Considering the current discussion on this topic over at the mamaVISION blog has been almost completely usurped by Trolls; who seem intent on doing little more than hurling vicious personal attacks whilst hiding behing the cloak of free speech; I have decided to start a forum to discuss the issue of the Faces of Pro Ana site, and any other issues pertaining to that site or it's subject matter, on this blog instead.
Feel free to debate, discuss, agree or disagree on this topic and anything relative to this topic (eg what is "Pro Ana", should certain websites or message boards be considered "Pro Ana", should the individual members in turn automatically be considered "Pro Ana" themselves and so on), but please be aware that comments on here are moderated and any personal attacks, insults, hate speech or the wrongful publishing of any written or photographic material without the express permission of it's original author will not be tolerated.
With that being said.....Go for it! :)
5 comments:
Hi I'm on CB and faces of pro ana. I'd really like to be able to express my story and give me side.
You can PM on CB. i'm emoxlies :)
Thanks for starting a discussion forum. The discussion on Mama Vision has become ridiculous - nothing but unstable people tossing
around insults and absurdities. Has everyone forgotten what the real issue is?
I, personally, am comfortable with my picture associated with eating disorders. If the original site would have been called "Faces of Eating Disorders," and it's function to show that people of different genders, races, weights, ages, and cultures ALL suffer, I would have been perfectly fine with having my picture there. Others wouldn't have been fine with this (they haven't "come out" about their disorders yet), but if the site had been called "Faces of EDs" and had asked for permission to use the pictures, it would have been fine.
Here are the issues:
1. The majority of the pictures used on the original faces site were taken from a PRIVATE support forum. The members of this forum feel threatened because this means that this person who wishes to expose us has access to other information as well - we post about our trauma histories, drugs problems, etc. - and this is what terrifies me the most about Faces of PA.
2. The pictures taken from this support forum were taken over a long period of time - some of them had only been up for two days, and some of them were up a year ago and no longer available. This means that it is IMPOSSIBLE that a "concerned aunt and uncle" simply stumbled upon this site. The person who posted this photographs has had consistent access to the forum for a year, if not more. This means that the premise of Faces is false, and that this is a directed attack on a community, NOT an attempt to raise awareness. This is why it upsets me so much that a link to Faces was featured in Mama Vision, a very popular ED website. "Outing" people with eating disorders is irresponsible. What if someone started a blog called "Faces of Schizophrenia" and stole pictures of schizophrenics from a private message board? ANOREXIA IS A DISEASE. All eating disorders are.
3. Finally, the most upsetting part of the Faces ordeal is that we have been labeled "pro-ana." I have spoken of my position on this issue (fatal disease, not lifestyle!) elsewhere on this blog, but let me say a few words on behalf of the other girls whose pictures were put on that site. Most of them don't even have anorexia. Some do, but the others (myself included) suffer from another eating disorder. To my knowledge, not one of the girls on Faces is "pro-ana." My picture, when the site first went up, was featured under the words "This is what pro-ana looks like." What if someone posted your picture under the words "This person likes breast cancer and hopes it kills people."
--------------------------------
Finally, I would like to throw out a few of my thoughts about pro-ana. From Wikipedia:
"Pro-ana refers to the promotion or support of anorexia nervosa as a lifestyle choice rather than an eating disorder. It is often referred to simply as "ana" and is sometimes affectionately personified by anorexics as a girl named Ana.[1]"
Absolutely EVERY member of the board from which most of the photos were stolen knows that anorexia, just like every other eating disorder, is a disease. You cannot "choose" to be anorexic. Additionally, the words "ana" and "mia" (for bulimia) are NOT allowed on this site. The majority of members find the use of these terms offensive, as it glamorizes the fatal disorders that we live with every day.
More from Wikipedia:
"Pro-ana is a loosely descriptive term rather than an organized social movement, and as such encompasses a wide range of views. Many pro-ana organizations state that they do not promote anorexia and acknowledge that anorexia is a real medical disorder, and that they exist mainly to give anorexics a place to turn to discuss their illness in a non-judgmental environment: some promote recovery while still supporting those who choose to defer or refuse medical or psychological treatment."
In this sense, the message board from which most of the photos were stolen WOULD be considered pro-ana... but so would Something Fishy, the recovery website most highly recommended by treatment professionals. Something Fishy does "promote recovery while still supporting those who choose to defer or refuse medical or psychological treatment." Something Fishy (visit it, if you haven't, and I'm sure you'll agree with me) could not possibly be considered pro-ED in any way. It is a helpful resource for recovery and for support for those who are not yet ready to recover.
My point, I suppose, is that there seems to be some confusion, both in the general population and in the ED community, about what "pro-ana" is. Personally, I make the distinction between pro-ana sites and support sites by answering one simple question: "does this site acknowledge that eating disorders are psychiatric illnesses?" If a site does not do this, I will not visit it.
I think that this is an interesting topic, because so much of it is unclear - and this is all so new. When I first developed anorexia, there was no such thing as "pro-ana." I don't even think we had the internet in our house yet. As much as I dislike "pro-ana," I absolutely do not think that it can cause an eating disorder in a healthy, normal, mentally stable individual. I do think that it could push someone with disordered eating into a full-blown ED, but in this case I would blame the beginnings of the disease for searching out ways to become stronger, more than I would blame the individual or the pro-ana websites.
Pro-ana doesn't cause eating disorders. Eating disorders caused pro-ana. However, this doesn't mean that pro-ana is okay, or that it should be ignored. It is an entire "movement" based on a LIE - that you can chose to have an eating disorder, and that it isn't an illness. Yeah. Right. Tell that to the families of those who have lost a son or daughter to an eating disorder.
