anorexic at the gym?

[Anonymous]

This morning, there was a woman at my gym who was positively anorexic. Not thin, not skinny, not lean, but she was absolutely skeletal - completely just skin and bones. It was frightening and heartbreaking to see.

I felt so sad for her, and angry that a gym would let a woman with such an obvious disorder join. There were plenty of gym employees and trainers - going about their thing. On the one hand, this woman has to know she has a deadly, ticking time-bomb problem. On the other hand, should someone say something? Is it futile?

[Anonymous]

How can a gym refuse to let her join?

[Anonymous]

Should McDonalds not serve a Big Mac to the fat guy next in line?

No one should say anything unless she asks. Hopefully she has friends, family, therapists working with her if it is a problem.

[Anonymous]

I also see very skeletal women at the gym and it makes me uncomfortable, because I think I am witnessing self harm, but it's not my place to make assumptions about another person's health.

[Anonymous]

There's a girl like this at every gym. What's the gym supposed to do?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There's a girl like this at every gym. What's the gym supposed to do?

this

[Anonymous]

What are they supposed to say?

[Anonymous]

Not everyone thinks it's a MYOB situation. We do in essence have a responsibility to our fellow human beings:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/03/25/stranger-intervention-saves-anorexic-woman/6885345/

[Anonymous]

anorexic at a gym, alcoholic at a bar, compulsive gambler at a casino- are you really shocked by any of these?

[Anonymous]

anorexic at a gym, alcoholic at a bar, compulsive gambler at a casino- are you really shocked by any of these?

^^ Busybody on DCUM

There, fixed that for you

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not everyone thinks it's a MYOB situation. We do in essence have a responsibility to our fellow human beings:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/03/25/stranger-intervention-saves-anorexic-woman/6885345/

So you think the OP should approach this woman and say she is concerned about her health?

If so, then go ahead and tell OP that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:anorexic at a gym, alcoholic at a bar, compulsive gambler at a casino- are you really shocked by any of these?

This. Every population has extremes and while most people at the gym have normal lives and don't fall into obsessive patterns there will be outliers. Ive worked in gyms throughout my teens and 20s and there is always one or two women that are extremely ill and there is usually 5-10 men who have serious steroid problems. The steroid addicts are more of a problem because they would occasionally get raged and violent. The anorexics you can't do too much about, although I worked at one gym who did eventually kick a woman out because we had to call EMS for her several times due to fainting.

[Anonymous]

Like PP, I also worked in gym when I was younger. We had a few members we kept an eye on because of suspected health issues or steroid abuse. But until something actually happens (much like someone getting too drunk at the bar) you can't do anything. In my time there, there were a few members who lost their membership for fighting over equipment and abuse of equipment. There were also two young girls who had their memberships frozen pending a doctor's note saying they were cleared to work out. Similar to PP's story, EMS had been called a handful of times due to fainting or other erratic behavior.

[Anonymous]

OP here, I get it - there is someone on the extreme in many areas of life. It just seems so especially tragic. The woman who had the "gym intervention" is very close to what this particular woman looked like - only the woman I saw today had a much more sunken-in face. There is no denying that she has to be on the verge of death. I have never seen someone this emaciated in person, it was just shocking to see. I do feel like the gym should bear some responsibility in not enabling someone's life-threatening problem. I guess it seems different to me than an obese person getting fast food, because while people make the wrong choices, they still have to eat - everyone has to eat to live, and it's not like drug addiction where you stop taking a substance.

[Anonymous]

The why don't YOU approach her OP? This is one of those 'I want someone else to do it, but no one else thinks it's a problem' scenarios. If you think it's a problem worthy of intervention, then go ahead.