Growing Past “Skinny-Shaming”: A Coach’s Journey from Criticism to Confidence

18 August 2025

Bella Barnes / SWNS

Bella Barnes, a 26-year-old weight-gain coach from Newham, London, recently shared her powerful journey through body shaming and personal transformation. Skinny-shamed from a young age despite having a naturally slender frame (size six, around 55kg), she endured cruel remarks questioning her eating habits and unjust comparisons to anorexia comments that tore at her self-esteem.

That commentary hit harder during her teenage years, when cultural messages praising curvier figures made her feel inadequate simply because she was slim. Familial reactions only amplified her struggle. When she expressed her desire to gain weight, those close to her dismissed her feelings, insisting she should feel grateful for her body yet Bella knew self-acceptance was elusive. 

Deciding to take control at 17, Bella started experimenting with increased food intake and gym routines. Still, progress was slow and frustrating. She realized she needed a deeper understanding of the relationship between mental state and appetite.

Through her personal training studies, she discovered that stress suppressed her ability to eat and from that insight came her breakthrough. Today, she has gained roughly 20kg and comfortably embraces a size 10 to 12 physique. Far beyond the numbers, the transformation was deeply emotional adding vitality, confidence, and a sense of true health. 

Bella’s story doesn’t stop there. She has turned her experience into purpose, launching herself as a weight-gain coach and sharing openly via TikTok (@coachbells). Her platform is a safe space for those wrestling with body image and her message is radical in its inclusivity. She challenges the notion that body positivity only applies to those with larger frames. “Just because you are skinny does not mean you are not worthy of health or love,” she says. She urges people to pause before making appearance-based remarks: “Wait a second before you say something to someone, you don’t know that person’s journey.” 

Bella is quick to point out that skinny-shaming is often trivialized or misunderstood. We talk openly about fat-shaming rightly so but we rarely reflect on the pain of mocking or disparaging someone for being thin. Negative comments like “Are you anorexic?” or “Do you even eat?” can wound just as deeply. Body shaming in any form inflicts real harm. 

Bella’s journey underscores an important truth: everyone deserves compassion not critique for their unique body story. Her advocacy reminds us that health and self-love are not defined by size, but by respect for our individual bodies and experiences.