Anorexia Stole My Childhood, and More

It was in fourth and fifth grade that I decided I didn’t want to grow up. I wanted to be the shortest in my classes, and I even walked around with bent knees to appear shorter. I remember competing with friends to see who could come closest to being able to fit our hands around our waists. I remember having a friend over and watching a Richard Simmons “Sweatin’ to the Oldies” exercise video and then having us both get on the scale to compare weights. I was just a little girl and I don’t know where this idea came from. This was way back in the mid-90s when there were few resources for children with anorexia. My own mom had never dieted a day in my life and had the healthiest relationship with food of any mom I knew. It was just my own brain, harassing me and badgering me that I needed to stay small. I was a gymnast which certainly was a factor but not the sole factor. I was always naturally normal/thin, as is my family and all of my relatives. I don’t know why my happy, carefree childhood became obsessed with this. I remember watching a 20/20 special on Peggy Claude Pierre, a woman who had created a new way of treating girls with anorexia, a disease I was just learning about but didn’t realize would soon consume me. I remember sitting in the dark family room watching the show and how she spoon-fed girls who were refusing to eat. She treated them like little, sick children and something about this was highly appealing to me. My mom was ...
Source: World of Psychology - Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Tags: Anorexia Binge Eating Bulimia Eating Disorders Personal Body Image Source Type: blogs