Girls Suffering From Eating Disorders Find Support On Facebook

November 25, 2008 5:00 pm     Posted in Body  Sara C - Fordham g+ page

thinspiration.jpg


By Sara C

It’s not official unless it’s on Facebook.

You know the phrase is true. Did you hook up with a new boyfriend lately? Get a new job? Start grad school? You probably updated your Facebook to let everyone know about it. Social networking has acquired a terrifically powerful role in our culture, one which legitimizes every facet of our lives. But what happens when Facebook users begin posting personal details that don’t merit digital high-fives?

Such is the case with a new trend in Facebook groups that actually promote such eating disorders as anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa. Think about your average, “Hell Yeah I Went To Public School!” group and channel all of that enthusiasm towards the idea of starving yourself. Imagine scrolling through a list of your friend’s groups and finding one like “Ana Boot Camp” (which has recently been disabled by the Facebook administration) which attracts users who view anorexia as a fitness goal, not an eating disorder. They’ve even co-opted the name “anorexia” to just “Ana,” as a way of reinforcing the idea of anorexia positively. Members of “pro-Ana” groups collaborate on starvation plans and look to one another for “thinspiration.”

Though the pro-Ana phenomenon has existed for some time on independent websites, the jump from private domains to the certainly more public sphere of Facebook is a new step in eating disorder pride. While Anas (the name for followers of pro-Ana) have lurked online and in private chats in the past, joining pro-Ana groups on Facebook signifies that they are confident in their beliefs and aren’t afraid to share their eating habits with friends.

Newsweek, which published an article on this story this week, interviewed 20-year-old Kate (who declined to give her last name) about the benefits of being pro-Ana on Facebook.

“[On Facebook], there’s a lot of really close networking,” she said, “so you add those people as friends and exchange phone numbers, and when you’re having a hard day, you talk on the phone.” And by joining pro-Ana groups, these individuals are declaring their relationship with eating disorders for all of their friends to see.

The tragedy with the pro-Ana movement is that its supporters are completely oblivious to (or defiant of) the fact that eating disorders are diseases that need treatment. Anas believe that people who deride eating disorders see them as bad habits. Through social networking, they stand to spread their unhealthy message of celebrating anorexia to many more people. Young female Facebook users could be persuaded to turn to starving themselves to stay thin, if the cultural pressure to slim down remains and the cult of pro-Anas expands.

And even if Anas don’t convert everyone to anorexia (they’re not particularly mobile proselytizers), allowing their groups to expand on Facebook would mean tolerating eating disorders, which is an insult to those who truly suffer and deserve medical attention. Thankfully, Facebook administrators have already begun to disable pro-Ana groups, which should be a step in the right direction. Nonetheless, Facebook has evolved as a legitimate medium for trend spotting, and tolerating anorexia should not be another passing headline on the news feed.

15 Comments on "Girls Suffering From Eating Disorders Find Support On Facebook"

  1. Brittney says:
    Tue, 25th Nov 200812:45 pm 

    I remember when I used to blog on Xanga, there was one day I discovered pro-ana pages. Somehow a few of them that day were listed on the top blogs of the day.. So I go as the curious high school student and find all of this ridiculousness. It also had a ton of photos of girls super duper skinny, along with thin models.

    It's very upsetting these girls (and guys too!) are in such a sad denial about a problem they have.

  2. Kelly says:
    Tue, 25th Nov 20081:59 pm 

    I just spent 20 minutes after seeing this article looking around facebook and I'm so incredibly disgusted and saddened that this exists. Go facebook for taking the groups down but how long can they keep that up before it becomes a free speech issue?

  3. jenna says:
    Tue, 25th Nov 20083:37 pm 

    i've been an active member in a pro ana group on livejournal in the past, where it was completely anonymous. i never could imagine broadcasting an eating disorder to the entirety of facebook though. i know a lot of girls try their hardest to hide the fact that they do have a serious problem, so my guess is that a lot of these girls are "ana posers" who mistakenly think they're cool if they have an ed. i believe they just like the attention. i did encounter many of these girls on lj. trust me, girls that truly have a problem KNOW that its a disease, and they KNOW what they are doing is wrong. having an ed is a terrible thing to have to go through, and its so wrong to pretend to have a problem that some people truly can't help. i have to say though that pro ana sites can have a positive effect on girls with eds. having people around that understand you helps so much since so many don't understand the true innerworkings of these disorders. this common understanding and support can help prevent suicide in these girls, which is very common in those with eds. although i disagree with the use of "thinspo" and such, i only agree with the support of each other. many girls help each other on the right track to being healthy and overcoming the disease. BUT i agree that the existance of these sites is saddening, and other help should be definitely sought, but do not be disgusted until you experience what these girls are going through and they pain they undergo on a daily basis.

