TITLE: ED/Enough

CREATOR: Marilyn Love

CATEGORY: Mind

CREATOR COMMENTARY:

[TRIGGER WARNING: EATING DISORDERS, SELF-HARM, ABUSE]

This piece explores the obsession that accompanies an eating disorder as rational thoughts gradually become taken over by an irrational compulsion to control the body’s appearance. The quintessential embodiment of an eating disorder is an emaciated girl staring into the mirror at a much curvier girl whom she believes to be herself. While this image reflects the warped reality that accompanies any mental illness, the mirror conveys a sense of vanity which distorts the reality of the lived experience of an eating disorder. It is for this reason that I chose to provide a glimpse into the delirium of this particular illness with words rather than with concrete images.
An eating disorder is not the result of narcissism. It is the embodiment of the desire to exert absolute control over that which is uncontrollable, anthropomorphized as an abusive relationship. As the sickness worsens, the victim’s physical and mental energy is steadily sapped, exacerbating the difficulty of resisting the abuser.

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CREATOR BIO:

Marilyn Love is a senior Religious Studies major. She prides herself on being able to find the proper emoticon for every situation.