicing my opinion without sounding b*tchy.
In every article about her, I always see the tittle and feel bad for her but as soon as I’m done reading the article I just feel like she’s a selfish little brat.
She needs to get over herself.
i used to love lily, but now she seems to lose her personality that i loved, she used to wear cute little dresses on stage, now she wears a lot lingerie…..is she following the lady gaga trend or something? she used to seem pretty happy about her weight and now i think she is trying to lose weight. i think in some way she kinda got influenced by other people. i still love her music though
Kim Kardasian has this – except she doesn’t think she’s fat – she thinks she’s skinny. Its very sad to see girls like this… </3
She’s just exaggurating. :/
Also Versus, you made a mistake.
“Ooh, she’s in love, so she’s put share your thoughts!on weight.” No! I’m ill.’
I doubt Lily said ‘share your thoughts!’ in the middle of a sentence. XD