After I'd made the plans to go, I realized that this might be an interesting opportunity for a blog topic. I mean, if you just look at the list of exhibitors, it really makes you wonder how many of them are apart of that multi-billion dollar weight-loss/fat-shaming/insecurity-women-making industry, and how much good an event like this really is. So I went in with my battle face on (sort of) ready to get women talking about health, body love, and confidence in themselves.
Well, turns out I'm not much of a fighter after all. Actually, I didn't really see too many exhibitors that were targeting women by taking advantage of their insecurities. There was one booth for a plastic surgeon, and I was sort of listening to what the woman with the booth was saying to the woman who was asking questions. It was interesting to me because the woman asking questions looked like the pretty typical "beautiful" woman. I wanted to ask her what she was hoping to change, why she was wanting to change, where she was in her journey, etc. But I wasn't brave enough. I also wanted to ask the woman with the booth about the people who come to their clinic. I wanted to know if they provide any sort of counseling to their clients either before or after the surgeries, or if they simply let the clients deal with drastic changes and the results on their own. I can imagine dealing something like that could be difficult for people who have major self-image issues. But again, I was not brave enough to approach the exhibitor.
I did, however, come across one booth in a section providing health information that asked women if they wanted to know what their BMI was. This I could not simply walk away from. I approached the woman at the booth, and she very kindly asked if I wanted to check mine. I told her I did not, and let her know I was about to rant (with a smile). And of course, I was very polite about what I had to say, rather than combative, because I know they are just trying to help and because people react better when you're nice. I just kind of told her that BMI's are a really inaccurate way to measure someone's health. I let her know it was something that was invented in the 1800s, and reiterated that it is literally the ratio of one's weight to one's height. It can be very misleading in that someone with a "healthy" BMI could actually have a terrible lifestyle healthwise, and someone with a "dangerous" BMI could actually be quite healthy. So why, in 2014, we are still using such a ridiculous "tool" as an indicator of health is quite beyond me. It is really a good guess, at best.
Another booth I came upon was the Women's Foundation of Lincoln and Lancaster County. I hadn't ever heard of this so I was intrigued by what it was all about. I spoke to the exhibitor a few minutes about this, and found out they help with things like legislation, finances, education, etc. by having different events, mailing lists, a TV channel, and other things. I asked if they ever had anything about body issues, and the woman actually said they hadn't. She thought that was a great idea asked that I write down the suggestion for her, so I did. Hopefully something will come of it.
No expo would be complete without a little shopping. And these vendors probably made up most of the expo. There were quite a few that had some really neat stuff, and I did purchase a few things. I got a bracelet from Michelle Avery Jewelry, and then also a dress. The dress was from a boutique called Diva Wear Plus. Although the name has the word "Plus" in it, there are actually clothes for women sizes XS to 6X. It was really neat seeing a retailer providing such a wide range of sizes in a store for plus size women. I don't know that I'd seen that before. So I hope this women continues to be successful in her business. The store is located in Kansas City if you ever want to check it out!
I think it might be kind of cool to have a booth of my own next year. I'd have it full of things to help women feel good about their bodies, resources they can check out, shops, websites, information about health, exercise, stickers, and who knows what else! I don't know that it'll actually happen, but it's a great idea for sure.
Oh, and also, the Lincoln Ukelele Group performed!
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