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A plus-sized woman has defended her relationship against critics who have accused her boyfriend of being a 'feeder'.
Maria and Alin are in a 'mixed weight relationship' and their pairing has received criticism both in real life and online.
The Austrian couple met through TikTok and have been together for several years now.
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But the couple have received a huge amount of trolling online, as people would make assumptions about why they're together.
Maria told Truly: "There are many people who think I don't deserve to live just because I'm fat.
"I never had problems dating anybody, I think I just got confident at a very young age."
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She continued: "I get DMs from people, they tell me I should die and that they don't understand why someone deserves to live when they're fat like I am.
"Nowadays I just don't care, because I know these people are trolls on the internet who don't even know us."
She also hit back at the assumption that Alin is a 'feeder', saying: "People also assume that he feeds me things to gain weight.
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"I didn't gain any weight since I'm with him.
"Or they assume he fetishises me."
Although Alin admits he has a preference for bigger women, he says he had never been in a 'weight gap' relationship before.
He said: "Before Maria, I'd never been in a committed relationship with a plus size woman.
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"I would say I definitely have a preference for plus size women. But there was also a lot of stigma around it.
"I changed my mind once we actually got into a relationship.
"There were definitely toxic people and relationships that I went away from. I had a very good friend ask me, 'How can you even be with her?'
"We do get a lot of judgement when we walk in the streets, they can't believe that someone like me is with her."
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For Maria, finding clothes that fit her is a difficult task.
But luckily for her, Alin is quite handy in the crafts department and is able to make clothes for his partner.
Alin explained: "I wanted her to feel beautiful and have nice clothes."
Maria gushed: "I love that Alin makes my clothes.
"If there's anything I cannot buy in stores, then I go to him and ask if it's practical that he can sew it for me."
The couple have also received a lot of supportive comments online.
One person wrote: "In all honesty, he should open a plus-size shop because he has a lot of talent. The dresses are so pretty.
"Like, get your money, man. I'm happy they have found happiness in each other."
Someone else called them 'so sweet' and a 'great couple'.
Another supporter commented: "They go together as a couple. People are always emphasizing the difference. What matters is that there relationship is genuine and they make each other happy. [sic]"
Topics: Sex and Relationships, TikTok
Ben Thompson