Thanks for starting a discussion forum. The discussion on Mama Vision has become ridiculous - nothing but unstable people tossing
around insults and absurdities. Has everyone forgotten what the real issue is?
I, personally, am comfortable with my picture associated with eating disorders. If the original site would have been called "Faces of Eating Disorders," and it's function to show that people of different genders, races, weights, ages, and cultures ALL suffer, I would have been perfectly fine with having my picture there. Others wouldn't have been fine with this (they haven't "come out" about their disorders yet), but if the site had been called "Faces of EDs" and had asked for permission to use the pictures, it would have been fine.
Here are the issues:
1. The majority of the pictures used on the original faces site were taken from a PRIVATE support forum. The members of this forum feel threatened because this means that this person who wishes to expose us has access to other information as well - we post about our trauma histories, drugs problems, etc. - and this is what terrifies me the most about Faces of PA.
2. The pictures taken from this support forum were taken over a long period of time - some of them had only been up for two days, and some of them were up a year ago and no longer available. This means that it is IMPOSSIBLE that a "concerned aunt and uncle" simply stumbled upon this site. The person who posted this photographs has had consistent access to the forum for a year, if not more. This means that the premise of Faces is false, and that this is a directed attack on a community, NOT an attempt to raise awareness. This is why it upsets me so much that a link to Faces was featured in Mama Vision, a very popular ED website. "Outing" people with eating disorders is irresponsible. What if someone started a blog called "Faces of Schizophrenia" and stole pictures of schizophrenics from a private message board? ANOREXIA IS A DISEASE. All eating disorders are.
3. Finally, the most upsetting part of the Faces ordeal is that we have been labeled "pro-ana." I have spoken of my position on this issue (fatal disease, not lifestyle!) elsewhere on this blog, but let me say a few words on behalf of the other girls whose pictures were put on that site. Most of them don't even have anorexia. Some do, but the others (myself included) suffer from another eating disorder. To my knowledge, not one of the girls on Faces is "pro-ana." My picture, when the site first went up, was featured under the words "This is what pro-ana looks like." What if someone posted your picture under the words "This person likes breast cancer and hopes it kills people."
--------------------------------
Finally, I would like to throw out a few of my thoughts about pro-ana. From Wikipedia:
"Pro-ana refers to the promotion or support of anorexia nervosa as a lifestyle choice rather than an eating disorder. It is often referred to simply as "ana" and is sometimes affectionately personified by anorexics as a girl named Ana.[1]"
Absolutely EVERY member of the board from which most of the photos were stolen knows that anorexia, just like every other eating disorder, is a disease. You cannot "choose" to be anorexic. Additionally, the words "ana" and "mia" (for bulimia) are NOT allowed on this site. The majority of members find the use of these terms offensive, as it glamorizes the fatal disorders that we live with every day.
More from Wikipedia:
"Pro-ana is a loosely descriptive term rather than an organized social movement, and as such encompasses a wide range of views. Many pro-ana organizations state that they do not promote anorexia and acknowledge that anorexia is a real medical disorder, and that they exist mainly to give anorexics a place to turn to discuss their illness in a non-judgmental environment: some promote recovery while still supporting those who choose to defer or refuse medical or psychological treatment."
In this sense, the message board from which most of the photos were stolen WOULD be considered pro-ana... but so would Something Fishy, the recovery website most highly recommended by treatment professionals. Something Fishy does "promote recovery while still supporting those who choose to defer or refuse medical or psychological treatment." Something Fishy (visit it, if you haven't, and I'm sure you'll agree with me) could not possibly be considered pro-ED in any way. It is a helpful resource for recovery and for support for those who are not yet ready to recover.
My point, I suppose, is that there seems to be some confusion, both in the general population and in the ED community, about what "pro-ana" is. Personally, I make the distinction between pro-ana sites and support sites by answering one simple question: "does this site acknowledge that eating disorders are psychiatric illnesses?" If a site does not do this, I will not visit it.
I think that this is an interesting topic, because so much of it is unclear - and this is all so new. When I first developed anorexia, there was no such thing as "pro-ana." I don't even think we had the internet in our house yet. As much as I dislike "pro-ana," I absolutely do not think that it can cause an eating disorder in a healthy, normal, mentally stable individual. I do think that it could push someone with disordered eating into a full-blown ED, but in this case I would blame the beginnings of the disease for searching out ways to become stronger, more than I would blame the individual or the pro-ana websites.
Pro-ana doesn't cause eating disorders. Eating disorders caused pro-ana. However, this doesn't mean that pro-ana is okay, or that it should be ignored. It is an entire "movement" based on a LIE - that you can chose to have an eating disorder, and that it isn't an illness. Yeah. Right. Tell that to the families of those who have lost a son or daughter to an eating disorder.
Well said, Amy, my sentiments exactly. I too would not have minded so much if it had simply been a site about ED's as everyone who knows me knows about my mental health problems, I have nothing to be ashamed of. But I have never been nor ever will be pro-ana and none of the girls from the support forum that I have spoken to have ever expressed such sentiments either.
I think it's disgusting that people feel as though they can openly attack people with eating disorders, as you said Amy, if it had been schizophrenia or another mental health problem people would have been shocked and horrified to see it. It is not just with this ridiculous faces of pro-ana thing either...I had people actually hurl insults at me or make jokes at my expense when I was at my lowest weight, as if it is amusing to see someone starving to death. It's about time people became aware of the true issues involved with the development of an eating disorder rather than continuing to view it as a response to images of thin women in the media or vanity. People's ignorance on this subject makes me sick with dispair.
Amy.. I need you =S It's gone and i need someone.
It's Kat..
I hope you're ok.
*hug*
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