THE THIN LINE BETWEEN MODELING AND SUICIDE

In our generation being slim happens to be the new sexy. That's why even persons that were chubby during childhood as time went by tried as much as possible not to become obese. Well, in actuality, the importance of having a normal body weight can never be overemphasized. Aside from the numerous physiological benefits attached to it (such as decrease incidence of cardiovascular diseases, diabetes mellitus, etc.); personally, I believe that individuals with normal body weight look more fit and stunning when compared to those that are overweight. Even though it might sound a little kooky, to some extent a person's body weight is a vital determinant in the choice of a career. As a matter of fact the opportunities may be opened to everyone, but you keep wondering why your application is always turned down, or why your auditioning is not considered good enough. Shockingly, these negative responses might just be as a result of your body weight and the sad reality is that you will never know until someone tells you.

Actually, although having a slender body is considered a necessity by most of the career oriented individuals, however, that doesn't mean being chubby is cursed. The only problem is that like I tried highlighting earlier, there are careers that chubby individuals may never blend in perfectly. For instance, in our world today, a typical example of such a career is modeling. Just like my friend would say, "it's easier for a cattle to pass through a needle than for an individual who's chubby to be accepted by a modeling agency". In actuality this particular career is believed to be a thing for the slim humans and the truth is that it fits them more.

Since a lot of people have come to terms with the fact that the only way to become a model and a successful one at that is to first have a slim body; chubby individuals that are so passionate about modeling oftentimes decide to go any length regardless of any impending consequences. That's why you see people starve, exercise excessively, use drugs and even go through highly risky surgery sessions just so they can have what we could term as an ideal body. Luckily enough, after a mind-blowing transformation, an individual might get his or her shot in the modeling agency, but unfortunately there's always a price to be paid. So in this article, we'll be considering how individuals unknowingly trigger a life-threatening disorder called Anorexia in their quest for an ideal body. This journey promises to be intriguing and at the same time enlightening. Fasten your seat belt and lets take this ride together.

Anorexia: A self-induced eating disorder

Starting with the basis, I'd love to explain the concept of anorexia using a brief story we'd all relate to easily. Well, this story centers on Anita who happened to be one of my favorite female course mate from way back in the University of Uyo, Nigeria. Anyone close to me will definitely know I've got soft spot for beautiful slim lady with the right body curves. This explains why I tried everything humanly possible to become friends with Anita. Of course we were just very close but nothing silly ever happened between us. Perverts will think I'm lying. Now, that wasn't part of the story. On a more serious note, since Anita had the so called 'modeling body' and at the same time was so brainy, we talked her into getting the pageantry form to represent our medical science faculty in the University student pageantry week. A decision I'm sure she hasn't regretted one bit.

As a matter of fact, for Anita it didn't just end at winning the pageantry; with time, modeling became a part of her life. Well, that's when the unexpected happened. My own Anita gradually changed from the angelic being I knew to a skinny human whose priority was doing anything that would make her cheekbones a little bit visible. Before now, self-starvation and workout sessions that were more like drilling had already become her new-found hobby. Howbeit, she seemed unsatisfied with the results and eventually began abusing drugs. Funnily enough, despite all the risky approaches adopted, she kept complaining that she was overweight when in actuality she was no different from those skeletons in anatomy laboratory. At this point it was somehow obvious that Anita wasn't in her right senses but unfortunately she always flare up immediately the issue of visiting the hospital is being raised. Of course she was old enough to make her own decisions.

Now, on this fateful day we had chained lectures and practical since 7a.m and the truth is that most of us were already stressed out. While in the biochemistry laboratory for the last practical, we heard a sudden thud on the floor. Everyone paused and looked up to see who must have broken the laboratory equipment so we could at least have a good laugh since the laboratory policy is 'break one, buy 2'. However, that wasn't the case. There on the floor was Anita lying unconsciously. Well, that's how the practical ended and we rushed her to the school healthcare center. Judging from the diagnosis, the doctor on duty stated that her condition was complex since he couldn't find anything wrong with her and had to transfer her to a bigger hospital for urgent medical attention. It was at the bigger hospital that the doctor in-charged had to interview some of us that were close to Anita before he concluded that she was to be blamed for her predicament. According to the doctor, her quest to become a perfect model through starvation had backfired and generated a disorder that made her so obsess about her weight. To worsen the whole situation, this obsession also fueled her continuous lack of appetite. It was then we understood what prompted her constant complaints about being fat even when everyone saw the reverse. Although it took a while before Anita could become her old self again; yet, the recovery and recovering processes were all fun due to the fact that she got amazing support from everyone close to her.

Why anorexia is also regarded as a psychological disorder

In one word I'd love to say that anorexia occur due to effects exerted on the brain by persistent restriction of energy intake. Now, from the statement above, you'll agree with me that this disorder has no specific cause. So, it's illogical to link it only to an individual's attitude towards food. In fact, it's worthy of note that anything that constantly hinders the rate of energy taken into the body can be seen as a prerequisite needed for anorexia to set in. Furthermore, it's important to pinpoint that before a person turn anorexic, it means he or she must have engaged in energy draining practices for a while till the brain was affected. Indeed it can never be anorexia if the brain is not involved. Honestly, it might interest you to know that the illusory overweight picture that is seen by victims of anorexia is as a result of the affected brain. Inasmuch as nothing is done to remedy the condition, the eye will continue seeing what the affected brain is interpreting and that's why victims of anorexia go extra miles to lose weight when they're already underweight.

Effects of anorexia

Regrettably, what makes anorexia extremely dangerous is the fact that you can't just tell if one is struggling with it by mere appearance. Although it's a little bit predictable in someone who had a normal body weight but as time went by became skinny and also exhibited weird attitude towards food. All the same, it's pertinent to point out that even fat individuals can have anorexia but it's always difficult to diagnose them because of the fallacious reasoning that they're eating well. On the other hand, even though they appear fat outwardly, they may be starving, exercising excessively, abusing drugs and taking all the risky weight-loss approaches like every other victims of anorexia.

From all what we've discussed so far, to some extent I'm sure the effects of this devastating disorder are already too obvious. That notwithstanding, I'll still have to emphasize on anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, and suicide. In addition to this, experts have asserted that the effects of anorexia intensify if victims are assaulted, bullied or body shamed. For instance, if a normal overweight person can be so aggravated if you dare refer to her as being fat; now, imagine the possible outcome of teasing victim of anorexia who's already obsessed with his or her weight. Your guess is as good as mine.

Final thoughts

Since victims of anorexia most times are not conscious of what they're going through and in most cases refuse to be helped; it's advisable that people close to them and the society at large try as much as possible to be supportive. By so doing, other treatment approaches such as psychotherapy, medication and nutritional counseling will help eradicate the disorder in a short period of time.

Likewise, just like my late grandmum used to say, 'the owner of the mouth is the owner of the prayers'. In a situation where you feel helplessly obsessed about your weight, or awkward each time you look at yourself; it's important to talk to a psychologist or anyone close to you. I sincerely hope you've learned something from this article. Thanks for doing this with me. Don't ever forget that you're beautiful and amazing the way you are!

To read more about this topic, check out these REFERENCES

Anorexia nervosa from Wikipedia.org
Anorexia nervosa from National Eating Disorders
Overview of anorexia nervosa from National Health Service
Understanding anorexia nervosa from Mayoclinics
Everything you need to know about anorexia nervosa:. Retrieved on 5th February, 2019

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