It's Time To Talk About It (National Eating Disorder Awareness Week 2017)

National Eating Disorder Awareness Week kicked off this past Sunday. From the NEDA website. . .

Spearheaded by the National Eating Disorders Association, the goal of National Eating Disorders Awareness (#NEDAwareness) Week is to shine the spotlight on eating disorders and put life-saving resources into the hands of those in need. This year’s theme is It’s Time to Talk About It and we’re encouraging everyone to get screened. It’s time we take eating disorders seriously as public health concerns. It’s time we bust the myths and get the facts. It’s time to celebrate recovery and the heroes who make it possible. It’s time to take action and fight for change. It’s time to shatter the stigma and increase access to care. It’s Time to Talk About It!

I find it absoultely mind-blowing that I struggled through anorexia as an adult, for several years, and by the grace of a powerful God, have made it to the other side.

Mind-blowing because I can't imagine living in such bondage now.

Mind-blowing because I can't imagine feeling so out of control now, that food (or lack thereof) would become the source of security and safety.

Mind-blowing because I can't imagine going back to the old me. The me that let the scale become her God. The me that charted every last calorie that slipped past her lips. The me whose mind was continually consumed with thoughts of thinness, weight, food, and the like. The me that manipulated her body down to a meager 89 pounds. The me that became obsessed with the worship of self.

Six chapters of my book are dedicated to this very topic. Because I believe it is a message worth sharing. Because if my story can spare just one person from choosing body mutilation over freedom, it was worth it.

If you or someone you know could be walking through an eating disorder, please reach out. Tell someone. Don't sit alone in the struggle. Contact me and I will find a way to get the first six chapters of my book into your hands.

You can also access a free eating disorder screening here.

Other resources:
National Eating Disorders Association: Feeding hope
Eating Disorder HOPE
Hope, Help, and Healing for Eating Disorders: A Whole Person Approach to Treatment of Anorexia, Bulimia, and Disordered Eating by Gregory L. Jantz, PhD
Gaining: The Truth About Life After Eating Disorders by Aimee Liu
When Eating Disorders Consume Your Family 

It's time to talk about it.

#NEDAwareness

Body Image Survey

Waaaaay back in the day my writing centered more on the ins and outs of eating disorder recovery and all that recovery entailed - emotionally, physically, and even spiritually. Then came God's precious blessing of two living babies and an angel baby, thus anything remotely related to body image just (naturally) slipped under the rug.

Remember back in 2013 when I hosted a "Life With An Eating Disorder Series" and several brave women shared their stories? God is breaking down chains anytime we speak our hurts and hangups out-loud and bring them into the light.

Currently, I am doing a little research on several areas surrounding body image and food "issues" and the common threads that keep this such a hot topic for women in our generation. Because sadly, even though I (by the grace of God) have moved on from my eating disorder, many women are still walking around head down, letting calorie count and jean size control their thoughts. And we all know what makes up our thoughts makes up our days and what makes up our days makes up our lives.

So here is where you come in . . . a survey of sorts, if you're up for the challenge. Please feel free to email me personally with your answers if you are not comfortable sharing in the comment section of this post. This survey should only take a few minutes of your time.

Thank you so much!

BODY IMAGE SURVEY
(All questions can be framed in either past or present struggles.)

1. Have you struggled with feeling insecure about your body?

2. If yes, who or what made you feel that way?

3. Have body anxieties ever impacted your daily life?

4. If yes, please give some examples of how your life has been impacted. (One example could be that your body anxieties prevented you from attending a social event that you really wanted to attend.)

5. How has comparison played a role in how you view your body?

6. Has the expectation of how you think your body should look (vs. the natural body/shape that God actually gave you) played a role in your view of self?

7. If yes, please expand on how your expectations have played a role.

8. Has your body insecurities lead you to control your food intake in an unhealthy way?

9. If yes, please give some examples of how this control plays out in your diet. (Some examples  could be "I measure everything I eat according to serving size before eating." Or "I don't allow myself to eat between meals even if hungry.)

10. Would you rather be slightly bigger than you are but be healthy, or slightly smaller than you are but not as healthy?

11. What positive coping skills have you learned, if any, to help combat these insecurities, comparison, and/or control as it relates to body image and food intake?

12. Things that make me feel better about my body are _________  (fill in the blank).

13. If you could give one tip to another woman for increasing her body image confidence and embracing the true beauty in who God created her to be, what would it be?

(Some questions were taken/adapted from this survey.)

Is Barbie a dangerous role model?

A growing number of girls are now developing disordered eating behaviors during elementary and middle school. So we have to ask, what is encouraging pre-teens to question their body and turn to extreme dieting? There is certainly pressure from the media to be thin, but some of the girls presenting with anorexia nervosa are not at the stage where they read fashion publications and their parents still restrict TV viewing. For girls still playing with their dolls, some say Barbie might be the problem. 

While Barbie might seem like an innocent toy to some, when you consider how far removed her figure is from that of a real women, some mental health specialists are beginning to reconsider how potentially dangerous an influence she is on young female minds.

During the 1960s a version of Barbie controversially came with a set of scales and a weight loss guide. You can't buy this Barbie from the shelves any longer, but even if she doesn't come with the accessories that encourage weight loss, her figure certainly promotes that message. When you consider that the average woman could never achieve Barbie's figure, is it right that young girls are exposed to the idea that this is how women should look? The ultra thin models teens see on a weekly basis in magazines aren't much better, as most models are so underweight and they technically have anorexia. Impressionable young women view these fashion models as having the figure they need to attain, but they forget that the images they see in print are also adjusted by airbrushing, so they could never attain the same appearance even with highly restrictive eating habits. To minimize the risk of eating disorders through exposure to unrealistic female bodies, it is vital we raise awareness of how far from the norm these figures actually are.

Mr. Mike Kelly, the content editor at Steps to Recovery, an addiction treatment facility in Pennsylvania, and his colleague Amy, recently produced an article that discusses the near impossible body image that Barbie dolls represent. Their research article shares shocking statistics and insights of how the portrayal of a thin body image has devastating effects on young girls and women, and can sometimes lead to eating disorders. Very interesting indeed. They asked if I would be willing to share the article with you all, and due to the topic being near and dear to my heart, I wanted to pass it along.

If you have a few extra moments, you can check the article out here:

Starving yourself to achieve the impossible figure of Barbie

Some good food for thought. I would love to hear your thoughts and reactions. . . 

Have a great week!