Pro-eating disorder websites

Former Member

Hi guys
This message is from our mental health partner, SANE...

Have you ever visited a so-called 'pro-eating disorder website'? If so,
researchers at SANE (UK mental health charity) would like to hear your
views on them; do you find them helpful or harmful? Why do you visit
them? We have noticed that the sites have had a lot of media attention,
but the interviewees have typically been either people who run the sites
or health care professionals and parents. The views of the majority of
the people who actually use the sites have gone largely unheard. Our aim
is to give a voice to the people who visit these sites. We have posted a
questionnaire on our website here.
Thank you for your time!

Former Member

edited out link

i use them sometimes, not very often tho im not really a pro kinda person its the same with psyke (sh related site) altho its not pro, aspects like the photos i find hard to see.

Former Member

those websites confuse me a bit. EDs are by their nature secretive, and highly competitive. when i had my eating disorder (although mine was not a textbook case) the last thing in the world i'd have wanted to do was share tips so everyone could lose as much weight as me.

ED sufferers tend to be really supportive to fellow sufferers, and encourage them to eat properly and get better (so there's less competition), so it totally goes against the kind of experiences I had. not to mention that a lot of people on the pro sites KNOW how skinny they are and flaunt it. i wouldn't have shown my body off for anything, as i was ashamed of my 'fatness' and totally in denial about the whole deal.

the whole deal seems less like a disorder, and more like a dare. if you know what i mean.

littlemissy

kaffrin wrote:

those websites confuse me a bit. EDs are by their nature secretive, and highly competitive. when i had my eating disorder (although mine was not a textbook case) the last thing in the world i'd have wanted to do was share tips so everyone could lose as much weight as me.

ED sufferers tend to be really supportive to fellow sufferers, and encourage them to eat properly and get better (so there's less competition), so it totally goes against the kind of experiences I had. not to mention that a lot of people on the pro sites KNOW how skinny they are and flaunt it. i wouldn't have shown my body off for anything, as i was ashamed of my 'fatness' and totally in denial about the whole deal.

the whole deal seems less like a disorder, and more like a dare. if you know what i mean.

I agree with this, yes. And the same thing seems to be the same sort of thing with self harm too, methinks. To me, self harm was a secretive thing but there are all sorts of websites, forums etc where they show pictures of their cuts and scars.

Former Member

These are all really interesting viewpoints - do fill out the survey to help SANE with their study if you can.

Former Member

I used to go on a pro ED board, I really liked it at the time but even just going on them is really triggering and it kinds of sucks you in. I stopped going on the one I used to like because I realised the more I went on there, the more I was making myself sick.
I dont think they should be banned though, I dont see the point of that. its patronising.

Former Member

never been on it or anything similar... because seeing / reading about stuff like that can be really triggering to me .......... > starving. :yes:

Former Member

I dont suffer from anorexia or bulimia, but i rememer when they had a big documentary a few years ago, I really wanted to view one of the sites cos i was just....nosey. Anyway, I didn't get to see one because they were all banned like from the internet. But yah.

Former Member

That shit is fucked up. No-one should promote that kind of thing.

Former Member

the one I used to use isnt there any more, but when i typed in the address, it came up with loads of links for pro-ana stuff etc, but the links didnt work either.
strange.