A plus-size travel blogger has opened up about the difficulties she faces on airlines as a ‘fat’ person – candidly documenting her struggles to fit in plane seats and bathrooms, revealing she is often forced to purchase two seats in order to travel ‘comfortably’. Jae’lynn Chaney (pictured), 25, from Vancouver, Canada, regularly jets off to exotic locations across the globe and shares her experiences on TikTok , including the struggles of being a size 6XL.
The influencer has seen her weight fluctuate throughout the years, particularly after she was diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and pulmonary hypertension, high blood pressure in the blood vessels connected to the lungs, in 2019 – which caused her to gain 100lbs. In a series of clips, which have since gone viral with millions of views, the influencer shows how airlines don’t cater to larger sizes – with seats too small for her frame and her partner Jacob Ard barely able to squeeze into tiny toilet cubicles.
When traveling Jae’lynn has to make certain adjustments, explaining: ‘Someone my size is almost forced to purchase two seats in order to fly comfortably, which makes travel inaccessible to people who can’t afford the additional costs.’ ‘I find that many situations surrounding plus size travel are the least accommodating of my weight. ‘From public transportation with seatbelts that don’t fit me, or seats that are too small, to plane bathrooms that I can’t even fit in – traveling as a plus size person comes with many challenges.
The next year, 2019, she was in and out of the hospital and was determined ‘medically housebound’ when she first received her diagnosis.
The next year, 2019, she was in and out of the hospital and was determined ‘medically housebound’ when she first received her diagnosis.
During that year, Jae’lynn ‘gained over 100 more pounds.’ Now Jae’lynn says ‘not only am I plus size, but I also now live with chronic pain and disabilities.’
In her most popular clip, which has three million views, she shows her partner trying to move around in a tiny toilet cubicle as his body touches almost every surface. In the post, she wrote: ‘I get asked how the airplane bathrooms are for someone my size all the time so I thought I’d show you what it’s like from my fiancés point of view.’
In another clip, shared with the hashtag ‘#flyingwhilefat’, Jae’lynn shows the harsh limitations of aircraft design by struggling to pull down a tray table. She also flashes a seatbelt extender she had been given because a typical seatbelt didn’t strap around her properly.
Social media users have flocked to the comments section to share their views. One person said ‘I’m a medium and even I gotta be twisting and turning in airplane bathrooms’.
While another said, ‘hate to break it to U guys. but it’s the airplanes job to cater to customers, not customers catering to airplanes’.
Someone else chimed in, saying they appreciated Jae’lynn sharing her story.
Unfortunately, Jae’lynn also suffers negative comments from trolls online. Jae’lynn said that one person in her comments said that she’s ‘going to cause a plane crash because of my size.’ Despite her struggles, she is determined to prove to her followers that they can love their body, no matter their size – and enjoy traveling too. She said: ‘When I talk about exercise, I focus on movement that brings us joy and makes our bodies feel good.’
Jae’lynn is not focused on weight loss at the moment, she’s much more ‘focused on doing what makes my body feel good and what makes me happy.’ Through her positive attitude and social medias media she hopes to show ‘that bodies of all sizes and abilities are just as worthy as those who fall into the societal norm of beauty.’
Jae’lynn notes that ‘bodies change and fluctuate over time,’ and she believes it’s important to ‘love and embrace our body at every stage of life.’ By documenting her experience, Jae’lynn is ‘creating representation and empowering people to live their life to the fullest,’ and showing everyone ‘ they can travel the world if it’s what they dream of.’
