Modeling Unto Death

That is sad.

Teenage girls on LiveJournal with poor self-esteem who think being thinner will solve all their problems refer to eating disorders as "ana" or "mia." I have never met anyone with a real eating disorder (and I have met many) who refers to their chronic and life-threatening psychological illness by a pet name. I find it incredibly frustrating that the media has latched onto these terms and given the public this impression.

i think it's sad but noone really dies from anorexia.
i weigh 38kg and get told by people i have this so called eating disorder but i feel perfectly fine, their is no proof that there really is an eating disorder bcoz their isn't it's all caused by feeling depressed or stress. models like her are idols just like nicole richie and kate moss they are beautiful but smart..

I certainly can't comment on your own situation, except to hope you are healthy. However, there is a lot of irrefutable proof that people die of eating disorders. ANRED (Anorexia Nervosa and Related Eating Disorders) published this on their web site:

"Without treatment, up to twenty percent (20%) of people with serious eating disorders die. With treatment, that number falls to two to three percent (2-3%). In 2005, Dr. Wright of the Eating Disorders Program at Presbyterian Hospital in Dallas, Texas indicated that the mortality rate for untreated anorexia nervosa may be even higher, up to 25 percent."

hmmmmm

Ana is the spelling of Anna in Portuguese, yes.

Summer, you are very sick and mentally so you won't get help for your physical illnesses. Nobody ever dies from anorexia, true. Just like nobody ever dies from AIDS. She died of sepsis, and people who have AIDS die of flu or pneumonia, not of AIDS directly. So by the same logics, nobody should prevent HIV, since AIDS does not kill you.

What is worse is you come here and try to indoctrinate impressionable girls with your sickness. You should try going to "pro-ana" sites, where at least you can share your sickness with other sick girls, and not with ones that are still healthy.

Regarding the irony and hypocrisy in advertising, yesterday while reading an article on this site regarding the dangers of fast food, I noticed that the google advertising was displaying links to McDonald's, Burger King, Wendy's and KFC.

Thank god for "smart" ads. Without them, I would have had one less laugh for the day.

...I hope that at least a few "beautiful but smart" girls will look at this tragedy and say "holy sh*t- that could be ME!" This has been progressing in the media and our society for the past few years; but its been here all along. Nobody remembers Karen Carpenter anymore, and I'm sure that in a few short years no one will remember this poor Ana girl either- except her mother, family, and a few close friends. I'm sure they would give anything to have been able to help her- now it's too late. Maybe if nothing else, we can turn this tragedy into fuel for change... how many more people will have to die before we stop buying the magazines and watching the TV shows? I can't help but to feel like we are all partly responsible. Mama's (and dad's) out there, teach your children what true beauty is- give them the groundwork for self-esteem that may someday save them from this fate. Blessings to anyone out there who may be suffering from these illnesses, may you find peace within.

This link is just for the State of California, but illustrates 'the rest of the story' so to speak. It will take major, difficult changes to alter the direction we as a species are going. For individuals, I believe there is hope, for society, I do not! We each need to do our part.

http://www.dhs.ca.gov/hisp/chs/OHIR/reports/others/Obesity2000_2002.pdf

I just don't get it, I guess it is natural for people/girls to feel insecure about their figures (even if they look great) but still...

rav, the problem I think is that after a while, the body really rejects the food. It starts off as a way to control weight or just control life, but then, people try to eat and they throw up, involutarily. This happens to a few WLS patients, that clearly never had a history of anorexia. They start eating little because of the surgery, and after a while, they can't tolerate food anymore. There was a report on a woman suffering from this around a year ago in the media.

And Dr. J, that was in terrible taste. I honestly hope you are not a real doctor and just pretend to be one on this blog. Let's post obesity scare statistics in a post about anorexia, to encourage more people to become anorexic. How medically responsible of you.

Yes, Dr.J, these girls may be starving themselves to death, but oh my god at least they aren't FAT!

I'm sure you have no idea how offensive and triggering what you just posted is, but anyone who has ever sufferent with an eating disorder or knows anything about them does. Thanks, we all really appreciate it. :(

What's irresponsible is your inability to read a report without your obvious bias.I NEVER supported anorexia! The point is...this is a problem with extremes at both ends of the spectrum. They have an eating disorder and so do you! These are addictions. As addicts, like with an alcoholic, when confronted with their addiction, they get very aggitated and defensive, as you do! Sorry, I am a doctor. A surgeon. As the joke goes, I do a lot but don't know anything!

Summer--while you may think that eating disorders are only based on emotional issues, there are physiological signs of eating disordered behavior that can cause medical issues. Weighing less than 20% of ideal body weight is classified as "anorexic" according to most criteria. People that are just naturally skinny generally never get THAT skinny just on their own, unless they are starving themselves.

