The case in summary: • Ida Myrsve developed anorexia at the age of 13, and social media such as Instagram and TikTok became a driving force for her illness.• She believes that various secret topics are well known to many with eating disorders and contribute to maintaining the illness.• Myrsve has written an article in which she warns against young people who dance on TikTok while showing off their thin bodies.• Pernille Benestad, who works with the treatment of young people with eating disorders, believes that TikTok is the worst platform when it comes to promoting anorexia.• More experts question whether the use of TikTok is related to the fact that more people developed eating disorders during the pandemic.• Myrsve has now recovered and is working to create low-threshold meeting places for those with anorexia. The summary is made by an AI service from OpenAi. The content is quality assured by news’s journalists before publication. – Instagram became “an additional engine” for my anorexia. I knew I would get worse when I went in there, but it became an addiction, says Ida Myrsve. When the Stavern girl was 13, she started posting pictures of herself on social media. Cheers and other people’s pictures of thin bodies kept the disease alive. But. This is not an article that will only reveal a secret anorexia world with glaring pictures and sad stories. The article will provide solutions for how to get out of the disease and find hope along the way. Ida Myrsve is happy to study to become a nurse. She has many years behind her with eating disorders, and wants to give advice so that others do not become as ill as she was. Photo: Theodor Aasland Valen / news TikTok’s guide to anorexia Myrsve has had her dose of thin bodies, including her own. – I don’t want to show pictures of myself from when I was very thin, because I don’t want to inspire others to get sick as well, she says. They find each other by using different subject tags. Need someone to talk to? Emergency help: 113 Mental Health: 116 123 The Church’s SOS: 22 40 00 40 The emergency telephone for children and young people: 116 111 Source: Helsenorge In August, news published the chronicle “Make TikTok fun again” that Myrsve wrote. There she tells about young people who share food they are afraid of, stories about forced admissions to hospital and pictures with venous catheters on their hands. – I received messages in my inbox from children who wanted tips on what I ate when I was at my worst, says Myrsve. Several profiles have hundreds of thousands of followers on Tik Tok. Several critics want various very thin profiles away from social media, because they believe that they promote anorexia. One of the most popular topics on TikTok is when the person is going to eat food that they fear. Sometimes profiles on TikTok let followers decide what to eat, with a special topic tag. This woman is broadcasting live from the hospital, on her TikTok page. Then question rounds and various challenges are often organised. Many people show off what they eat during a day, or what they don’t eat during a day. news has been in contact with the biggest TikTok profiles that you see in the photo gallery, and asked for a comment on why they share such content. No one has responded to the inquiry. The relationship with food, body and weight Anorexia is characterized by an intense fear of gaining weight. Many people believe they are overweight, even when they are underweight. The affected person has a compulsive relationship with food and exercise in order to achieve a lower weight. The characteristic features of anorexia Low body weight Self-induced weight loss Disturbed body image Hormonal disturbances Delayed puberty – if the symptoms start before puberty Women are hit hardest Anorexia is more common among women than among men. Many believe that the number of blacks is high for both sexes. Over 90 per cent of the patients are young women in their teens or early 20s. Figures from NHI show that anorexia rarely occurs before the age of 7-8 and is most frequent in the late teens. Pernille Benestad from Kristiansand was hospitalized with anorexia when she was a teenager. Today, she works as a therapist for young people with eating disorders at Sørlandet Hospital. She believes that TikTok is the worst. – It should not be allowed to post yes-and-no food, or videos of someone being fed through a feeding tube, she says. Pernille Benestad treats young people with eating disorders, and herself had anorexia growing up. She believes that TikTok makes those with eating disorders sicker. Photo: Vetle Hjortland / news Anorexia will be admired TikTok was launched in Norway in 2018. Two years later, Norway was shut down due to the pandemic. news has been in contact with the largest treatment centers for eating disorders. Many are questioning whether the use of TikTok is related to the fact that more people developed eating disorders during the pandemic. Reference is made to this survey from FHI. – Many young people romanticize their anorexia on TikTok. Whether this in itself can lead to an eating disorder must be looked at from a slightly larger perspective, says Monica Klungland Torstveit, professor of sports science at UIA. Monica Klungland Torstveit, professor of sports science at UIA. She believes that social media is helping to increase anorexia in those who struggle with food, and are looking for motivation. Photo: Elisabeth Sandve / news news has spoken to several girls and boys who are or have been ill. They say that it is about being sickest for those who have anorexia. Many find that they have to share more and more of their illness in order to be part of the “suffering and secret” community. – The comment field recruits to a secret community of sick people. If you flirt with an eating disorder, it can help you take the step into the disease, says therapist Ingunn Dahl at the Eating Disorder Poliklinikken in Tønsberg. TikTok disagrees that the platform influences their users to develop eating disorders. They write this in an email to news: – As news and the experts have recognised, there is no research that shows that our platform leads to an increase in eating disorders. And it is therefore not correct to draw that conclusion, says Parisa Khosravi, Head of Communications, TikTok Nordics. These are TikTok’s guidelines, according to the company itself: We do not allow showing, promoting or asking for advice to achieve disordered eating habits, or other dangerous weight loss methods. We do not allow showing or describing extremely low-calorie food intake, or diets associated with eating disorders. We do not allow displaying or promoting unhealthy body measurements or “body-checking” trends, such as comparing the size of body parts to various household items. Read more about TikTok’s guidelines here. Wants a network Most of Ida Myrsve’s childhood and youth disappeared into anorexia. Now her cause is to create low-threshold meeting places for those with anorexia. – Alcoholics have their AA meetings where they can meet and support each other. We need our own places like this that can help those who want to get out of anorexia, she says. Through her nursing education, Ida Myrsve has made many new friends. Healthy friends and a new focus in everyday life are two pieces of advice she gives to get rid of an eating disorder. Photo: Theodor Aasland Valen / news She recommends everyone who struggles with food to log off TikTok and delete Instagram accounts with provocative content. – Also be aware of who you surround yourself with. Choose healthy friends and try to start education or work to have something else to focus on than the anorexia. – My everyday life has been quite different since I started my nursing studies. It was a turning point for me. Ida Myrsve takes a selfie while she is at work as a nurse at the hospital in Vestfold. She believes that her studies are the reason she quit and starved herself. Photo: PRIVATE Do you have any tips related to this case? Feel free to send me an email!
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Anorexics dance and cheer each other sicker on TikTok and social media – news Sørlandet – Local news, TV and radio