  4. Hm says:
    Tue, 25th Nov 20085:11 pm 

    Darwin says we let the stupid starving girls die.

  5. Veronica says:
    Wed, 26th Nov 20085:21 am 

    I just did what Kelly did, and looked on facebook for the proof. Wow. This is really sad, and I wish more could be done. I had no idea this was so heavy on facebook, thanks for the article.

  6. M says:
    Wed, 26th Nov 20089:10 am 

    i dont think that facebook should block these groups. its free speech. to some people anorexia is a lifestyle not a disorder. i go to these pro ana sites because im trying to become anorexia i dont think its a bad thing just as long as you dont get crazy about it like theres a limit of intenseity with this i would never take it to an extreme

  7. Jill says:
    Wed, 26th Nov 20085:22 pm 

    Wow. Anorexia is not a lifestyle. A particular diet is a lifestyle. A disorder is not.

  8. Shanna Rae says:
    Wed, 26th Nov 20089:39 pm 

    I agree with M, this is free speech. While I do not agree with promoting such harmful behavior, it is not our right to censor. No one is upset when people join groups that cater to being a raging alcoholic, or a slut, and lets not forget the always classy ode to couch burning.

  9. Melodie says:
    Thu, 27th Nov 20083:09 pm 

    Shanna; I get what you are saying, except that these groups are jokes. I sincerely don't think actual alcoholics join these groups and broadcast it, and "sluts" either.

    However, these are serious groups where people support and promote a mental disorder.

    And yeah, it is not our right to censor, but Facebook can and will do it, so whatever.

  10. Danyell says:
    Thu, 4th Dec 20084:12 pm 

    haha this is just as bad as when cutting yourself was trendy. and now anorexia is trendy. how cute?

  11. bunny says:
    Sat, 6th Dec 20088:57 am 

    2 things i want to say, i only read the first comment (the one at the bottom) but felt i had to speak up anyways. Both cutting yourself and anorexia are real problems, despite some people glamourizing them. Granted, most anorexics dont use "pro-ana" websites, but there is some comfort sought in them – admittedly, anonymous ones that admit we have problems but dont make it out to be a good thing, a game of survival rather than a horrible, empty, lonely illness that you never escape from – as self harm is too.

    The pro ana/ pro mia websites started as that.

    I think people wbho glamourise something that ultimately kills you whether in body or mind, might as well be glamourizing cancer or AIDS.

  12. kristin says:
    Mon, 8th Dec 20084:39 pm 

    I have long struggle with eating disorders, and yes, i do regularly visit two or three different pro-ana sites, and i have to say that the goal of 99% of them has nothing to do with converting others, and in fact, most say flat out that anorexia and bulimia are diseases and that if you are actively trying to 'get' them, you're naive, insensitive, and not going to be successful. Also, they generally have areas devoted to helping people get better. Overall, they just are places for people with a similar problem to congregate and discuss said problem. Fat people have Weight Watchers, anorexics have Pro-Ana sites. What's the difference?

    And in what way is developing a tolerance a bad thing? Last i heard, being accepting of people different from oneself was considered virtuous. Also, obesity is tolerated. Why shouldn't the opposite end of the spectrum be tolerated as well?

  13. Winnie says:
    Tue, 9th Dec 20085:55 am 

    The thing is Kristen, a few of these groups aren't helping anorexics. I've looked through them, and there are groups that encourage girls to go through anorexia. Some of these groups tell members who post pictures to get even more skinny, & exchange tactics to lose even more weight. There is no correlation between Weight Watchers and these pro-ana groups. Instead of encouraging anorexics and bulimics to reach a normal weight and approach a healthy lifestyle, they are encouraging them to become even more skinny. The equivalent for that for obese people would be groups encouraging them to eat even more.

  14. steph says:
    Thu, 11th Dec 20083:47 am 

    i have to agree with kristen after suffering from said problem ive visted some sites,

    yes winnie is also right, some are awful and encourage this, but alot you will find acknowledge its a disease and a serious issue are there is some sites out there offering help and recovery

    like anything these days theres a good side and a bad side.

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