'Curvy' Soap Opera Actress Posts Amazing Message After Being Called 'Fat'

Risa Dorken is most recognizable for her role as nurse Amy Driscoll on ABC’s soap opera General Hospital. However, it’s her stance on body positivity that’s getting her noticed on social media from the body positive community.

Risa Dorken (Photo: Instagram)
Risa Dorken (Photo: Instagram)

On Instagram, the actress shared a picture of herself in her character’s pink scrubs to address critics who’ve shamed her. “My body is curvy, always has been. To me curvy means so much more than ‘fat.’ It means powerful, strong, feminine, beautiful, and human,” she wrote in the post that has received more than 490 likes.

"I happen to like the way I look, It's other people who have the problem with it. -Amy Driscoll, #GH On a real note: My body is curvy, always has been. To me curvy means so much more than "fat." It means powerful, strong, feminine, beautiful, and human. As a young girl I always thought I was like everyone else. It was only when ADULTS pointed out that I was "different"….fat. At the time I truly wasn't, But I matured and went through puberty before other girls. Wouldn't it be amazing to raise girls thinking they're perfect how they are?! To build confidence ?! But the constant reminder- the whispering in the halls, how I looked in the same outfits next to other girls, when I got in trouble for wearing certain things, what I saw on TV… it all took an affect on my psyche. Now as a 27 year old, I am learning to fall in love with my body. I work out 5 days a week, I watch what I eat, and the truth is… I'm healthy! But I also Laugh a lot, make a difference in my community, and I'm a daughter, sister, aunt, and soon to be wife. I am more than what the public decides is "beautiful." The dialogue on women in the world is definitely changing, but we need to stop the comparisons, stop trying to define "Normal," stop defining a shape or characteristic as unhealthy, and just be happy. I'm so proud to play a character that's fun, flirty, and sharp-tongued, like so many powerful women I know. Truly honored to be a source of light… and forever grateful that this little girls dreams came true. ???? #selflove #sizematters #curvy #bodypositive #bodypositivity #gh #generalhospital #abcnetwork Photo by the fabulous Jim Warren.

A post shared by Risa Dorken (@risadorken) on May 24, 2017 at 12:39pm PDT

Dorken encouraged her followers to stop comparing women and to stop trying to define what healthy and normal looks like. “I am learning to fall in love with my body. I work out 5 days a week, I watch what I eat, and the truth is… I’m healthy,” she said.

She also received praise on Twitter for her message of self-love.

Originally from Minnesota, Dorken grew up performing in local plays and relocated to New York City to study musical theater.

She then moved to Los Angeles and landed her General Hospital role. And things are good on the personal front as well: she’s engaged to her boyfriend of seven years.

It’s easy to see why Dorken wrote that she is “more than what the public decides is ‘beautiful.'”

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