Blaming eating disorders on the media is the easy way out.
This is one of the main reasons I find it difficult to ask for help. People don't think as much of eating disorders because girls are just "being stubborn" and wanting to be thin.
The media DOES NOT have the power to cause anorexia. Anorexia and Bulimia are the results of trauma and genetic disposition and the environment someone grows up in.
It doesn't help with body image, but not liking your body is different than a full blown ED.
Once someone has already developed an ED then media images don't help. I had anorexia for nearly 30yrs from age 11. I had never heard of it and was not the least concerned with fashion or looking good. It started with terrible anxiety about life and coping with trauma. My body was something I could control and controlling it through restricting food and exercising helped relieve my anxiety. My story is not unfamiliar. Bulimia is more likely to relate to media pressure to be thin, but not always.
Eating disorders (EDs) are a mental illness and are driven by a lot more than body dissatisfaction. The media are not to blame for EDs, especially anorexia nervosa, which has been documented back to the 17thC at least. EDs are complex mental illnesses, not a mere extension of (nearly) everyone's concern to 'look good'. Social scientists apply logic to these illogical illnesses. EDs are about hating the body, but for reasons that differ from vanity - sometimes sex abuse or bullying (cont).
Blaming eating disorders on the media is the easy way out.
This is one of the main reasons I find it difficult to ask for help. People don't think as much of eating disorders because girls are just "being stubborn" and wanting to be thin.
The media DOES NOT have the power to cause anorexia. Anorexia and Bulimia are the results of trauma and genetic disposition and the environment someone grows up in.
It doesn't help with body image, but not liking your body is different than a full blown ED.
alwaysUmpteen 3 years ago
Once someone has already developed an ED then media images don't help. I had anorexia for nearly 30yrs from age 11. I had never heard of it and was not the least concerned with fashion or looking good. It started with terrible anxiety about life and coping with trauma. My body was something I could control and controlling it through restricting food and exercising helped relieve my anxiety. My story is not unfamiliar. Bulimia is more likely to relate to media pressure to be thin, but not always.
misstiggykins 3 years ago
Eating disorders (EDs) are a mental illness and are driven by a lot more than body dissatisfaction. The media are not to blame for EDs, especially anorexia nervosa, which has been documented back to the 17thC at least. EDs are complex mental illnesses, not a mere extension of (nearly) everyone's concern to 'look good'. Social scientists apply logic to these illogical illnesses. EDs are about hating the body, but for reasons that differ from vanity - sometimes sex abuse or bullying (cont).
misstiggykins 3 years ago