Uncommon Couples Struggle With Stereotypes

May 17, 2007— -- Floridians Sharon and John Klose describe themselves as an ideal couple. Married 15 years, they say they have the sort of relationship people long for.

"I couldn't ask for a more perfect marriage, a more perfect mate," Sharon said. And the feeling is mutual. "She's just the sweetest, kindest person you'd ever want to know," said John.

But the couple says that the simple act of biking side-by-side, or a hand-in-hand stroll through the mall feels like an act of defiance against a stubborn and often unspoken relationship taboo: an asymmetrical relationship, when you're with someone who doesn't match your appearance physically.

The Kloses say that they are routinely stared at in the course of daily activities. "If John were walking through the mall, somebody wouldn't look at him twice," said Sharon. "But, you know, when he's with me — I can't tell you, it's like a puzzled look sometimes. It's either puzzled, or disgusted." It's a look, Sharon said, that's based entirely on her 282 pound size compared to her husband's lean frame.

"I think if I were a thin woman with him, no one would look twice at us," she said. Sometimes, the looks turn into uncomfortable comments like, "How disgusting," or "Who could love her?"

This experience is a reality that confronts many couples who don't fit the image of the picture-perfect pair. And it's a reality that Sharon has battled for 15 years, ever since she won a weight discrimination lawsuit against a college that went all the way to the Supreme Court. It was then, at an event for the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance, where she met her future husband. Sharon didn't realize that her size would remain a stigma, not just for her, but for John as well.

Sharon admits that she's self-conscious about meeting John's friends and coworkers. "Because I'm round and have a lot of curves and he's tall and thin and we're just different physically," she said. "We kind of stick out in a crowd."