We have received more guest book messages than ever after being featured on Mamavision's blog, and we are not sure whether to thank her.
The guest book messages have ranged from thank yous, to questions of where we got the pictures since they "don't look eating disordered" to messages filled with obscenities and no point. There have also been messages asking why previous messages full of obscenities were not posted. Why would we post something which makes no valid point? Others had empty threats. Those are just funny.
We instead posted the ones which made points and generated some conversation, like this one-
You know I wonder if all those pissed off little girls whose pictures ou have posted realize that their "real girl thinspiration" are stolen pictures that don't belong to them? Yet they seem to have no qualms posting those everywhere. At least I'm not staring at these proana girls so I don't eat; I just can't keep anything down after seeing so many ugly faces all at once.
This one made us think. The places these pictures were taken from do have real girl thinspiration- we described it before as taking pictures of extremely thin girls and using them to motivate weight loss, most times without their knowledge or permission. Many times the girls in those pictures have a disease or drug addiction of some sort and do not want their pictures used that way.
Others questioned why we put up pictures of "healthy" girls with no eating disorders. There are other eating disorders besides anorexia- but these were also the pictures the girls themselves posted on pro-ana sites. Draw from that your own conclusions. Some have said that the "shock" factor isn't there with pictures of healthy girls, that it would have been better to use emaciated girls for shock value. But despite the hundreds of members in each of these groups, few of those posting pictures were emaciated. We did not go to recovery groups. These are the pictures that were there. They put a face on this, which we see as a threat. They make it real.
Another post asked us to name the sites we got the pictures from. We discussed this, but decided not to. We do not want to encourage any one further, just like we did not post the pictures these girls posted of themselves as thinspiration.
At a recent visit from my wife's niece, who is 12, she borrowed our computer. When she later went out for ice cream, she left the browser window open, and we were shocked by what we saw. That is when we decided to create this blog, and the sites referenced are the ones she viewed. These are quotes from the websites.
"This pro-mia pro-ana web site is the birth of the evolution of proana, and the start of the second wave pro-anorexia movement."
"Very few things scare me more than my WEEKLY visit to the doctor; she's way too damn smart to let me get away with any of stuff I'm about to tell you to do. These tips pretty much only work if your doc doesn't know about your eating disorder." followed by tips on how to hide your weight and other warning signs of an eating disorder.
"Ana = lovee Pro= ana site."
"People who gose through eating disorder's &&& loves it!!!!"
"keep it in our life till the day we die....everyone is welcome including MIAS....this site is devoted to those who need help staying ana and those who just are...its a part of our lives...there is no escape...."
"Ana and I...'til death to us part?"
"Are you ana? Is your BMI ana? Are you so skinny? Are you close to being ana?"
"Thinspiration is your best friend. You think you’ve lost weight? Trust me you haven’t. Just check out the models online and you’ll realise that."
There are lists of "negative calories," "the 2-4-6-8 plan" which restricts calories to under 1,000 a day and some days to 200, "reasons to be thin,"and links to other pro-ana or pro-ed sites.
You can imagine the way our stomachs sank as we read these. We have discussed it with the girl, and she has said she was worried about wearing a swimsuit and was "just trying it out." Her parents are getting her help.
We decided we couldn't sit and do nothing. The blog was my wife's idea- putting a face to it, shocking and making it real and maybe bringing some attention to it. We are only glad we found these sites before her niece had a chance to try most of the tips they give.
8 comments:
Hello it is mamaVISION here. As I read your post, it reminds me of all the thoughts and processing I did over the past two years of blogging on the pro ana topic.
Complicated isn't it?
There's quite a discussion going on over on my blog so I hope you are reading along.
I applaude your efforts, especially now that I read your neice inspired you. Kids can do that can't they?
My 6 year old daughter prompted my very first post after seeing ANTM prancing young girls on TV posing nude, and she asked the innocent question "Mama, why are they showing their private areas?"
That furior and passion lead me down this pro ana path, which I entered with great hesitation. I can remember sitting at the PC late at night after the family was in bed, and googling pro anorexia. I sat there and pondered if I really wanted to see what was there.
