How Helpful are Pro-Ana Groups?

They couldn't save Vanessa

Anyone reading the most recent story about Vanessa, the anorexic teen with gender dysphoria who died of starvation in Nelson while under state care, could not fail to be impressed by the concern shown by the online pro-ana community. Pro-ana stands for pro-anorexia, that is promoting anorexia nervosa as a lifestyle choice rather than a mental illness.

Along with a recovery-focused eating disorder group, Vanessa was an active member of two Discord servers, one of which she created and hosted. The latest news story shows she communicated regularly with her online friends, some of whom were increasingly worried about her and went out of their way to find out where she was located. Vanessa’s last phone call before she died lasted 15 hours with the other party falling asleep during the call. When they woke up, she was gone.

Vanessa wrote about her parents’ concern about the online pro-anorexia community. She talked about disguising websites she was visiting, mainly to keep in contact with her Discord friends. Discord servers enable individuals to create private, invite-only online spaces.

Vanessa’s parents’ concern is shared by the Eating Disorder Association of New Zealand (EDANZ). EDANZ provides support, help and resources to people caring for loved ones with an eating disorder.

In a response to my questions about the story, chair of EDANZ, Megan Tombs wrote

“we are all shocked and dismayed by the current news articles. Dreadful situations are being reported and many are devastating. Online forums promoting eating disorders - and influencers promoting disordered eating - are not helpful at all to anyone, let alone those experiencing or vulnerable to an eating disorder.”

She also referred me to EDANZ guidelines for reporting on eating disorders and said the Herald story used “inappropriate language and explicitly stating details of specific behaviours and measurements.“

The complexity of this disorder and the impact of those posting about it on social media is further outlined in this UK website Beat Eating Disorders. They explain that interested parties posting about eating disorders are not being deliberately malicious or wanting to encourage people to continue or develop eating disorders. The reality is that these people may have eating disorders themselves. That is true even of individuals who acknowledge the destructive nature of eating disorders and show a desire to recover, such is the highly complex nature of this mental illness.

They conclude that pro-ana and pro-mia (bulimia) content is dangerous to those who may be vulnerable to developing an eating disorder, or who are already ill.

“It can make people feel more negative about themselves, stir up damaging feelings of competitiveness, and push people into setting unhealthy goals and rules for themselves. It tells people that they are carrying out behaviour that is harming them by choice, rather than because they are ill. All of this can lead to the illness becoming more ingrained and harder to break away from.”

The Toledo Centre for Eating Disorders in the United States is even more explicit. It calls pro-ana and pro-mia sites “incredibly dangerous.”

These sites may glorify eating disorders and associated dysfunctional behaviors, personify anorexia and bulimia into “friends,” often referred to just as Ana and Mia, offer advice on maintaining eating disorder behaviors like how to suppress hunger, lose weight, and hide evidence of vomiting and provide “support” and visual “thin-spiration” to encourage visitors to continue their eating disorder behaviors.

Pro-Ana and Pro-Mia sites often undermine recovery by reframing it as a weaker choice than maintaining the eating disorder. They offer a type of “membership” to a community, creating a sense of belonging. Individuals who can stay at a low body weight are “special.” Members are led to believe they are part of an “elite” group and thus offer a sense of identity and even a feeling of personal effectiveness.

Instead, anyone requiring assistance is advised to contact groups like EDANZ - 0800 2 EDANZ / 0800 2 33269.