I don't make public service announcement very often, but I just finished revamping a "How Men Can Help Prevent Eating Disorders' handout and thought I'd share, in light of some of the comments on this site:
Nope, I don't look anorexic -- but then again, who does? Eating disorders don't have much to do with physical symptoms, and everything to do with a mindset. It's about obsessing over how you look, how other people look, how much you can control your food and how powerful you feel when you can deny your body. You can be overweight and have an eating disorder; maybe you binge, or maybe you eat but feel like a superunintelligent shade of purple. If eating disorders were just about being bony, every popular actress, singer, and supermodel would be "anorexic". (I see saying skinny as job hazard for them, really.)
Think about the women that you know. What comes to mind -- personality traits or a physical description? What would they say if you asked them to describe themselves? Who comes to mind when I say "successful woman" -- is she thin, well-dressed, intelligent, young, and well-mannered? It's a packaged ideal, and a dangerous one.
I decided two summers ago that my physical health was a reasonable trade-off in order to be what I thought society valued. That's how badly I wanted to succeed. I could get some pretty disturbing photos off That Boy showing my toothpick arms circa 2002. The scary thing is that even at my rock-bottom, I didn't even come close to looking like your stereotypical anorexic/celebrity (honestly, aren't they the same?), even though I probably would have started growing fuzz or something. Ew.
Well, I got over it. Lucky me, really -- getting my weight back up was actually kind of fun after a year of denial. Still got a few issues with body image, hence the cathartic thesis-writing and interest in feminist theory, but it's a whole lot better. Life's looking up.
So, what's next?
Nope, I don't look anorexic -- but then again, who does? Eating disorders don't have much to do with physical symptoms, and everything to do with a mindset. It's about obsessing over how you look, how other people look, how much you can control your food and how powerful you feel when you can deny your body. You can be overweight and have an eating disorder; maybe you binge, or maybe you eat but feel like a superunintelligent shade of purple. If eating disorders were just about being bony, every popular actress, singer, and supermodel would be "anorexic". (I see saying skinny as job hazard for them, really.)
Think about the women that you know. What comes to mind -- personality traits or a physical description? What would they say if you asked them to describe themselves? Who comes to mind when I say "successful woman" -- is she thin, well-dressed, intelligent, young, and well-mannered? It's a packaged ideal, and a dangerous one.
I decided two summers ago that my physical health was a reasonable trade-off in order to be what I thought society valued. That's how badly I wanted to succeed. I could get some pretty disturbing photos off That Boy showing my toothpick arms circa 2002. The scary thing is that even at my rock-bottom, I didn't even come close to looking like your stereotypical anorexic/celebrity (honestly, aren't they the same?), even though I probably would have started growing fuzz or something. Ew.
Well, I got over it. Lucky me, really -- getting my weight back up was actually kind of fun after a year of denial. Still got a few issues with body image, hence the cathartic thesis-writing and interest in feminist theory, but it's a whole lot better. Life's looking up.
So, what's next?