Yes, Dr. J, we are agitated because we are all compulsive overeaters with eating disorders, not because you posted obesity stats in a post about anorexia. Sure, it is my fault, I'm touchy because I'm 600lb, no wonder I get offended. Either that or I'm 80lb, and that is why I'm offended. Heck, why don't you just go with the good old diagnosis of "hysteria"? I'm defensive and agitated because my damn ovaries are making me crazy. It has nothing to do with you being an insensitive jerk.

Here's an story relating to eating disorders...my neighbor...a really lovely lady...has a daughter who started showing symtoms of anorexcia. She came to me and asked if I knew anything about it.

I had worked in the modeling business and fashion business and told her that many of my friends with those symtoms were "perfectionists" and had to be perfect...or they would get hugely depressed.

My neighbor had me talk to her daughter to see if she might tell me something that she wouldn't tell her mom.

Well...the girl told me her mirror told her she was fat and needed to keep losing weight. This young woman was rail thin already. I smiled and told her..."don't listen to your mirror..listen to the people who love you".

Well...the next day the mirror was out by the curb...a really nice victorian stand up mirror on a rocking frame. It was gorgeous.

I asked my neighbor if I could buy it and she said I could HAVE it.

The daughter came crying to me asking me to throw it away cause it was "haunted". She was being admitted to a recovery center the next day, voluntarily. I wished her well and we moved within a few weeks...and I took the mirror.

So...in the new house I didn't have room for it to be on the floor...so I mounted in on a closet door where it would reflect the lake when lying in the bed. It was in a corner so I never stood in front of it..until one day I was sitting on the edge of the bed...and happened to look up...OMG...I looked like a weighed 400 pounds in that mirror! I was shocked and stood up...again...it distorted my body and head horribly! It was like a funhouse mirror. A real nightmare!

I wrote to the neighbor telling her what I had discovered. I told her I could see why her daughter could not get thin enough to like the reflection she saw....She wrote back saying her daughter was doing well and coming home and that there would be NO full length mirrors in her daughters room. The mirror really WAS "haunted". It's still on my door but I don't ever stand or sit in front of it.

I have antique mirrors all over my house...but they are mostly neck and above....I look like a different person in each one....Check the mirror you look at yourself in most often...make sure the reflection is who you really are..love and peace...lynnann

Oh yeah, and to add to Spectra's comment: considering Summer's weight is 83lb, and she is 5'3" if I remember correctly, that is 22% below the minimum healthy weight. 83lb is a healthy weight for someone 4'5" or under.

lynn, that is a really interesting story. I remember I used to go to a salon that had 6 large mirrors on the walls. 4 of them were normal, meaning, I and everyone else looked like we do in any other mirror. One mirror was the "flat head mirror" as I called it. It made everyone look like they had no neck, and the top of their heads was flat. And one was the Magical Slimming Mirror. Everyone looked 10lb thinner. Of course, everyone wanted to have their hair cut sitting in front of that mirror. It was the only chair that was always busy. We used to joke about it even.

...hmmm...I just learned that this site is for overweight and obese visitors. Oh. I don't have either problem (and really don't care about 'medical weight charts' that may try to tell me what my ideal weight is). Perhaps I could loose 5 kilos (about 10 lbs)or even more, other than that I am happy within myself. At 57 I am intitled to a little more weight - keeps the hormones happy and the curves where I like them. For me - I prefer curves over boney angles.

I come here because the information is interesting and excellent AND I learn from the topics. The responses are very enlightening too.

I understood Dr. J's point straight off. Perhaps because I am not in the same boat as others in the extremes of too much or too little. No defense here - just my observation.

summer said:
i think it's sad but noone really dies from anorexia. i weigh 38kg and get told by people i have this so called eating disorder but i feel perfectly fine, their is no proof that there really is an eating disorder bcoz their isn't it's all caused by feeling depressed or stress. models like her are idols just like nicole richie and kate moss they[...]

Those who suffer from eating disorders can die from complications.
They become malnourished and their body slowly stops working.
If your body stops working, what keeps you from dying?

Jan said:
Ana is the spelling of Anna in Portuguese, yes...

What does Portuguese have to do with anything?
Ana is short for Anorexia, not a person's name.

P.S. I think that more modeling agents and designers need to stop using underweight models !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
It's hindering the cessation of eating disorders.

Summer, you should really get some help. This is a tragic death and you girls still don't learn anything. The shit kills.

Jan said i was healthy. i am healthy sure i might have some bad days but everyone goes through them. i believe any weight is beautiful but i would look terrible overweight, i don't understand what the docter was talking about but why do we hate him again? well not hate him but why are we angry?
and to who ever said i should go on pro-ana sites instead of here, :( thats not fair, i wasn't saying young girls should copy they wouldn't need to...by all the media and magazines that are easy to buy other girls would do that its not that bad.

