I am Fat. This is How Fat Feels.

BBC Woman’s Hour wanted to explore attitudes to weight and healthy living. So they asked their audience 'How Does Fat Feel?' and lots of people responded.

I interviewed Jules and her husband. I took a weighted suit and Jules and I went for a walk during part of the interview to help me understand how her weight impacted her movement. Their raw and emotional account explains how being fat destroyed her confidence, health and marriage.

Mellisa talks honestly about why she insists on calling herself fat and how her weight shapes her life. “Some days I use my fat as armour, some days it's like a shroud,” she says. She spoke to me about getting the joke in first and feeling hyper-aware of the space she takes up.

Pheobe is sixteen and wears a size 18 to 20. When puberty hit, the weight piled on. She started to receive negative attention from classmates and strangers that triggered a spiral of events, leaving Pheobe and her family struggling to cope. She admits it's been a long journey. I went to meet Phoebe and her mother Ali to get an understanding of how fat feels through the eyes of a teenager.

BROADCAST: BBC Radio 4 Woman’s Hour Episode 1 Episode 2 Episode 3

READ ONLINE: BBC Stories Online