Interesting Doco on Anorexia
I'm interested in what makes people tick. What moves people to do what they do, why they act a certain way, what the reasons are behind certain behaviours. I study and learn about things like sociology, anthropology, psychology, psychiatry, counselling and religions to help me further my understanding and learn more about these topics. This is organised study, going out to learn about a specific topic at a certain time - deciding to go out and learn about something that interests me.
Last night I ended up watching a program on TV about teenage girls who are anorexic, so thin that their bodies can become permanently damaged. While in no way something I aspire to, it was very interesting to watch and fits right in with many other things that I find interesting and enjoy learning about.
The program featured girls as young as fourteen or even eleven with a personal target weight of under 30 kilos wearing clothes suited for children much younger than they are. Girls whose periods have stopped because their bodies are so unhealthy.
The clinic featured in the documentary gives the girls a target weight to achieve, set meals to eat in a certain time, checks the girls' bedrooms to look for hidden food or evidence that the girls have thrown up the food they've eaten.
They get weighed to see if they are achieving their target weight, and actually try to cheat the system by drinking lots of water to appear fatter or stuff their clothing with things like rocks and batteries.
They aren't allowed to exercise too much (as it burns calories) and get watched 24/7 when they've been caught doing so - people accompanying them while they relax, eat, sleep and even shower.
Personally I've never been at an unhealthy weight, however like many other people I tend to look at myself critically and think "I could stand to lose a bit of weight". That bit that I would like to lose has never been more than five or ten kilos however.
I eat what I want when I want, have a coke or two most evenings, love chocolate and sit in front of the computer or on the couch reading books A LOT. I basically always think that I could do with some more exercise (which, face it, is true for most people) and would like to tone up a bit, however still feel that my eating and exercising patterns are very acceptable and normal.
I like to feel healthy, like it when my clothes fit the way they should, like to know that I am leading a healthy lifestyle. As the saying goes, "you are what you eat", and that is certainly true for me when it comes to feeling healthy and good about myself. I feel healthy when I eat healthy, feel energised when I exercise, and have "detox days" from time to time. Detoxing in my world means not drinking energy drinks, having a coffee without sugar and eating fruits and veggies instead of chocolate and chips. I do not starve myself and certainly do not go to great lengths to be skinny as the girls in the documentary do. And while I understand what they do, I certainly do not completely understand why they do what they do.
Is it the influence of modern media? Stick figure models and people airbrushed to perfection?
Is it a form of self control or rebellion against authority?
Is is simply about self image - people not liking who they are and what they see in the mirror and wanting to change that?
Is it that people want to change how others see them, how (they think) the world sees them?
Right now, I'm not quite sure about what moves these girls and others like them. What I am sure of however is that I've discovered something interesting to learn more about, and I hope to come back to this topic at some point with some actual research under my belt to be able to help me answer the questions I now have.
Last night I ended up watching a program on TV about teenage girls who are anorexic, so thin that their bodies can become permanently damaged. While in no way something I aspire to, it was very interesting to watch and fits right in with many other things that I find interesting and enjoy learning about.
The program featured girls as young as fourteen or even eleven with a personal target weight of under 30 kilos wearing clothes suited for children much younger than they are. Girls whose periods have stopped because their bodies are so unhealthy.
The clinic featured in the documentary gives the girls a target weight to achieve, set meals to eat in a certain time, checks the girls' bedrooms to look for hidden food or evidence that the girls have thrown up the food they've eaten.
They get weighed to see if they are achieving their target weight, and actually try to cheat the system by drinking lots of water to appear fatter or stuff their clothing with things like rocks and batteries.
They aren't allowed to exercise too much (as it burns calories) and get watched 24/7 when they've been caught doing so - people accompanying them while they relax, eat, sleep and even shower.
Personally I've never been at an unhealthy weight, however like many other people I tend to look at myself critically and think "I could stand to lose a bit of weight". That bit that I would like to lose has never been more than five or ten kilos however.
I eat what I want when I want, have a coke or two most evenings, love chocolate and sit in front of the computer or on the couch reading books A LOT. I basically always think that I could do with some more exercise (which, face it, is true for most people) and would like to tone up a bit, however still feel that my eating and exercising patterns are very acceptable and normal.
I like to feel healthy, like it when my clothes fit the way they should, like to know that I am leading a healthy lifestyle. As the saying goes, "you are what you eat", and that is certainly true for me when it comes to feeling healthy and good about myself. I feel healthy when I eat healthy, feel energised when I exercise, and have "detox days" from time to time. Detoxing in my world means not drinking energy drinks, having a coffee without sugar and eating fruits and veggies instead of chocolate and chips. I do not starve myself and certainly do not go to great lengths to be skinny as the girls in the documentary do. And while I understand what they do, I certainly do not completely understand why they do what they do.
Is it the influence of modern media? Stick figure models and people airbrushed to perfection?
Is it a form of self control or rebellion against authority?
Is is simply about self image - people not liking who they are and what they see in the mirror and wanting to change that?
Is it that people want to change how others see them, how (they think) the world sees them?
Right now, I'm not quite sure about what moves these girls and others like them. What I am sure of however is that I've discovered something interesting to learn more about, and I hope to come back to this topic at some point with some actual research under my belt to be able to help me answer the questions I now have.
