Thinspiration - "Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels" - Kate Moss.

This is gonna be a geeky post, but a very interesting one. Since, I spent a good 5 hours on one of my papers for women and gender studies, it concerns 'Pro-ana/mia' websites. This topic is of particular interest to me because I have been on the other side of the road, a binge eater. Looking at these pictures and searching "thinspiration" made me sick to my stomach. I really wish our society didn't have "thin" as the normative standard of beauty. I cannot post my entire assignment here, so I'll just copy and paste bits and parts of my assignment that are actually interesting! I've been noticing it for a while on Tumblr (the sickening thin pictures of ribs and shoulders of women, and not to mention the chicken legs). I am sorry, what are you doing with a skeleton-like image of yourself and posting it on these websites, thinking that it may be attractive?

The emergence and rapid growth of technology has not left any of us alarmed anymore.  It is most definitely a developing community that has changed our lives in many ways. Cyber communities have established an important place in our lives, more so than we think. In this paper, I aim to examine how the internet has provided an outlet for pro-ana/mia websites through discourses that construct women’s identity today. When we reckon how times have changed, we realize that the eating disorder itself has developed a new identity. Back in the day, people were ashamed to admit that they have an eating disorder. They were embarrassed to share their stories. Today, it has turned around a complete angle. Now, we have a massive online community both for promoting pro-ana/mia websites, as well as rehabilitation. Women are now encouraging this disorder, not as an illness but as a lifestyle that they take pride in. Users share crash dieting techniques, recipes, their daily calorie intakes, coach each other on using certain foods or diet plans, compete with each other, advise on taking laxatives or inducing vomiting, sharing unhealthy images popularly known as ‘thinspiration,’ and posting their weight, body measurements and other details of their dietary regimen.

In this case, I am referring to visual images that conform to “thinspiration” and serve as the reason for starvation to women online. One can find shocking images on these websites that may seem disturbing to many outside the pro-ana world. These images and message boards are active players in developing and maintaining a pro-ana identity. Recently, Pinterest has taken a toll against the thinspiration cult and banned these photos from their website. They have also posted a banner for those who search “thinspo” and offered a medical helpline. Mainstream social media websites standing up against the thinspiration trend brings me to one of my major arguments, censorship.

There is no doubt that social media has rapidly evolved and now serves as an active platform for these groups. In a podcast by CBC Radio, Antonio A. Casilli taking up the ANAMIA project talks about censorship and its effects on the pro-ana/mia online community. Throughout his podcast, he suggests that it is pointless to censor these websites. He also asserts that it may potentially be more harmful to ban pro-ana sites rather than having them online. What I found interesting throughout the radio show was his “toothpaste tube effect” which implies that when you are squeezed from one service, you will go onto another (CBC Radio Programme, 2012). In terms of censorship, it means that eradication of one website may multiply into two or more. When discussing the dangers of banning these websites, Casilli suggests that these communities are very strong in an online bond and they will close up into denser groups, where they might not be able to find help. If you create smaller communities of people with eating disorders, they will have no one but themselves to exchange information and images with. I definitely agree with Casilli in that censorship is not the solution. Yes, the internet provides a dangerous outlet for these groups but at the same time, these disorders are not new. They have been there before the dawn of the internet and people will still do what they have to do, whether online or offline.

Depression and other stress related illnesses are often associated with anorexia and bulimia. Where does one lift up their spirit and create an image of themselves that they might like? It is no surprise, the internet. Accessing technology, especially the internet offers the power to control one’s physical body through these pro-ana/mia websites. Women with low self-esteem crave power and these websites and forums are a platform to practice that power by controlling one’s body size or image. They use this sense of control as a means of empowerment to create identities online. An example from the video is a comment on one of the thinspiration forums, “I need perfection and control more than ever. I need it now (The Truth about Online Anorexia, 2009).” Validation by others and support is seen as a means of social acceptance in the online realm. Women compete with one another in starvation diets, and victory serves to uplift their self-esteem. By linking their identity to their bodies and their mere appearance, their goal becomes on decreasing the number on the scale. This is their way of gaining power and control in their lives. Ana/mia culture not only concerns individual identity, but also creates an online community that governs itself, and protects against the “outsiders” (otherwise, the offline world).

These online interactions and support from peers reinforces their identity on a daily basis. It almost creates a dual world for them; one that is pro-ana (online) and one that is outside of it (offline). They lose touch with reality by remaining in the “online” world as their daily routine. This online/offline dichotomy is prime in understanding their self-narrative and further legitimizes these identities.

This is a controversial topic with underlying complexities that need to be examined with a closer look. Women are positioned as victims as well as agents in this complex issue. They challenge the dominant gender ideologies by using technology as a means of empowerment. They experiment with multiple identities online through blogging, building support websites and forums for those suffering from ana/mia. On the other hand, the very same tool can be used as a self-destructive platform for many. This is when women embody their eating disorder as their identity. This issue is seen as very problematic and has been the debate for many social media websites. But what are some of the possible solutions we can advocate for? Firstly, we need to understand that censorship is not the solution. Policing the internet could be expensive and highly complex. The government will definitely have trouble solidifying what is fat, skinny, healthy or unhealthy. We cannot simply filter everything that is out there. We need to censor at own levels, being responsible citizens of our society. We need to bring together educators, and pro-health advocates to make a positive impact. Awareness is key in kicking off ‘thinspo’ cults from mainstream social media websites.

Secondly, the internet is good and bad for many reasons. But access is in our hands. Parents need to be more involved in the lives of teenagers as ana/mia targets a particular demographic. We should make use of parental controls and definitely educate our children on a healthy, positive body image.

And lastly, we need to have a closer look at where these ideas of femininity and body image come from. Mass media and the society at large, has a lot to do with these notions. Fashion magazines and runways are a major part of the visual imagery on thinspiration websites. We may need to expand out of the online world to fix what is going wrong offline. Our society needs to re-define what “beautiful” means and promote healthy images of women as opposed to dangerous statements by models and celebrities like Kate Moss. Promoting the diversity of bodies, as opposed to one hegemonic ideal body that the society should conform to is one of the first steps that our media needs to incorporate in their projects.  The society needs to shame thinspiration in unity, and make it accessible for young women to take the road to recovery.