*Role Model*

It is difficult for eating disorder sufferers to be very open about their disease. Once of the major symptoms of the disorder is a desire to keep control over one’s life. By opening up about the disorder, these individuals are putting themselves in an incredibly vulnerable position. They put themselves in a seemingly dangerous position of allowing others to judge them, to question them, to try and tell them what to do.

When considering the above circumstances, the appeal of an anonymous website to open up about the disease is very clear. Rather than fighting the disease, they are encouraged to embrace it, thus rather than feel as if they are judged for it, they feel as if they are being welcomed into a secret organization for it. The attraction to these websites is understandable, which is why they must be stopped.

Cori Magnotta took part in another interview with Real Health TV, explaining her personal struggle in greater detail. She explains the addictive component of the websites and the dangerous ability their followers are able to pull you back in, even during rehabilitation.

If you are an eating disorder sufferer reading this post, please take note of her personal story and how long she has struggled. Cori is an intensely strong and brave woman for being so public about her disease and use of the websites. She is a wonderful person to look up to as an example for her ability to admit to her struggles and publicize her story to help others.

Who is in control?

If you have not yet had a chance to visit a pro-ana or pro-mia websites, a BBC News article, "Seeking Thinspiration", written by Jaqueline Head, accurately describes their sick content. She explains thinspiration as “pictures of painfully skinny girls…. Comparing dangerously low goal weights and measurements, and team up to ‘keep each other strong’ in their quest to lose weight.’” She also takes note of several posts in which “they swap stories on how they vomit until they cough blood."

Head points out in her article that one of the most disturbing facts about the prominence of these sites on the internet is that it “brings them within reach of a wider audience”. From articles on what diet pills work best to the most effective ways to purge, these websites are blatantly enforcing eating disorders and subtly celebrating a slow and painful death for each reader participating.

Heads major concern outlined in her article is that these websites are leaking from the world wide web onto social networking websites such as facebook and myspace. Head explains, “their presence on social networking websites, which have rules against posting harmful content, raises the groups to a new respectability.” Some of the group names on these networking sites include “Get thin or die trying” and “Quod me nutrit me destruit," meaning that which nourishes me destroys me. To me, these titles do not indicate anything good is coming to follow. On the contrary, they clearly celebrate the fact that they are promoting dangerous and extremely unhealthy ways of life.

The most disturbing part about these websites is that many people are logging onto them who do not psychologically suffer from anorexia or bulimia, but are so desperate to lose weight that they resort to actually trying to become anorexic—which by definition, is impossible. They attempt to become anorexic in the same way someone may try to catch a cold. All I can as is, why? Why would you try to become a tortured individual? Why would you want to make your mind vulnerable to a psychiatric illness with the highest mortality rate? Up to 20% of these individuals die not only from the physical effects of these diseases, but the mental effects cause death as well—many suffering form eating disorders are at high risk for suicidal deaths.

Head closes the article by using individual examples of how these sites influenced eds in an attempt to understand why anyone would use them. In the case of 21-year-old Andrea Schneider, who suffered from anorexia since she was 16, explains her reasoning:

"When you are actively in your eating disorder, you desperately want someone to understand, and a lot of time you find groups like the pro groups on Facebook that are supportive of you continuing your eating disorder," she says. "When you are in the middle of it and don't want to give it up, you cling to these sites that tell you what you are doing is OK. Recovery is hard, staying sick isn't, so it's easier to hide behind these sites claiming that you are making a lifestyle choice, rather than admitting that you are sick and trying to get better."

Schneider makes an important point in her explanation. She points out that the sites allowed her to convince herself that she was consciously making a decision to be anorexic, rather than admit she were sick. The root cause of many eating disoders is an attempt to gain control. The problem is, once the eating disorder takes over psychologically and physically, the individual is no longer in control, and that is when they need to seek help the most. These websites serve as an enabling tool, allowing eds to prolong their disease by not admitting to their disease and saving themselves. As Schneider explains, “recovery is hard, staying sick isn’t.”

I would like everyone participating in these websites to ask themselves, “Who, or what, is in control now?”

Dear Tyra

Everyday I look at these websites and I see the pain and sadness in each of the comments written by those suffering from eating disorders. It breaks my heart to see them desperatly searching for an outlet and someone to listen and help them. I want so badly to let them know that there are other ways! I want to badly for this site to become a place for those with eds and their family and friends to help one another through the difficult recovery period. I felt like I needed a little help in my journey, so I wrote a letter for support to someone who I think has the power to make a difference. Here is the letter I sent:

Dear Tyra,

I am reaching out to you in the hopes that you can help me make a difference. You serve as a true inspiration and promote the beautiful idea of self acceptance and a healthy beauty. Because of your role, I am hoping that you will be able to help me in my journey.

