To Steve Harvey
who made fun of eating disorders
You don’t
know me, or my story. I am probably one of the millions that watches family
feud every now and then, perhaps some more than other. I have been in a skilled
nursing facility for the past 11 months, so I have caught more of family feud
than I tend to while living my “normal” life.
A few nights
ago, I was trying to unwind from the long day. Most of which consists of
physical therapy to try and be able to learn and walk again. Why have I lost my
ability to walk at 23? Two words. Anorexia Nervosa. Along with severe ankle
injuries, but I would be out of here 10 months ago if my anorexia were taken
out of the equation. So when someone makes jokes about dieting, or eating
disorders, I do not find them funny. I find them offensive.
One episode
the question was “name something a model doesn’t do” And of course the top
answer was “eat.” I won’t get into the whole argument of how not every model is
anorexic, that is another topic in itself. I am disheartened by the way you responded.
You took it that extra mile it did not need to go. You mimicked a woman about
to pass out, you talked about their ugly pale face, and said “give the woman a
damn sandwich.”
An eating
disorder is not a joke. An eating disorder is a SEVERE mental illness that has
the highest mortality rate of any mental illness. 20% of people who suffer with
anorexia will die prematurely. It is the highest cause of death for woman 12-25.
In the past year I have personally known 14 people who have died. Let me tell
you, each person lost does not get easier. It makes you feel more hopeless,
angry, and hurt.
What is
funny about a girl who almost died more times than she can count? What is funny
about someone who is now dependent on a feeding tube for the rest of her life
because she has done too much damage to her stomach? What is funny about a girl
who never use to have seizures but now has to be on medication for seizures
because of her medical complexities?
What is funny about a girl breaking bones, having concussions, and
bleeding from fainting? What is funny about a 23 year old being on SIXTEEN
medications to keep her body functioning somewhat normally? What’s funny about
a girl starving herself because she hates herself so much or because she was
sexually abused at age 4 for two years straight? I don’t see anything funny
about this. But a lot of society seems to laugh at eating disorders and claim
they are lifestyles and not a disease. Well they are, just like cancer. Would
you make fun of cancer on your show?
It is not ok
to make fun of any illness, INCLUDING mental illnesses. People need to be
educated so we can lower the number of deaths a day from eating disorders-which
happens to be 23. So by the time I finished this letter. We lost another
precious soul. Someones daughter, son, mother, brother, sister, wife, husband,
best friend G O N E.
