The Red and Black

Wow what a horrible article. You're basically saying that women with eating disorders should not speak about their struggles but rather keep them inside. I think hearing about a person triumphing over an eating disorder is great; it shows others out there that there IS hope and you're not locked into the disease forever. It is a DISEASE not caused by the media...before you publish CRAP I think you should research your sources.

I am astonished and disappointed by your article.

What I believe your article misses is that people suffering from eating disorders need a voice, and to be able to talk about their experience. You would never tell someone with cancer or heart disease to never talk what they went through, yet somehow, people think that it is okay to say that to someone with who struggled with an eating disorder.

Please give it the respect that it deserves.

I do however agree that the media glamorizes beauty and follows the weight of every star society condones it. We must work to overcome this in our choice of magazines and movies.

I won't lie about it- I peruse the front pages of most tabloid magazines, and occasionally entertain myself with Perez Hilton. I'm not sure which tabloids you've been reading lately, but almost none of them are glorifying the starving starlets of Hollywood. Instead, they're hit with the most gruesome of headlines, the least flattering photos, and the harshest of commentaries. Anorexia and bulemia haven't been "fashionable" since long before Keira Knightly or Lara Flynn Boyle. Most media outlets go out of their way to show that that level of skinny is unhealthy, unattractive, and most definitely NOT normal.

Yes, the stars get a lot of attention when they drop drastic amounts of weight, but it's almost never positive, and it's never going to get good reviews if their ribs are showing at the Oscars. I think the media has actually come a long way in what they support and do not support when it comes to celebrities. Even America's Next Top Model supports plus-sized models and is against drastic weight loss.

Of course Ms. America isn't responsible for the eating disorders of the nation. What she showed, and what all people who overcome their disorders are showing, is that they were NOT normal. They had to work hard to return to normalcy. Where on earth would you get the notion that because she is successful and admitted to having an eating disorder, she would be "normalizing" the behavior? She is in essence proving that you can only be successful when you get OVER your disorder and accept a healthier and more realistic lifestyle. This is exactly the message that needs to be sent, not shut up in a closet for fear that some prepubescent girl is going to hear the word "anorexia" and assume it must be a good thing.

By perpetually putting a negative light on eating disorders, and the people who look like they have them, the media is doing exactly what it needs to do-- telling people that they should be careful, lest the pendulum swing too far. I'm glad that the National Enquirer does run its specials on who's long since blown by 'svelte' and gone straight to 'skeletal'. That little bit of reality might be exactly what young girls need to hear. No one wants to be pitied, like poor Angelina, who used to be gorgeous, or poor Lindsay, who used to have a future. A little bit of self-pride never hurt anyone. A little bit of a body crisis always will.

You said: "I also was granted the opportunity to attend group therapy sessions supporting women with eating disorders, and quickly detected an underlying theme:

Societal expectations and what we consider 'normal' greatly contribute to diseases like anorexia."


Hey Emily - if you were invited to attend group therapy sessions like these, it's likely that it was because you exhibit disordered eating.

It is totally inappropriate of you to reveal the goings-on of these necessarily anonymity-based, private sessions, even if you speak of them in general terms.

What's the matter with you?

This article makes a lot of assumptions. Kirsten tells about her disorder because she wants to spread awareness and share her experience so that people realize how prevalent the issue is. Because she struggled and came out on the other side, she serves as a source of hope for those who are struggling with eating disorders, and a resource for those who are not but know someone who is. She is not on a pedestal for once having an eating disorder, she is on a pedestal because unlike the celebrities mentioned in your article, she is using her real life experiences to benefit the lives of others.