What The Mind Can Do and Actions that Cause

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Bullying and Eating Disorders

Being able to read the novel Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson, had given me a huge insight into the eating-disorder community. To know that the main viewpoint of the book is told through a young teenager's eyes is saddening because not only is the reader able to explore Lia mentally but physically because of her appearance and thought process is talked about in extreme detail.  The topic of eating disorders isn't really talked about so to learn what I have learned in the book just from the main character Lia, she opened my eyes to understanding the topic of eating disorders. 

The main character, Lia, is of course diagnosed with an eating disorder, and it was shocking to be able to see how her thought process was with the entire novel and how her everyday actions were affected by the choices she had made because of how she was trying to maintain her food intake because of her disorder. As a psychology major, I was more interested in her thought process on how she maintained her body weight and how she had thought of herself as a person. An interesting phrase that Lia would make is when she would make the statement "When I was a real girl....." which had indicated that she had felt unreal. I had paid attention to this detail because she would make the statement "strong/empty/strong"(Lia 64) to what I believe she feels that since she isn't real, there is no need to eat, because things that are not real, don't eat. There is also a quote in the book when she hung out with Elijah when she says "I am almost a real girl the entire drive home." (Lia 97) This had stood out to me because while she was hanging out with Elijah, she was eating, laughing, etc, and that's what real things and people do compare to being unreal like a doll and not eating, smiling, or really living. 

Comments

  1. Samantha DouglasNovember 10, 2021 at 7:52 PM

    Great takeaway Mikah! I also noticed when she would reminiscence on the past and refer to herself as a real girl. I believe that she says that because she was not fully aware of her body and could go about her business without it constantly being on her mind. Due to her being half dead to her illness and seeing Cassie's ghost, also made her feel unreal as well. Loved your insight into this novel!

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  2. Erin RutherfordNovember 14, 2021 at 4:48 PM

    Mikah - I also found it very interesting how she referred to herself as a "real girl" when speaking about the past. I wondered if told herself that so it would be easier to not eat. Like she used to be a real girl who did normal adolescent things, and now she is just a shell of that person, only obsessed with being skinny.

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