I was so nervous about turning it in! What if people didn't like it? What if they guessed that I was bulimic because of the story?
But no one did, not even my friend who I told I had had an ED.
And people didn't seem to think the story was that bad.
One comment that I found interesting was that my teacher said she had read lots of stories about bulimia or anorexia. I was surprised, mostly because I didn't think there were so many girls with EDs. Of course, healthy people could certainly write about them, but I just didn't think there was that much in the literature.
What this experience has taught me is that I really am not alone in my struggle. Surely some of those other people have dealt with EDs just as I have, which is why they chose to write about them.
It also reminds me of the INVISIBLITY CLAUSE: if you don't tell people directly, they will not realize you have bulimia.
Now. What should my next story be about?
It is really true unless I say directly "Hi I'm Josie and I have an eating disorder" no one will say anything. I have even slipped once or twice and something that would be really obvious like don't leave cake with the binge eater!
ReplyDeleteThat's cool that you were courageous enough to write your paper on that! I probably would have been too nervous. You're right, though, about the invisibility clause. That applies to a lot of issues actually. "Healthy" people just don't want to recognize that others might really be struggling. A lot of people just don't want to open Pandora's box. Once someone knows about someone else's issues, they feel the need to help but there's not a whole lot other people can do.
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