Why Anorexia is So Complicated

For those of you who don’t know why I’m writing about anorexia, the main character in my first novel, Objects in Mirror, lives with anorexia, and the novel centres around her figuring out how not to let it take over her life.

I was nervous about publishing Objects because of exactly what I say in the title of this post. Anorexia is complicated. I absolutely believe that no two people experience it in the same way. I don’t think there is “a cure” or “a treatment” – I think there are many ways to approach it. Some will help certain people, at certain times. The same things may not help other people, or even the same person, at a different time.

In Objects, I wanted to portray one way of experiencing anorexia without alienating people who might not have experienced it that way.

Turns out, my nervousness was pretty much for nothing. Several people told me they identified with the portrayal in the story and I suppose anybody who didn’t is smart enough to understand I wasn’t saying “it’s like this for everybody” but rather “it could be like this for this character.”

At any rate, my parents forwarded me two articles this week. Both are from the Globe and Mail and both deal with anorexia.

I read the first one, entitled “What if anorexia wasn’t a disorder, but a passion?” with my head nodding. This article spoke to me. It resonated. It explains so many things people who haven’t had anorexia might not be able to understand. It was kind of like an article I came across during the writing of Objects, which linked anorexia to OCD. That, too, made so much sense to me.

I moved on to the second article – “What it’s like to live with an eating disorder” with my brow wrinkled. Really? People feel like this? That wasn’t want it was like for ME to live with an eating disorder. Not at all. Yet the writer experienced anorexia herself, and counsels others with it, so she clearly hasn’t made this up. Some people living with anorexia feel this way.

Which brings us back to complicated. Because there is no one truth. Anorexia can grip our whole lives, or lurk in the background. It can cause certain symptoms, and not others. It can start young and stick around for years – or forever. Even people who have experienced it, have experienced it differently so how do you ever create a comprehensive treatment system?

That sounds depressing, but it’s not meant to be. It’s still better to do something than nothing. It’s still better to try. We mostly hear about the most terrible, most extreme cases of anorexia. These are possible, but not necessarily typical. It’s possible to come out on the other side and recognize what you’ve been through and, possibly, even be able to point to some things you’ve learned, and be glad you learned them.

As usual when it comes to anorexia, it’s not like I have an answer to give, but I can offer hope. It will be hard at times, but it can be OK. That’s the message I try to give in Objects in Mirror.