What the @$*%???

Eating lunch at the office... because, let's face it, I rarely leave my work environment... I sometimes peruse the Twittisphere, check up on Facebook, or snap chat with my friends from all over the country. Yesterday was one of those days.  I was catching up on social media when all of a sudden, I came across a tweet from a sweet friend I met through Team True Beauty.  Brooke, is my cyber friend, and though we have never physically met, we share a bond through our devotion to writing and our passion for promoting eating disorder awareness and dispel the media's beliefs that zero is in fact a size.

Brooke's tweet was a link to an article, a disgusting, misogynistic article titled, "5 Reasons to Date a Girl with an Eating Disorder" - Yep. That's right.  Someone had to audacity to write out five reasons why he has enjoyed dating girls with an eating disorder... sick, twisted, and selfish reasons why his perverse mind thinks that this illness is a benefit to him both monetarily and sexually.  Here are his five asinine reasons- and my unfiltered initial responses to them (okay, so I filtered it a little bit):

1. Her obsession over her body will improve her overall looks.
-Because sunken cheeks, greyed skin, yellow teeth and a permanent frown help her to feel beautiful. Really? Pull your head out of your ass. 

2. She costs less money.
-Seriously, douchebag, you're going there?  Not every person with an eating disorder orders water for dinner at a restaurant.  Most people try their damn-est to act normal in public... even though it sometimes kills them on the inside.  

3. She is fragile and vulnerable.
-So are you. Clearly, you are hurting in some way and enjoy demeaning someone else's mental illness instead of facing your own demons.  

4. She probably has money of her own. 
-No, eating disorders are not white collar-female-exclusive.  Get over yourself. Just because she is sick, doesn't mean she is rich, or will buy you presents to keep you happy.  Sick, dude... sick.  

5. She's better in bed.
-"Crazy girls are better in the sack"- this doesn't even deserve a response.  Crazy... you know what's really crazy... the fact that people are actually reading the trash you post on line.  I wonder if any of the guys who read your blog, actually have significant others that can stand to be around them- I know that if I caught my husband or boyfriend taking your words seriously, he would find an express train right out of my life.  Sorry, buddy- no chick is ever going to fall for your bull shit.  

So those were my initial responses to his words.  To be honest, I struggled a little bit with a few additional four letter words tossed around here and there.  I love the freedom I feel when I am blogging, though I cannot imagine using my blog to spread a horrifying message in this way.  I spent about a day being absolutely outraged by this article, and then I realized that a man of this intelligence level, someone who runs his ignorant mouth about a disease he clearly knows nothing about, absolutely does NOT deserve one bit of my time or frustration.  He is not worth it.  Not one bit.  So, after I click the "publish" button on this blog post, I will think of him no more.  I will not get upset by him or his words and I will continue to promote a healthy body image to my athletes, and spread the wonderful words of Team True Beauty in the same ways I always have.  People like this do not deserve the attention they get, so though I have given him his 15 seconds of fame on my blog, I hope he can understand that there is such a thing as "bad press."- As a matter of fact, I think he's earned himself quite a bit of it.

So, here's to sharing a positive message of self-worth and self-respect with our girls... help them to believe they are beautiful, and to OWN their own skin... because that, my friends, is what MY blog is all about.

Love True-

Allison