lets get serious…

just for a minute or two… the other day–actually i beleive it was yesterday, i came on here to write in my diary, check for notes, see if any of my favorites had updated– you know, the usual… well, as usual, after i logged in, i checked the OD front page to see if there was anything interesting under the “latest updates” sidebar… i saw an entry with the title “doin alright” and the beginning little blurb went like this:
“Well i didnt fast today but i restricted. and i am doing good. plus i burned 400 cals…”
i wondered what she was fasting for, but in the back of my mind i knew it couldnt be good… this looked like a “diet diary” to me… now i confess to having kept a diet diary before, but nothing like this…
upon reading the rest of the entry, i was horrified… it looks like this girl is becoming anorexic!… i then proceeded to read the rest of the diary (it was short, she’s only had it a few days or so), and i was scared for this girl… this girl that i never met before in my entire life… and all of a sudden it struck me what the annonymity of a site like open diary (or xanga or livejournal or blogspot, or any of the hundred or so other sites out there that allow people to place their private thoughts on the web) actually means… it means that this person, or any person, can document thier thoughts and feelings, helpful or harmful, without fear of their agenda being halted… sure, the entire world can read it, but because open diary puts so much emphasis on preserving the annonymity of its members, its possible that no one who can actually help this girl will ever know what is happening… and people like you and me, who read her journal–our hearts go out to her, but the most we can do is leave a note at the bottom of an entry, pleading with her to stop this madness and find a more healthy way to go about losing weight….. i feel utterly helpless… when one of my best friends began to have signs of an eating disorder, i went to the school guidance counselor, and her parents were informed, and she got help… but this girl–who i do not know– i feel the need to help her, and yet i feel utterly helpless… all i can do is pray that she’ll listen to the notes that i and others have left on her diary… i can pray that her friends or her parents will realize what she’s doing and put a stop to it… jeezus….

i debated whether to put the girls name in here, but i figure since its not like i know her, i dont owe her any sort of privacy, and anyway she’s already posting on the net soo… check it out.. and maybe leave her a note? try and knock some sense into her?? .–> [Paige23]

*cries for all the people that i cannot help* 🙁