Quotes from Tess Holliday

I have no friends from high school. That was probably the reason I ended up dropping out, and I dealt with that by eating.

I think that some of the biggest surprises I've had early on, actually to this day, are all the misconceptions about my body and my health. There are so many people who think that being a plus-size model, that there's something wrong with it, or that I must be unhealthy or that I'm promoting an unhealthy lifestyle.

I'm a normal person, but people see me as this person who's not really real, almost like I don't have feelings. They think they can treat me any way they want to.

I've noticed that a lot of people who criticize me are from the U.K. - both in the press and on social media. Since I've been here, I've gotten a lot of stares on the street, but in the States, people always come up to me and say, 'I love your hair' or 'I love your dress, you're so cute.' Here, people just look at me like I'm a crazy person.

I firmly believe that a big part of the obsession with women's thinness comes from the same place as male power fantasies.

I'd like to be the person who changes things, or at least open doors for others.

The States are more accommodating to fat people - there are more plus-sized clothing labels, and people talk openly about it.

I am technically healthy but my body is no more valid than someone's who isn't.

The real issue that I have is the erasure people are trying to do with my very valid feelings in regard to how plus-size and fat people are treated in fashion. The way that people just kind of overlook us and pretend that, you know, we don't have style, that we aren't trendy or fashionable. It's dehumanizing.

Being fat doesn't necessarily make me feel stronger. What makes me feel strong is knowing that I can live my life and be who I want to be.

If I have the opportunity, a massage or facial is a great way to take a little 'me time.'

I think people think how I got work came easy. People assume that I was an overnight sensation, because they're just now hearing about me, or that everything happened very quickly.

Ultimately, I don't really want to see the media portraying curvier and fatter bodies being the norm, I want to see a variety of bodies of all shapes, sizes, colors, and orientations, all of the time just like we do in reality.

I have to wear Eloquii to red carpet events where my friends are wearing custom Versace.

My style is very eclectic, definitely more '60s and '70s inspired.

I take antidepressants, which I was embarrassed about for a long time, but it keeps me going.

I think that people think that since I literally wrote the book on how to love yourself that I love myself all the time, but I don't.