Being a Critical Consumer of Social Media: my imperfect birth story

My daughter is sleeping, one of her sporadic 2-3 hour breaks between diapers, feeding, crying, rocking and snuggling. I became a mother three weeks ago and I must say it has not been what I expected. I wanted to write a little about some things I have learned, or more accurately re-learned, during the last [...]

The Astonishing Sexism of Hollywood and What it Means for Girls

This Guest Post graciously submitted by Rachel Simmons. Every once in a while, an article comes out that is stunning in its honesty about a problem that people try to deny exists. On April 11, the New Yorker ran an article about the comic actress Anna Faris which, among other things, revealed the astonishing sexism of the film [...]

Do We Have Secret Fat Envy?

This guest post graciously submitted by Virginia Sole-Smith Rebecca DiLiberto (producer/executive editor of The Ricki Lake Show, which my inner ’90s child is randomly a bit excited about although I usually consider myself strictly an Ellen girl) has a post up over on Huffington Post called Why You Can Have Everything You Want (Even Though You’re Fat).  [...]

Being Honest with YOURself

It’s easy to trick ourselves into believing something that isn’t true.   Did I really follow my meal plan?  Yes, sure I did.  I didn’t finish the fruit because it was spoiled and there is some lasagna on my plate but it was overcooked so I couldn’t finish it either.  But I did try both [...]

Hiding within yourself

Many people with eating disorders feel ashamed and embarrassed.  People are calling and texting you to go out, do things, and socialize.  Have you called them back?  Yes.  Have you told them you’d meet up with them?  Yes. But… You cancel at the last minute.  Why? “I just can’t go” you say to yourself.  ”No [...]

No Offense, But I Was Just Kidding: Dealing with Mean Jokes

This Guest Post graciously submitted by Rachel Simmons. “When girls say ‘just kidding,’ what percentage of the time are they really joking?” It’s one of my favorite questions to ask girls, and I rarely hear numbers in double digits. That’s because “just kidding,” and its cousin, “no offense,” are phrases girls (and guys, though less [...]

Can We Force Someone to Be Healthy?

M. Hudnall Blast-from-the-past originally posted 11/2009 on WATRD. Self-efficacy is a big word.  Okay, two words.  It’s about our belief in ourselves, essentially that we are in charge of our thoughts and actions. The concept pops up in my mind every time I hear someone say it’s a person’s duty to live a healthy lifestyle.  [...]

The Self-Love Rule

Blast from the past, originally posted July, 2009: You’ve heard of the golden rule right? It’s an idea I personally try to live by every day. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. So simple yet so poignant. In most situations is makes perfect sense. It breeds empathy and Lord knows [...]

The “thin ideal” of beauty is culturally bound- find the artist that shows YOU are the beauty ideal!

The arts have always reflected the culture of the day in which they were created, this is something that we’ve all been taught in our k-12 educations, and if we are lucky in an art survey class somewhere along the way in our higher education careers. One thing that may take a little more mental [...]

Hey, What’s Up With the Lying?

Ok, so you have an eating disorder.  Everyday you are consumed with food thoughts, numbers, calories, and negative thinking.  On top of this you have developed a habit of lying to others about small, medium, and big things.  Even some things that are important, like your health.  Do you like to lie?  No.  Most people [...]

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