I find it ironic that models promote underconsumption of food, but overconsumption of clothing, cosmetics, and just about every other consumer good known to humanity.

There is no middle ground in advertising. Perhaps what we need is to use a little bit of initiative and simply turn out televisions off if we find them offensive. If you don't like what the magazines and movies promote, don't buy them. It's not that hard.

We tossed our television two months ago, and now I'm finding our lives refreshingly free. No voice-overs telling us how to look, what to buy, what 'great offers' we simply can't miss out on! My children won't be sold rubbish they don't need, and images they can't conform to.

Stop whingeing about the mass media, and vote with your feet. The reason these models are in business is because we (the consumer) are foolish enough to buy what they sell. So stop buying! Advertisers will soon get the message - they're not dumb.

i think people will keep buying them

valerie said:
What does Portuguese have to do with anything? Ana is short for Anorexia, not a person's name.[...]

Valerie, read Jim's post. He pointed out that the model's name was spelled "Ana", which was ironic because yes, "ana" is short for anorexia. I was pointing out that spelling Anna as "Ana" does not have anything to do with what teenagers who think eating disorders are "kewl" call anorexia, but just with the nationality of the poor dead girl.

summer said:
Jan said i was healthy. i am healthy sure i might have some bad days but everyone goes through them. i believe any weight is beautiful but i would look terrible overweight, i don't understand what the docter was talking about but why do we hate him again? well not hate him but why are we angry?
and to who ever said i should go on pro-ana sites i[...]

Yes, Summer, I said that you are lucky that for now, you don't seem to be showing any problems yet, and that you should go to a doctor to get a checkup.

The doctor posted obesity statistics. The implication
of his post, like A different Nic said, was "hey, at least this dead model girl wasn't fat". It was very insensitive.

And it was me that said the pro-ana thing. I'm sorry, that was very insensitive too, but I don't think you should be sharing dieting advice with young girls like Jassy, in the other post. She is 13, she is still growing.

Patricia (Spain) said:
...hmmm...I just learned that this site is for overweight and obese visitors. Oh. I don't have either problem (and really don't care about 'medical weight charts' that may try to tell me what my ideal weight is). Perhaps I could loose 5 kilos (about 10 lbs)or even more, other than that I am happy within myself. At 57 I am intitled to a little more [...]

I don't see how disliking insensitivity to a dead person relates to body weight.

If I went to a blog that had reported for ex. on Christopher Reeve's death (not caused by anything weight-related) and posted stats for death by lung cancer, caused by cigarrette smoking, I would be acting insensitive towards his death, by minimizing his problems, since not as many people die from paralysis-related health problem as die from cigarrette smoking every year. And even if you don't interpret Dr. J's post as I did, at best, it is implying that death by anorexia is a rare and unimportant condition, while obesity is the real important cause, since it kills many more people.

I guess it's just the world I live in, but I don't see an epidemic of skinny people out there! Jan, you have some real issues! You distort what others say to make your questionable points. Why don't you discuss issues without the need for personal attacks? Obesity is a MAJOR problem. Saying that does not mean there are no other weight issues that are important! What I wish people would realize is that these are all SYMPTOMS of a larger problem. If the real food and lifestyle issues are not addressed we will continue to have an increasing obesity problem which will be quite destructive economically, and more desperate attempts by people to avoid the stigmas of a 'weight problem'.

Dr. J--YOU may not see a lot of skinny people, but the incidence of eating disorders is increasing in this country. Discounting anorexia as a minor problem compared to obesity is not a fair thing to do. The human body tolerates being overfat much better than it tolerates being very underfat (I'm not saying it's GOOD to be overfat, but in times of famine, people needed to be able to store lots of fat with few health implications). Think about it, if obesity killed as quickly and often as anorexia did, people wouldn't live as long as they do being fat. Most anorexics can survive (barely) for a couple of years before they go into organ failure and cardiac problems. Most obese people are obese for many years before the secondary complications arise. I do think it's important to reduce the obesity rates as well, but this post obviously isn't the right place to put the link to that study. You can't compare apples to oranges.

Perhaps if we, as a culture, somehow found a way to stop obsessing over food and fat, we wouldn't have people hating themselves and hurting themselves because of how their bodies looked.
Easier said than done...

