It's disgusting, isn't it? The thought that there are actual websites that not only promote, but also share how to have an eating disorder. Brilliant. In the article, Starvation on the Web, it says "On pro-ana sites, girls as young as 10 share tips for losing weight (purge in the shower to cover up the sound), tricks for hiding the signs of malnutrition (use nail-growth polish to keep nails from becoming brittle) and "thinspiration" (like photographs of bony fashion models)."
"'Clearly, these sites serve a need for our patients, because they spend an extraordinary amount of time and energy creating and visiting them,' says Dr. Rebecka Peebles, an eating-disorder specialist at Packard Children's who co-wrote the report with student Jenny Wilson. The adolescents in Peebles' and Wilson's study who entered pro-ana websites tended to do so without their parents' knowledge and, compared with their peers who didn't visit the sites, to spend less time on homework, more time on the Internet and more time in the hospital. But the study did not find major differences in body weight, duration of eating disorders, number of missed periods or bone density between anorexics who visited the sites and those who didn't." In the worst part of my eating disorder, I visited these kinds of sites once or twice because I couldn't believe that they existed. I didn't frequent them, though, because they freaked me out (thankfully). I did, however, spend numerous amounts of time on the internet researching food, eating disorders, medical things related to eating disorders, restaurants, weight loss, and other things that are pretty "eating disordered", and I always did so in secret. I refused to let my parents or friends know that I researched such things; I would have been humiliated.
One woman who runs one of these sites says "the mission of her website is to provide support for people who already have eating disorders, not to encourage or promote self-destructive behavior. 'The term pro-ana I think is widely misunderstood and misused,' she says. 'Most people hear the phrase and immediately think that we're ringing bells on a corner somewhere in cyberspace, wearing sandwich boards that say ANOREXIA IS AWESOME and handing out pamphlets.'" I think that if there is any site like this out there, a sense of promoting is going on. Yes, it's nice to have support with people who can relate to what one is dealing with, but there's a point (especially with eating disorders) where "support" becomes destructive.
"Indeed, for many girls who are struggling with
low self-esteem and a negative self-image, the sites can be especially
seductive. 'Had I not gone to the sites, my weight definitely wouldn't
have dropped as low as it did,' says Mann, whose 5-ft. 7-in. frame
bottomed out at 100 lbs. 'The pro-ana sites provide a world that's
comforting.' Dr. Richard Kreipe, director
of adolescent medicine at the University of Rochester, says it is that
sense of belonging that draws many teens to the websites and blogs. If
there's one thing teens respond to, it's the rallying voices of other
teens, something lacking on sites dedicated to recovery. 'Pro-ana sites
are much more sophisticated,' Dr. Kreipe says." I think that's what fuels an eating disorder in the first place: the desire to belong. I know that's the way a lot of mine was focused on. Fortunately for me, I gained a sense of belonging through Christ and my faith in Him. Not everyone can say that, which breaks my heart. I have such a sense of love, worth, meaning, value, and purpose in my life now, and that's all because of Christ. Those are feelings that every single human being has, but many will go their entire lives searching for them to no avail because they haven't accepted Christ. Many people with eating disorders don't believe in God or have faith, and I think that's a big reason why so many people with eating disorders feel such a void that they fill with their disorder.
Google is a wonderful thing. I haven't had to go to a library in years (though I do because I love the library) because everything I need is right there at my finger tips. Everything that I don't need is there, too. "Pro-ana" sites are a prime example. It would be alright if no one went on them, but that's not going to happen; they're too tempting to those who want to use them. For me, I don't need to visit these sites to try and relate to people and find a sense of belonging because I have that in Christ. I wish that everyone could have that. Since they don't, though, I guess that these websites are the best alternative some and I guess that they will continue to go on.
Song, Sora. "Starvation On The Web." Time 166.3 (2005): 57. Business Source Premier. Web. 20 Oct. 2013.
