By Vaani Garg, Roll number 2278
Let’s talk about things not often talked about.
Waking up in the morning, with the first decision being to skip breakfast. Body checking as they get ready for classes, criticising every bit of loose skin. Struggling to concentrate in class and being pre-occupied with thoughts of food. Looking at labels of packaged food items as they decide whether to choose recovery. Deciding in the negative, as recovery feels like losing all control of their life. Feeling helpless, scared, stuck, alone, and struggling to juggle “all things college.”
This was a run-down of a day for a student suffering from an eating disorder, specifically, anorexia.
All over India, more than 13% of the college student population is at high risk for eating disorders. A recent study even found that one in every five college students have an eating disorder. Moving away from home, increased social pressure, romantic relationships, competitive environment, and the ‘comparison’ game are all factors for disordered eating. Freshmen, particularly, dip their toes in new water and struggle to manage the new found independence and self-reliance with increased career anxiety. Being a psychological problem, eating disorders are often stigmatised and ignored. People disregard them as problems of the “West” and refuse to accept that a person might be legitimately suffering from an illness that they do not understand. The sufferers hence are pushed further into the periphery of loneliness. They are burdened by the overwhelming myths and comments surrounding their everyday reality.
Colleges and institutions need to do better at providing a platform to students where they can talk freely about mental health without the fear of being judged and misunderstood. The horrors of mental illnesses are more terrorising than anyone dares to accept.
Life is too short to weigh the food you consume.
Comments