Forget About What Society Thinks and Eat What You Love

Hi everyone!!! I just got back from having an amazing day at the lake with my wife and some friends. We went tubing, jet skiing, and ate at an amazing pizza place in Black Mountain, NC. Today I'm writing to you about two pieces of work about food eating disorders. They are Her Chee-to Heart by Jill McCorkle and Not Just "a White Girls Thing": The Changing Face of Food and Body Image Problems by Susan Bordo.

 Her Chee-to Heart was written very lightheartedly. Jill McCorkle takes me on a journey through her childhood of eating nearly every piece of junk-food I could think of. She thoroughly enjoyed eating anything with a high sugar or fatty content. I honestly went to the store later that night after reading it and got myself some brownie batter Oreos and milk quench my appetite for something sweet. Any health-nut reading what Jill regularly ate growing up would be appalled. Myself? I couldn't help but smile and understand that she was happy eating all of that and someone judging her for it wouldn't have stopped her. I think deep down we all wish we could eat whatever we want and not have to deal with the consequences. Now McCorkle didn't go into detail about her health or weight and I don't think that's what she wanted me to take away from her writing. She wanted me to understand the vast spectrum of junk-food that fueled her happiness as a junk-food junkie. She wants us to forget about what we are supposed to eat and grab that sugary, fattening hunk of yumminess and enjoy ourselves. I still remember when I thought I was the coolest kid at the lunch table because I would take my frozen Ding-Dong out of the freezer and put it in my lunch box with an ice pack so I could keep it cold until lunch. I looked forward to that chocolate filled hockey puck everyday going to school.

Now the second thing I read, Not Just 'a White Girl Thing', really dug into society's issues of how the human body should look. Clearly from the title I knew that she wanted me to understand that what typically was looked at as a white female, North American, financially stable, heterosexual, perfectionist issue was much more wide-spread. From African-Americans to Asians, Latins, and Europeans, they all have individuals in their cultures who deal with eating disorders. She backs this up with multiple resources and professional research studies that show social media has a huge influence on how we perceive what our bodies should look like. I completely agree that there is a definite way that the human body is portrayed in advertisements and it is depleting the confidence and self-esteem of anyone who doesn't fit that. It's terrible but there's a reason people say 'sex sells'. People are drawn to a certain body type and the reason they are drawn to it is because society has made them feel like that is what is sexy. No one should feel like their body has to be a certain way. Everyone has a right to be happy without someone making them feel inadequate.

There's a lot more to be said about eating disorders and how social media influences people to develop these issues. It's important to be happy. I strive to be happy everyday. Life is seriously so short and I can't waste it dwelling on the negative. Don't let how someone else thinks about you affect the way you think about yourself. Please if you are struggling with an eating disorder or having an issue with anything in your life don't feel like you are alone. I promise someone else out there is having the same problem or they have been in a similar situation. Either way there is always a helping hand to guide you through your stress. I hope I have shed some light on important issues in society and thanks again for stopping by =]