Why do we have to have numerical, or letter assigned sizes for clothes? I know personally, when I go up a size, I sometimes get a little discouraged and self-conscious over my body. I normally am pretty self-critical over my body and notice most little changes that go on weight-wise. So, when I go from a size 4 to a 6 for example, I get a bit depressed and begin stressing over what my body looks like. Society has trained us to see going up in a clothing size as a bad thing and that the letter or number, matters. When you see this model wearing a size zero, there can be a switch that says I must strive to be a size zero. We do not take into account height, and what is healthy, because we just try to reduce our clothing size. Everyone has different dimensions, so I think we need to try and make buying clothes a little less stressful. I think that it is time for this to change because people should not feel bad about the size of their bodies.
We could try and use measurements like they do in the men’s department, even though it is still a number. This uses numerical values in inches for what you need to find in a pair of pants or a shirt. For example, a pair of pants may be labeled 32 x 34 for the waist and inseam. These are numbers that make sense, because a size two does not make a ton of sense, like two what? I know that behind a size two is a set of numbers that correspond to waist and inseam. Another idea that I think of could be using measurements but changing the context at the forefront. Why does it have to be a size two or a size sixteen? There is so much more to a person than a numerical size or being labeled as small, medium, large, or extra-large.
Instead of small, medium, large, extra-large, etc. we use a different word to describe sized like this. Maybe be a size kind, or a size sweet, or a size caring, etc. there are so many better words like these words that are currently being used. I know that those words are derogatory because you are calling someone large or extra-large. That can make people feel self-conscious, when in reality they should not feel that way. Buying clothes should make you feel confident, pretty, and happy instead of feeling anything less than beautiful.
When I go clothing shopping, I get very nervous and anxious over not fitting in the same size as I did before. I try to not worry about that stuff and fitting rooms only make it worse. Normally there is very unattractive lighting, and some places do not allow you to bring in other people with you. This makes it worse for me because I like having someone there to help me in case things go south. If I am alone in a dressing room, and something does not fit, then I do not have someone to talk through it with me. I will instead become locked in my own mind and become a bit depressed over it. This is because of the word/ number choices used, and the idea ingrained in my mind by society that going up a size is a bad thing. I personally feel that going from a size kind to a size caring would make shopping for clothes less stressful for me. I would be able to feel beautiful no matter what size I was because I would not be labeled as a size small, medium, large, or extra-large. I really hope that companies begin to realize and make changes to erase the stress out of clothing buying for men and women.