There is a huge problem today. You may or may not be aware of it, but countless individuals are helping one another in acts of assisted suicide everyday and using the Internet as a medium to do so. These individuals are logging on to what are called pro-ana and pro-mia sites. These websites are tortuous and sick. They promote self-loathing and celebrate and enforce eating disorders. The sites are full of diet tips and tricks, chat forums for encouraging one another to starve themselves and purge any excess calories, and ‘thinspiration’ pages, complete with pictures of emaciated models and images to encourage each other to enable their eating disorders. My issue with these websites is not that they are a forum for those with ED’s to support and communicate with one another, but that they are being used to encourage the continuance of the disease.

Individuals with eating disorders have a true psychological turmoil. Their way of thinking is contaminated in such a self-destructive way that these websites easily suck them in and convince individuals who may have a chance at recovery to instead succumb to their disorder. The existence of these sites is especially heartbreaking to me as I have had first hand experience with someone who cannot control her disorder. My best childhood friend, my sister, has an been clinically diagnosed with anorexia-nervosa. My best friend who was once so full of character and light is now dull and broken. She is sick. Her body is starving and her mind and spirit are dying. Because her mind is psychologically sick, she is unable to convince herself that she needs help and that she needs nourishment. Websites such as pro-ana and pro-mia sites have the ability to trick her already disabled thought process into thinking that her disease is a ‘norm’ and that not eating makes her a stronger person. These websites do nothing but put people down and make them feel worthless. By encouraging one another that they are worthless, each person feels better and more secure with knowing he or she is not the only one who is not in control of the disease.

I am coming to you, Tyra, because of the power and influence you have as an inspiration and a public role model. These websites must be stopped and replaced with real forums for those trying to recover. These websites must be destroyed and replaced by websites allowing friends, family, and ED sufferers to get support from each other through the difficult and painful recovery process. While I am doing all I can in my power to put a stop to these, it is publicity and public awareness that is needed to truly make a difference. I believe that this is something you will feel passionate about, and I hope with all of my heart that you will help me make a difference for the individuals living every day in disease and pain. I believe that you have the power to help me bring light and life back into the lives of these individuals.

Thank you,

Maria

Prescriptions, please!

One of my major issues with pro-ana/mia sites is that they are so accessible and prominent. They are readily available for anyone who has, or wants to have, an eating disorder. I am beginning to notice, however, that these websites are not the only enablers that are readily available to the general public. As briefly touched upon in my last blog post, diet pills and laxatives are heavily overused.

People make a big deal that prescription drugs are becoming the immediate go-to solution in the US, but at least there is some psychiatric counseling required before hand! Has anyone given any thought to the overflow of diet pills spilling out of drug stores? I can’t even buy a vitamin without being slapped in the face by an overwhelming section of diet pills reminding me that eating healthy and working out are STILL not enough to keep me looking good. Furthermore, the advertising for these things is atrocious. I’ve given up reading the last few pages of a magazine, as they are almost always devoted entirely to diet pill advertising.

I, personally, don’t have a problem with all of the photo shopped models and whatnot, by this point I’m pretty much aware that they are simply a mixture of genetically blessed individuals and nerdy photo-shop geniuses. But this bombardment of pills on the other hand…even for a person like me, who does not suffer an eating disorder, they are nearly irresistible. For example, if I feel like I look pretty good from just diet and exercise alone, I’ll probably look pretty damn hot with the extra help of a miracle diet pill. Hey, if they can work for "Grandma Cara" over here, think of what they can do for me, right?

This, of course, is not the case. I admit that I, far too often, fall victim to these dangerous pills. All I end up with is a destroyed sleep schedule and the shakes. Oh, and a quickly dwindling bank account.

This is where the problem is, though. Diet pills are not supposed to be for just anyone to buy! They are meant to help those who are greatly overweight. They should be prescribed by a doctor, not available to just any one wanting to buy them over the counter! Like I mentioned in the last post, there are countless individuals who do not appear to have an eating disorder, and these pills are easily accessible to them, thus enabling their sickness—and people are making a profit on this. Diet pills should absolutely not be so easy to get a hold of.

While the advertising often boasts the glory of being thin and beautiful, they seldom even touch upon the risks. It is a shame that even when trying to find accurate information on diet pills, such as this website advertises, a myriad of links to testimonials still litter the page. Follow the link and take note of the links included in the “health risks of weight loss supplements” box. I just don’t understand.