myownprivateinsanity said:

Ok now that's really crazy and sad.

minneapolisgenius said:

It is isn't it - I think as well, with all the Media attention about Obesity being bad and unhealthy and the lack of Media focus on the problems of Anorexia / Bulemia etc, Kids would be easily swayed into thinking that being so thin is better in a way. What I mean is, the Media makes wafer thin bodies more acceptable than a larger body. But 7 year old kids - Thats just insanity and does show there is a problem within society. Kids of that age should be more concerned about which member of their favourite Boy band they are gonna marry when they grow up and silly stuff that Kids do.....not Counting Calories....

minneapolisgenius said:

I remember eating salads and 'dieting' in 1st grade. So I can gaurantee that this is true.

luv4all7 said:

I remember being young enough to take a bath at a friend's house (5 or 6 maybe?) and that friend pointing out all the fat on my belly. It was the first time I was told I was fat.

myownprivateinsanity said:

Yeah, I remember trying to lose weight and being on a diet already at age 11, but that was because I was training to be a ballet dancer, and it's just "normal" in that world: you are told to be thin and to lose weight all the time.

But I can't imagine other kids who aren't into ballet, gymnastics, or anything like that trying to diet at age 7. If I wasn't in the dance world, I don't think it would have even crossed my mind to care about how I looked as a kid. There certainly wasn't any pressure from kids at school in those years to compete for thinness or anything like that. The popular kids were popular because they had the "best" clothes not because of what their bodies looked like in them. Which is also stupid, but what can you do.

Times sure have changed.

CarrieMpls said:

Sorry Carrie.
I have memories like that too. My first time, was my MOM teling me I needed to go on a diet cuz my thighs were getting big. I was 6.

luv4all7 said:

See, that's the problem right there: PARENTS telling their kids that they are gaining weight. No wonder you tried to diet at such an early age. It's bad enough if other kids say things, but your mother? I don't think I'd ever get over that.

I do worry that when I have kids though, I'll be overly critical of them though.

spelling edit
[Edited 9/20/06 4:19am]

minneapolisgenius said:

I thought that too, and I am critical, in that I want them to live up to their full potential, and I want them to be healthy. But I'd NEVER tell my daughter at age 6 she needs to diet. First of all at age 6, I'M in control of what goes into her mouth anyways. I'd just keep less junk around the house and cook healthier meals. But I wouldn't tell HER she was the reason I was doing it.
[Edited 9/20/06 4:22am]

luv4all7 said:

Well, yes, it's always good to bring them up healthy and not to feed them fast food/junk food. Of course, I don't have any kids yet, so what do I know?

I just watched Super Size Me the other day and I just can't believe that some people would willingly eat fast food all the time. But that's another thread I suppose.

myownprivateinsanity said:

That's insane, these kids have parents and theyre the ones who should not be letting this happen.

LleeLlee said:

It's interesting that we have such extremes. On one side we have morbidly obese children (which is becoming more and more common at an alarming rate) and on the other side we have children (and their parents) that are so terrified of being fat that they are also abusing their bodies.

No one wants to just be healthy it seems. Very sad.

JustErin said:

Yup. Extremes with everything. It's kinda like radio killed the video star. Theres no going back.

myownprivateinsanity said:

thank you

JustErin said:

Yes, and you cant blame a child for being morbidly obese or extremely skinny, its the parents fault.It's the parents who buy the food and cook it. Adults make their own choices, young kids dont. 7 year olds shouldnt be looking at media images of adults and thinking "I want to look like that." That's horrendous.

LleeLlee said:

Your rite parents are to blame for what a small child is putting into their mouth. But as far as images in the media. Once a child id old enough to actually recognize that they may be "different" than what is being depicted as beautiful, well then that's when the issues are gonna start. It's up to the parents to give the child the morale and esteeme to love who THEY are.
[Edited 9/20/06 12:10pm]

purplerein said:

I wouldn't call her grotesque...



...but definitely too skinny for my taste.


tA

Tribal Disorder

http://www.soundclick.com...dID=182431

theAudience said:

That's gross.

minneapolisgenius said:

I think she's extrememly attractive.

luv4all7 said:

Not surprised.


That image reminds me of Radiohead's "Paranoid Android" video.

luv4all7 said:

I remember thinking that I needed to look good (i.e. thin) in a bathing suit when I was six.

theAudience said:

You gotta admit though, for 109 years old, Cher is looking pretty hot.....

myownprivateinsanity said:

i think she looks gross. what's beautiful about looking like you're starving to death?

IrresistibleB1tch said:

As a black woman who will admit to have been bulimic and still has some body image issues, I do know that control has a lot to do with it. I recalled the very day my mom died, I went to a gas station and bought donuts, fruit pie, chips and some other stuff. I went in the car ate it all and purged it immediately. I was trying to regain some weird control over what just had occurred.

I was raised hearing that you always look your best. You never go to the store without your makeup, you have to walk and look a certain way. I attended charm schools and modeling school in my late teens. Its always about looking good and that "I" didn't look good big. When I was pregnant with my daughter I gained 73lbs and I remember at christmas my mother bought me a pair of leather pants that were a size 9/10 and she simply said, you'll your body back. I was like...wow. I lost every pound and got in those pants. But later in life I've gained some weight. I'm a lot more curvy than my family is use to me being and I hear about it all the time. "when are you going to lose the weight" or if I don't have on makeup, "if i looked as pretty as you do with makeup, i'd never go out with it"

I've had to work very hard on not passing any of this to my kid. She sees what has been done to me and she rejects it and even helps me through my issues with food and image.

It is a battle.

Rhondab said:

Damn girlie, I didn't know you had that kind of pressure in the family. It's so good to hear that you're aware of it, working it out & not passing it on... and that your amazing kid is helping you with those issues! Her mother is pretty amazing too

Tom said:

I have to agree with this statement. This girl is gross.

CalhounSq said:

thanks ma...yeah...my mom had some deep issues with body image and it was passed down to me. Its all good.

Rhondab said:

Wow...that sounds like alot to deal with. It's important to remember that looking and being healthy also has alot to do with how you feel on the inside and if you are nurturing yourself from within and also taking care regarding your psyche. When these are all in balance looking great on the outside is pretty effortless. I used to bury my feelings with food alot...I always knew when I was really depressed and in a "funk" when I gained extra pounds. They always have just come off easily when I'm feeling happy and at peace because I'm motivated to take care of myself and my enviroment. I really have to be concious NOT to abuse food when I am feeling lost, insecure or upset.

CalhounSq said:

Cosign

well done to you Rhonda, it's very difficult to be aware of such issues and keep them away from your children. My mother has always been slim, and food is just not her... "tool", so to speak. So that was never instilled in me either, apart from society. Thats not to say she depended on nothing, however,and that those things weren't passed to me So well done Rhonda

Krystal666 said:

Its been an interesting journey and its my journey and I'm actually blessed for it. I've come across way too many sistas who don't think we as black women have eating disorders and body image issues and they don't realize that black women suffer from binge eating disorder (emotional eating) at a large number. I don't mind letting ppl know my journey. I don't mind that this is what was passed on to me for me to take on and conquer. We all have things to overcome just as long as we overcome them.

Also, my issue isn't with being "pretty". I don't feel ugly but out of balance with what is supposed to be considered "right" and "proper". It is right to have a certain look and wrong not to. I don't know if that makes any sense but it does in my head. My family just sees me as the 18/19 year old model type. That image is still there 20 years later. I'm no longer interested in being that type. Just a fly almost 40something with a little cushion for the pushin'.

But anyway, thanks for the support guys. Please believe me, this will be an issue I address for the women I serve in the new org.