Monday 20 February 2012

Gok's teens and tactical chundering.

Last weeks episode of Gok Wan's new programme 'Gok's teens' really brought up some issues for me with this type of programme.
Basically for those who didn't see it Gok is addressing teen issues. Last week's episode addressed body confidence. It featured one fifteen year old recovering for anorexia and one girl who likes pro ana websites. He was basically trying to show how unrealistic magazine pictures are/ 'helping' teens embrace their natural size. The problem I have is that these type of problems tend to do the opposite. Maybe it's just me but they trigger me. I think that showing teens what these other teens want (that they should be thin/aspire to be skinny) makes me feel out of the norm in that I'm trying to stop thinking like this. Plus the photos from pro ana sites triggered me. Hmph. Maybe it's just me. I think these programmes need to be very careful. I think that by raising awareness of these pro ana websites, it steers people towards them, doing the exact opposite of what the show wants. What do you think??

In other news, I am currently on university placement and loving it, but with the twelve and a half hour shifts comes a hellova lot of food. Leading to weight gain. Leading to weight loss. Helllllo diet coke!! I purged last night for the first time in ages, but mainly because I'd had three glasses of wine and was feeling a little drunk which I don't really like. But the purge felt satisfying. (People in England call purging when drunk 'tactical chundering', it's widely accepted as a form of stopping yourself getting too drunk. Scary eh?)




2 comments:

becca; said...

i'm watching it now, and i completely agree! i hope your placement is going well :) xo.

Leigh said...

Have you read the Hunger Games books? Your mentioning the term tactical chundering made me think of it. Basically, in this dysopian future people excessively indulge in food and then purge it all so that they can resume eating. It's scary.

I have the same problem with awareness programmes. They make me feel like so many people are doing it...how can it be so wrong? And that I want to be thinner; I want that. It frightens me how thin a line there is between the logic of knowing that it's dysfunctional and wanting it anyways.

P.S. Thank you for your comment and follow.