I haven’t stopped smiling since I received this email on Sunday.  No failed boy’s birthday or bout of bursitis could quell my mood.  MizFit offered me a guest-post slot on her site, and I am so stoked!

I love the woman.  I love what she does for healing body image issues, promoting positive lifestyle changes, and I love her tattoos.  I have almost as many, so I can relate.

I gotta keep it real.  After submitting my post to MizFit, I didn’t hear from her for some time.  I obsessed on the reasons why she didn’t want to feature my post, and had anxiety about my horrible writing skills.  Alas, she is just a busy woman, and I am impatient.  Silly me!

I am excited that she decided to use my post, because it concerns body image, eating disorders, and children.  Three of my hot buttons.  Three things that everyone should be aware of.  Three things that are evolving everyday, and people should know.

So, you can go to MizFit’s (awesome) site to read the post there, or just keep reading…

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In the U.S., it is estimated that approximately 11 million males and females struggle with the devastating effects of anorexia and bulimia. Another 25 million suffer from binge eating disorder. According to The Alliance for Eating Disorders Awareness, the incidence of eating disorders has doubled since the 1960s, and is increasing in younger age groups—occurring in children as young as seven. Eating disorders often begin during adolescence, and can be related to depression, substance abuse, and suicide.

A few days ago, I reached out to MizFit to discuss this very issue with her.

The topic is fresh on my mind because not only did I begin suffering with bulimia and anorexia at the age of 15, but I have also been doing some research in this area for my website. The conclusion I’ve reached: I am terrified by the number of young people (as well as adults) who are suffering from this spectrum of disorders. I may have been viewing the universe through rose-colored glasses after my own recovery two years ago, but it seems like the epidemic has only become worse.

In the early to mid-2000’s, there was much talk about “pro-ana” websites. I must admit that those are the very websites that helped me become a better Disordered Eater. I learned how to further sharpen my starving, binging, purging, and obsessive exercising skills. I learned about ketosis, and the 2,4,6,8 diet. I learned things that probably helped land me in treatment faster, because it was at that point that I became a “better” Disordered Eater. I also became a sicker person, both mentally and physically.

Parents soon found out about these websites that promoted and taught the principles of eating disorders, and the internet police started cracking down on them. There are still a slew of “pro-ana” websites out there, but individuals need to be invited in. At that point, they can enter the site for endless “thinspiration”. So, the websites still exist, but they screen out the wannarexics, so you just have to be a “better” anorexic or bulimic to join.

The latest trend in Eating Disorder growth seems to be on Twitter. Do you know what your child is Tweeting about? Do the people your children follow encourage low self-esteem and poor body image? Do you child’s Twitter friends talk about ‘GW’ (goal weight), ‘HW’ (high weigh), and state their measurements on their Twitter bio? This is a problem.

Your child could very well be Tweeting for support with their starvation diet, or asking for tips on where to begin their journey through Eating Disorder Hell. Young people latch onto more experienced “professionals”, and they learn the tricks of the trade.

Developing a positive body image and self-esteem as a child is often a difficult job (we all remember those days). With a very “thin is in” media presence, young girls in particular are often infused with the knowledge that losing weight and being thin will fix all of the problems in their universe. They are prime candidates for an eating disorder. When they are introduced to information praising the benefits of anorexia and bulimia, and the information is so readily available, it seems like the perfect fix in their developing minds.

By the time that parents realize what is happening, the child is already caught in their ED cycle.

I am not yet a mother, but if I were, I would be terrified at the thought of my child having access to information of this sort. I feel that parents should be aware that these pro-eating disorder websites still exist, and that the risk is even higher now with the added complexity of Twitter. Parents should monitor their children’s computer and cell phone activity for access to websites and Tweeting of this sort.

As with any other disease, prevention is key with eating disorders, but early detection is the next best thing.

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* Have you joined my Facebook Group yet?

* Looking for my eBook?

* Everyone loves a giveaway!

* Have you seen my body image project?

That’s just not what Jogger’s Life was ever intended to be.

However, I do have an inexplicable passion to bring to light the issues that people have with these things. All too often, things are swept under the rug because they are uncomfortable or difficult to deal with. Body image ideals, self-esteem, weight, eating disorders, self-loathing…these are all things that people aren’t comfortable talking about during the course of a normal day. They’re just too “heavy” for everyday conversation. Most of us are left to just internalize these things.

I wanted to give others the opportunity to freely and anonymously face these issues personally, with no risk of backlash or feelings of shame or guilt. To accomplish this, I decided to launch a new website:

www.letterstomybody.com

The premise is simple. I’ve set up the website to act as an anonymous, safe, guilt, and shame-free way to write a letter to your body. The positive or negative–anything that you want to write. After you write your letter, just anonymously mail it to the Post Office Box that I’ve set up specifically for the website. Letters can also be submitted through the “write yours” tab on the website as well. Upon receipt, it will be posted on the website. This gives participants the opportunity to honestly vent with no risk of any repercussions, and it gives readers the ability to identify with your feelings and know that they are not alone.

I have seen some bloggers write letters to their bodies and then post the letter on their own sites, but I felt that it would be very beneficial for a larger audience to see these letters. In addition, writing a letter of this sort is much less intimidating if nobody knows who you are.

People (women especially) are so critical of their own bodies and we’re so hard on ourselves. We are constantly comparing ourselves to others, and I think it will be cathartic not only for those who are writing the letters, but also for the readers to see and identify with the letters. I think we’ll find that we all have some degree of the same feelings toward our bodies!

Initially, I was going to remain anonymous on the site as well, but it didn’t feel like the right thing to do. I’m sure that people would wonder who was maintaining the site, and why it was set it up in the first place. I can’t say that I would send my own letter without knowing that it was going to be well taken care of by someone who was dedicated to the site. I am also in the hopes that by not being anonymous, those of you who already know me will reach out and contribute to the site; the site can only be as strong as the letters that are posted on it.

If anyone has questions or feedback about the site (positive OR negative), please let me know.

If you’d like to send your own anonymous letter to be posted on the Letters To My Body website, you can email it to letters at letterstomybody dot com, click here for the “write yours” form, or mail it to:

Letters To My Body
P.O. Box 1651
Laurel, MD 20725

I hope you will add the feed to your reader, and also participate in this project, as is very near and dear to my heart. It is very important to me, and I think that it has the potential to help others–which is all that I really want.

Update 9/28/09:  The site officially launched on September 20th, 2009, and I have already “met” so many amazing people through the website, Twitter, and Facebook.  The fact that people have been so receptive to the site as well as the concept itself has been very heartwarming.  I hope that everyone continues to submit their letters so that together we can all raise awareness about the issues that we face concerning body image, self-esteem, and eating disorders.