Interview: Melinda Tankard Reist on healthy relationships, masculinity and the Conviction Group Forums By Harry Easton Conviction Group was delighted to welcome writer and social commentator Melinda Tankard Reist to the Sydney North Young Men’s Health Forum in September. The Young Men’s Health Forum is an event run by Conviction Group which aims to encourage […]
Helping boys be their best selves Many of you are aware I am now presenting my ‘Navigating a Se*ed Up World’ to more young men around the country. Because of the demand – and because he is so good at engaging young people! – I now have Daniel Principe speaking alongside me more regularly. Sydney-based […]
‘A chocolate bar every now and then won’t kill me, but not eating a chocolate bar every now and then will strengthen my eating disorder, which in turn will kill me (and nearly did)’ Claire Mercer When I was around 12 years old I developed Anorexia Nervosa and became seriously ill in a very short […]
Have a body. Take it to the beach This is the original Protein World ad. And this is one of a number of re-faced images. You guessed it, I like the second one much better. Really enjoying seeing the creative ways women around the world are messing with the original ad. Also love the slogan […]
We must act personally and politically: MTR Laura McNally, Melinda Tankard Reist, Sarah McMahon Rick Kausman, Here’s some You Tube clips from the Endangered Bodies conference held in Sydney in August. I’m interviewed in the first, followed by a combination of speakers at the event, then Dr Rick Kausman, Susie Orbach and Sarah McMahon. Combination Dr Rick […]
An important article on the health impacts of alcohol In my talks in schools around the country, I am told distressing stories of alcohol-related harm. Violence, sexual assault, damage to physical and mental health. My friend and colleague Paul Dillon, a drug educator with 25 years experience and founder of Drug and Alcohol Research and […]
“Why are you crying mum?” “Because I’m reading Girlfriend”. An unexpected response, perhaps, from an (allegedly) grown woman. But a story in the latest issue did me in. ‘Real Life Stories’ – which I have always appreciated for giving space to the raw realities of so many girls lives – opens with a first person […]
When I speak in schools, I’m often asked for advice on how to help a friend with an eating disorder (and not just girls – a male student ask me in a school in regional NSW recently). So I was really pleased to see the piece ‘Help! My BFF is wasting away before my eyes: […]
Following my Sunday Herald Sun column critical of ‘The Biggest Loser’ last week , I heard from a number of women in recovery from eating disorders, who wrote about the negative impact the series had on them – including Melbourne woman Belinda Davis, 38, who was happy for me to share her story here. It […]
Tacky show is not worth the weight REALITY weight-loss show The Biggest Loser claims to be all about health – leading a new “social movement” against the “obesity crisis”. But many authorities – and those suffering from disordered eating – say it actually contributes to bad health. Parading and humiliating obese people, dangerously rapid weight […]
Sober reality of young lives ruined by drink EVERY weekend the group of 13 and 14-year-old girls got together and played a game. They’d stand in a circle and drink straight spirits. The girl who remained standing the longest, won. Some needed their stomachs pumped afterwards. The doctors who told me about treating girls like […]
Because children don’t already feel bad about themselves enough, there’s a new book just about to be released titled Maggie Goes On a Diet. I asked Collective Shout colleague, psychotherapist and managing director of BodyMatters Australasia Lydia Jade Turner, for her views. Written by self-proclaimed “obesity expert” Paul M. Kramer, Maggie Goes On a Diet […]