I have got to comment on this post. This one hits home for me. Summer, hi, How old are you and how tall are you? I know it is hard for you to see this but you are very thin! I could never admit that I was anerexic either. I would do everything in my power to keep from getting what I thought was fat. I used to exercise everyday for 5 to 7 hours. My family was worried ,I thought they were rediculous! Then it started to take its toll on me, every little cold of flu would be major and wouldn't go away. My white blood cell count looked like that of an aids patient. My brother saw me and broke down into tears. He said I looked like a tweaker(not a good look) an like I was going to die. And honestly I felt like I was, but couldn't stop because I would get "fat" Every night I would fall into my bed without any strength in my body and pray that I would wake up the next day. Scarey things started to happen. At a concert(and I was not on anything) I passed out, The firemen said I hardly had a pulse or blood pressure. Then one morning after I got up I felt weak and cold and I couldn't stand up. My arms and legs got stiff and my fingers and toes started curling backwards.My mom said no matter how hard she tried she couldn't push them the other way.I had never heard of anything like this before. My sister called me a few days ago and said she saw an anerexic model saying this happened to her. Now this post. I would not believe any of the dr.s who said I was doing this to myself! I had an ordinary bladder infection that turned into a full blown kidney infection and very near kidney failure. I was peeing out what looked like fuzzy pink golf balls. Then to top it all off I ended up with a gram negative bloodstream staff infection. They couldn't control my fevers and I was fighting to keep my eyes open. I was drifting somewhere so deep that I just knew I wouldn't wake up. I learned the hard way. It is very scary when your body shows you who is the boss! Please don't learn the hard way! Listen to the people who love you and to us here. I am sure You are a very special person with some self esteem issues. Please love yourself enough to work on these and nourish your body with the food that it needs to stay healthy. I was very lucky and I thank God for that. I just hope that you will come to the realization of what you are doing to yourself before it takes a toll on you.

that's relle sad

Tamie,
Thank you for being strong enough to share that with us- It is a hard story to listen to, but if more people like you who have been to the dark depths of eating disorders could help shed light down the tunnel for those on that same path, maybe more would see their condition for what it truly is. Many of us on this site have battled one side or the other of the food/weight struggle, and so many of us were unaware that we had a problem until it was big. Having the support of those who have been through it and overcame the battle can be the difference between being in denial and continuing to suffer, or becoming self-aware and starting to recover. For so many, food addictions will be a reccurring challenge. I am still getting a handle on self esteem issues and a negative relationship with food that has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. But I'm aware of my distorted thoughts, and can therefor keep it in relative perspective. On days when I wake up feeling horrendously fat, I always ask my partner, "why am I so crazy?" instead of even uttering the negative affirmation "I feel so fat"... and now that I have a view of how askew my thoughts on my weight can be from day to day that on the mornings when I wake up feeling really skinny I ask my partner, "why am I so crazy?"; because it's really all the same. It's a touchy subject; regardless of whether you're under-weight or over weight. I'm really glad that there are forums like this one available, because even if just one person out there reads what has been shared and is helped by it, than we have done something to positively effect the problem as a whole. Thanks.

i love people like jo and tamie, at least they understand a little more. its just the only problem there is that someone with anorexia (if there is an eating disorder) and just not care about the bad parts you can go through most people that feel so bad about it are very depressed and would rather kill themselves than go get treatment thats why you should try not to go down the path but if your already there you wont let anyone close to you to help.

Thank you Jo, It is hard to talk about but I realize since I have been there my voice is needed. Thank you for posting also! Summer I am so glad you came back. I know that fear of treatment, I thought of it as some kind of conspiracy to make me fat. And I also know the desparation of not wanting to live if I had to gain weight. I am just thankful to God for the warnings he gave me. It made me realize I didn't want to die and I knew in order to live I had to stop doing what I was doing. I know it is hard to talk to people who are close. They some how tend to make us rebel, I don't know what it is. Summer I have to get off line right now but I want to let you know that if you ever need someone to talk to please e-mail me at tam.marie@yahoo.com or if you would rather you can keep posting thru this link and I will check back often. I hope to hear from you soon.
Take care and be healthy,
~Tamie~

Dr.J said:
I guess it's just the world I live in, but I don't see an epidemic of skinny people out there! Jan, you have some real issues! You distort what others say to make your questionable points. Why don't you discuss issues without the need for personal attacks? Obesity is a MAJOR problem. Saying that does not mean there are no other weight issues that a[...]

Oh yes, cause you never attacked me, saying my problems are caused because I'm obese. That doesn't count as an attack at all.

dr. j you are an ass!!! i might have a couple of problems but even i would love to love myself a little more, when i was huge i was so much happier and i had no need to feel scared about what others thought and personally i am jealous of every girl out there that loves their body and get far in life. and you should think about what you say here when i weighed 61kg i was so depressed, people like you made me feel ugly!!!!!!personally you diserve what you get!!

i think wanting to do suicide during anorexia is the worst so she's actually lucky suicide would mean she was more unhappy

http://news.softpedia.com/news/Anorexia-Kills-Another-Model-40393.shtml

Read this and see what she was like before her death! What appals me is that they see she is anorexic, but still do make-up, put nice clothes on her and take photo of her. What fashion items can be sold with an ad like this? She needed help, but instead they just stood by. What a sick world!