Ana or anorexia?

It seems to be becoming a new trend. More and more young girls are starving themselves, all to be the thinnest one. Of course they see all those beautiful slim models in the media. That's how we want to be, those girls think. An interview about anorexia and pro-ana sites.

Many young people suffer from the diseases anorexia, in which the BMI (your weight in kilograms divided by the square of your length in metres) is lower than the minimum of 18.5. These young people are scared to death of gaining weight. The rising pro-ana sites prompt more and more girls to get involved in this disease.

Psychologist Carla de Bruin works with such youths and gladly tells us more about this.

What exactly is that, that pro-ana?

"Pro-ana are the internet sites on which anorexia is being encouraged and is the term for the girls who follow the site. These sites clearly state they don't want other girls to become pro-ana as well, yet they encourage those girls. They do this by, for example, posting images of slender women (ed. thinspiration) and saying they're too fat. 'Ana' has also written a few letters to the visitors of such sites. This way Ana tries to get into contact with her readers. With everything they eat, they hear Ana speak and often the girls even listen to this as well."

What do those letters say?

"Ana takes advantage of her readers' feelings. She drafter a few of those letters in which she responds to her readers. She says what they're thinking, like: you're not perfect, your friends don't understand you and lie when you ask if you're too fat, etc. The person who set this up knows exactly what's going on in those girls' heads. They're insecure, think no-one loves them and that they're too fat. Ana endorses this and gives them a solution. Losing weight until they literally drop... Then everyone will start loving them again."

You'd think the girls don't fall for that.
What does Ana ask from those girls? So what can and what can't they do?

"Ana lets the girls begin slowly. They need to eat less fat, so she prohibits McDonald's and all other junkfood. The purpose is that they already lose some kilograms over the weeks, so they show they can do it. After a few weeks this is no longer good enough. The girls now also have to start watching their calories and do more physical exercise. And she tells them they can eat less calories every day. She provides tips, so no-one notices that the girls don't finish their plates. She makes them look at models in magazines and makes them compare themselves.

This already very bad, but it gets worse. If one of the girls does eat, she has to spit it all out. And not once, but until blood is coming from her stomach. She broke the rules and will have to suffer, according to Ana. She makes her take laxatives, cut herself, make her feel that she's nothing. And of course she forbids her from talking about this to anyone, because then she'll lose Ana, her only friend!

In other worse, she asks the maximum of them. Pro-ana can lead to death."

How do the girls react? Do they know that what they're doing to themselves is wrong?

"There's a video about pro-ana on the internet, made by pro-ana girls. In that video the girls explain what they feel and how they think. When I look at the video it, along with the background music, makes me very emotional. Those girls know what they're doing isn't right, but they see it as their own choice, which no-one else has any say in. And often they do want help, but they're afraid they won't be understood. That's why they let friends in a little bit at first, but then push them away again. The fear not to be accepted because of their weight is too big. At some point life for them is only centred around the digits on the scale and the BMI that's often much too low."

How can you help those girls? When do they see that they're doing the wrong thing?

"Usually they hide it so well that no-one is on to it. They wear a few layers of clothing so it doesn't show. During dinner they grab a mug in which they put fat-free yoghurt. Of course no-one watches the quantity, so this way they can glean a lot already.

As long as they're not hospitalised, no-one will find out; the pro-ana sites provide hundreds of tips so as not to attract attention.

It's only in the clinic that it gets harder for them. They're being watched and they have to eat.

What often helps is to let those girls record a day of their lives and replay it for them. When they then see they can literally count their ribs they often understand they're thinner than they thought. Quite often this is the start of recovery."

So that's when they see it's in their heads? Can they be cured immediately then?

"No, the fear of the digits isn't gone by a long shot. They're basically scared of eating, because if they eat, they can gain weight. Which is what they don't want at all.

I'm there for the further steps. I take them into therapy and help them conquer their insecurities and make them see how thin they are. I show them photos of girls who weight 35 kilograms. I confront them with what they can become.

Unfortunately anorexia is a disease which rarely heals entirely. They can relapse very easily. That's why such pro-ana sites should actually be banned."

Isn't a ban on these sites possible?

In America these sites are prohibited, something which should happen in the Netherlands as well. Or actually all over the world. Dutch law says sites which incite to violence are prohibited, and indirectly the pro-ana sites incite the girls to violence on themselves.

The problem in the Netherlands is that everyone has the right to freedom of speech. And since it doesn't say they have to do something, though girls who believe this of course do see it as a must, they can simply continue to exist in the Netherlands."

Sources: www.todio.nl