Body Image, Eating Disorders and Social Support

In light of the recent #TeamSkinny scandal on our campus, I wanted to take the time to discuss the issue of body image as it is very prevalent in the lives of many across the country. Unfortunately, it has been increasingly common for people to not be satisfied with their weight and how it makes them appear to others. Particularly in the case of women, there is often a pressure in many facets of their lives to uphold a specific image or adhere to a standard of beauty that is nearly impossible for everyone to achieve. As shown in this blog from the Huffington Post, women are often bombarded with articles, advertisements and commercials that promote things like "ways to get a flat stomach." Even though some may argue that these advertisements are done in the name of health, their primary goal is to make people feel unsatisfied with how they look. This lack of body satisfaction doesn't only impact  adult women, but can impact girls as young as age 6.

When people constantly feel unsatisfied with how they look, the steps that they take to work towards body satisfaction can be potentially dangerous. Unfortunately, body image issues can lead to eating disorders (anorexia, bulimia, working out excessively etc.), which further jeopardizes the mental and physical health of the person that is impacted by the disorder. The relationship between body image and eating disorders becomes more apparent as an increasing number of fashion models are developing eating disorders as a result of their profession. If fashion models are often meant to exemplify the standard of beauty in our society, are we not contributing to the development of eating disorders by continuing to validate that standard of beauty?

While reading The Dinner Party in Manifesta, I was amazed at the variety and depth of issues that were discussed among the author and their peers. In the reading, people gathered to discuss the issues that were most prevalent to them as women, which was likely to spark action, even if only in their personal lives. As a TCU senior that has been frustrated with the social climate on campus in the past, I feel that these types of consciousness-raising groups would greatly benefit students on campus.

At TCU, the issue of body image is arguably more prevalent than it is in general society; and eating disorders occur more frequently here as a result. Because of this, I feel that students should take action to raise awareness about the issue on campus. Initially, it would be wise to create a safe space for people to talk about their struggles with body image and eating disorders with other students. The Counseling Center has a lot of great resources for students looking to begin a recovery process, but acknowledgement of the issue among the general student population is necessary if we are going to reverse the trend. One idea that I recently came across that might have value is the concept of Lean In Circles. TCU students could adopt a similar concept and create focus groups that are dedicated to a variety of issues that effect women on our campus. In the case of body image and eating disorders, students that have overcome eating disorders could work with students who are recovering from or currently have eating disorders to offer them social support during the process. By having various avenues of social support on campus for people struggling with eating disorders, it may seem more manageable for people to confront the issue if they are not doing it alone.

I definitely don't feel that this is the answer to body image issues on our campus, but it would help start conversations about the issue that could potentially lead to some action. It is my hope that students will continue the conversation about body image and eating disorders long after the #TeamSkinny controversy is current.