**I’m just warning any of my readers that may have ED issues that some images in this post may be triggering. If you have the potential to be triggered by photos of very thin women, I suggest skipping this post.**
This is Stephanie Naumoska, an Australian Miss Universe contestant. This is what she looked like in the swimsuit competition:
People were (naturally) shocked by her stick thin appearance. Now, she is doing a publicity tour of sorts to deny rumors of an eating disorder by claiming that she is “naturally thin.” And maybe she *is* naturally thin. And maybe she *doesn’t* have an eating disorder. But looking at these pictures, it’s easy to understand why people were appalled at how thin she was. I am a naturally thin woman. I currently weigh 100 pounds at 5’5. But I have NEVER had bones that stick out like this. The bones in her hips and her chest are poking out of her skin. It really is frightening, and if she really can’t understand why people have had strong reactions to these images, then she may have some sort of distorted body image.
Stephanie is not a victim of “skinnyism” (as she calls it). Our culture is beginning to become more aware of the unnatural standard of beauty that pictures of rail thin women impose on the women and girls in this society. It is unhealthy and unrealistic. Thin may still be in, but rail thin most certainly is not. When even Glamour is running spreads with plus sized models and treating it normally, you know that heroin chic is not the hotness anymore. So seeing an image like the one above when we are not used to seeing such emaciated looking models any longer is jarring and shocking.
And while I think that this woman looks healthier and more beautiful than the beauty queen pictured above,
I’m aware of the fact that not everyone is born to be curvy and not everyone is born to be thin. And me criticizing the body of a thin person is just as bad as me criticizing the body of a fat person. However, the rail thin beauty queen looks scary and unhealthy to me. There is no subjective opinion on whether or not her bones are poking out. They are. And she can defend herself all she wants, but she has to realize that by putting herself on display in the public eye, she has opened herself up to criticism. And she has to realistically understand that she *does* appear unnaturally thin. These pictures look like the epitome of what you would see as “thinspiration” on pro-ana sites.
And for future reference, Stephanie, if you want people to judge you for your actions and lifestyle and not your appearance, you may want to rethink the beauty pageant business.
I'm Britni, a snarky bitch and generally awesome person. I write about sex, love, and bullshit. If sex-positivity, discussions about BDSM and kink, queer issues, and topics that are completely inappropriate by society's standards make you uncomfortable, then this blog is not for you.
Good Vibes 
14 Comments
Way awesome putting that warning up for ED sufferers. That was something that never would have crossed my mind before, but will forever be in my consciousness from now on.
There you go again, changin the world one person at a time.
I dunno how accurate this is anymore since I haven't seen a post about it in a long time, *but* your natural skinniness is probably helped along by the cocaine usage
I read the warning and I still don't understand what the issue would be for Erectile Dysfunction.
Oh, wait …
Also, this is just a really excellent post. Lovely writing, Britni. Punchy, engaging, relevant, and somehow manages to be both funny and serious at the same time.
Red: I've always been naturally skinny. When I weighed 115-120, it was the heaviest I had ever been and took three years and lots of beer in college to get there. I have a thyroid issue which caused me to lose a ton of weight. I don't do enough blow for it to have much of an effect on my weight.
Definitely can be to skinny.
The problem with these “plus size models” is they are still maligned by the fashion industry. Many designers refuse to make a plus sized line (meaning made to fit the average American) and are therefore making the average woman feel “not good enough” or rejected.
Even the model you pictured is only a size 10-12.
And yes there is such a thing as too skinny. People do not naturally have bones poking out everywhere. But overall, fat people endure much more prejudice then skinny people by society. In fact, even though they are both body issues, I would say they have little in common.
(Sorry, I got a little carried away. This is not directed to you personally. lol)
I've never really understood how seeing a thin person can trigger someone with an ED… I have an ED… doesn't do anything really.
Anyway, that "plus size" model is about my size.. and she's rockin' it. Nice to see.
Regarding the thin girl, I do feel bad for her, especially if she actually eats the 5-6 meals a day that she does. She shouldn't be getting publicly ridiculed, as that method isn't going to help her state of mind anyway. People lack such compassion when talking about other people's bodies that it's scary…
I don't understand the ED warning. Were you being facetious?
Another thing I don't understand is how she even made it to the Miss Universe Pageant? They have to win quite a few pageants to be the one who represents her country in Miss Universe. That's crazy.
When people see celebrities lose weight rapidly (ex: Lindsay Lohan & Nicole Richie) they always assume that person has an eating disorder. Maybe they do, but shame on the media for throwing it out there. The more they publicize eating disorders, the more girls look at these celebs and think, "I wanna be just like that!" But I digress.
I'm glad you think this woman looks unhealthy. I agree, she does. She looks just as unhealthy (in my opinion) as the over-weight women you posted about. The ones we should celebrate.
Thanks for settin me straight, Brit. My apologies.
No, the ED warning is not facetious. I have many friends with eating disorders that are in recovery or that still struggle to attempt recovery that have told me that seeing images like that trigger their ED. They look like the images that they used to look at as "thinspiration" and seeing those photos make them want to look like that again.
I have to agree with you she is way too thin. As an aussie i don't think she promotes us in a very good light. If you saw the other girls in the contest, they were slim but not bony. I prefer girls with a bit of a curve rather than an ironing board.
HAHAHAHAHAHA!!! I'm an idiot! I saw ED and thought Erectile Dysfunction. Having worked for a family practice office, ED was always short for erectile dysfunction. If they had an eating disorder, they used the appropriate term. (anorexic, bolemic, etc.) Now you can see my confusion? I was thinking, why would she give this warning to people with erectile dysfunction? Again, I'm an idiot.
Brilliant post, Britni! I totally agree that she looked disgusting – like a skeleton. Not sexy at all.
I've dated the super skinny and the 'plus sized' and never really judged their sexiness on how big they were – it was more to do with attitude and personality.
I wish more models looked like the one in the second photo. She's gorgeous. I like the lilac bikini, too!
I think that yes, she does look worryingly thin. But then, I have a friend who looks almost exactly like that, with her bones sticking out. She eats loads of carbs and sugars, doesn't do much but sit around on her computer all day, and she's put on weight since she graduated college, but her hips and ribs and elbows still do that. While I know that a good number of people who look like that are probably disordered, there are people who are that thin naturally, and she may well be one of them.