I've mentioned perfection in a few blog posts. This one contains what I feel is some of the best information regarding how perfection relates to anorexia: http://trainingonempty.blogspot.com/2011/08/diane-israel-on-recovery.html
It's interesting to note that an attempt to be perfect can push some to do great things, but it can also paralyze others, preventing them from even attempting the task at hand.
The media shoves perfection (well, their/society's idea of it) down our throats with a constant barrage of images, commercials and damaging words. We are forced to idolize skinny, but look what it takes to get us to think thin is what we "should" admire:
http://thesocietypages.org/socimages/2012/06/12/too-fat-too-skinny/
We are either given normal people photoshopped down or "really thin and unwell" people touched up to look more healthy. It's no wonder the beauty industry is a multi-billion-dollar business, preying on all our insecurities.
The unfortunate side of striving for unrealistic and unhealthy goals in terms of looks and weight is that eating disorders are more likely to occur under these kinds of pressures. Obviously there is more to an eating disorder than media and peer influence, but these conditions don't help matters.
Because I have gone though these ideas quite a lot in my blog, I want to end this short post with a link to a blurb about a woman whose daughter died due to complications related to her eating disorder. The mother has taken it upon herself to make sure that her daughter's struggles aren't forgotten:
http://www.lvrj.com/view/daughter-s-display-exhibits-struggles-with-eating-disorder-157144635.html
Good words Lize. I wonder if we see the idea of perfection and control at work in co-occurring situations, like with depression/anxiety and alcoholism? The alcohol acts as a way to control the symptoms and create a sense of peace in an unquiet mind. There are also is a new movement around "fit being the new skinny" which is trying to make a course correction for some of the damaging social modeling we have seen. Nice work!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Joseph! Definitely- I think you hit the nail on the head with your thoughts about alcohol. Good point too about the new movement in fitness over being skinny. I forgot to mention that. I think there are a few companies trying to make an effort in promoting body acceptance. Dove has make some strides forward in that department at least.
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