I am glad I clicked because we can't hide. As you said, we can't just sit here and do nothing.
I admire your guts, keep going and give 'em hell. They are threatened and that's good- maybe they will start thinking before posting to the world. The WORLD.
By the way, I delete nothing. All posts go live immediately on my blog. This is decision I made right off the bat, let it be real or forget about it. Yes, they throw out profanities, threats and what not but who cares. I would prefer to show the real emotion behind the subject than censor it, but this is a personal decision you need to make. I'm just big on free speech - can't stick your head in the sand you know?
Take care,
mamaV
Hi... the girls you posted are a bunch of hypocrates they use girls who are serverly emaciated,etc. for thier thinspiration...
Here...
Using women who are probalay dead from anorexia for their thinspiration...
sorry it's gross to some people and i'm stupid but does anyone have any good pics of very very emaciated women?
The response...
http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o27/Misjima/Bones/z71393654.jpg
http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o27/Misjima/Bones/M3L9fig09.jpg
http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o27/Misjima/Bones/fotoanoressia.jpg
http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o27/Misjima/Bones/91.jpg
http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o27/Misjima/Bones/88.jpg
http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o27/Misjima/Bones/86.jpg
http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o27/Misjima/Bones/68.jpg
http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o27/Misjima/Bones/66.jpg
http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o27/Misjima/Bones/65.jpg
http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o27/Misjima/Bones/05.jpg
This how they support each other it makes me cry. These women are either dead or suffering but this is what these girls do they are hypocrates. They do not have eating disorders and deserve no support whatsoever.
Good for you for doing this and protecting your young niece.
As a parent of a kid with an eating disorder, let me assure your visitors a person can "look fine", and still be at death's door with an ED, esp. if purging, induced vomiting, and or laxitives are involved.
It's not how much they weigh that makes them sick with ED, it's the hell they endure in their heads every minute of every day.
And anonymous - Everyone deserves AND needs support. Especially those whose believe they need and deserve it least.
Just thought it would be useful to know what someone who has an eating disorder thinks about this:
"I have had bulimia nervosa for 7years and was anoretic for 3 years before that. So i have been suffering for many years now.
The pro anamia trend is so upsetting for me. These girls have absolutely no idea what they are letting themselves in for. The dont understand that these "tips" will become so much more. They will become their life.
I developed and eating disorder from child trauma and and many unkind words. But these things have made me have a life ruled by eating disorders.
I cannot understand how anyone could think that this is a lifestyle. You chose and change a lifestyle, this you have no control of. Its hard to describe how an eating disorder changes and controls you. But it does.
It would be better if an eating disorder was hard to develop, but they are not. A couple weeks or months following these sites, looking at emaciated figures, hearing the "religion" (thats the worst one), and anyone would develop an eating disorder.
I do not know what the answer is. I have friends who have been in and out of treatment, not pro ana mia, but will go on these sites to feed their illnesses. They are suffering and making themselves suffer more. These sites do not only damage people trying or pretending to have an eating disorder, but they are killing those already diagnosed and sick."
That may be pointless but i hope it helped. Or just made a point.
Hey, hey, hey, they aren't ugly. Don't give them a complex. They're pretty, but they're pretty sick too. It's a shame.
honestly, i think the thing that is most frightening is that these girls are not the 'glamorous' models we see in magazines, on TV, on runways, etc, but ordinary people. they are the girls at my school, my next door neighbors, my best friends, the people i ride the bus with . . .
it is frightening to see that people who are 'healthy' and 'normal' can have eating disorders.
thank you.
These girls are not emaciated because they do not have anorexia nervosa. Anorexia nervosa is a DISEASE, not a LIFESTYLE choice, and anyone who deems themself as "pro" ana... is like deeming yourself as "pro" cancer. It's ridiculous. Anyone who has truly suffered the consequences of anorexia and other related eating disorders would never ever deem themself as "pro" eating disordered... it makes me sick that people take a serious illness that so many people suffer with and cannot control, who LONG for recovery.. myself included.. and label it as a lifestyle choice... as something they have control over... if they only knew the true horrors of the true disease, maybe they'd think twice.
http://community.livejournal.com/proanorexia/76264185.html#cutid1
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