Heartfelt Response to "Anna Rexia" Costume From Someone Who's Actually Lived the Nightmare

There are some gory and distasteful Halloween costumes out there, but this one of "Anna Rexia" is absolutely offensive.

Making a joke about this devastating eating disorder is completely insensitive, and two years ago, Jessi Davin, a 26-year-old woman from Florida, wrote a powerful response. Diagnosed with anorexia at age 19, she battled with it for four years. In her blog post, she posted photos of herself in the hospital with the caption, "Real sexy, huh? This is "Anna Rexia's" real monstrous face."

She also wrote, "Wanna dress up like an Anorexic? All it takes is:

• 4 years of hospitalization
• A nasogastric feeding-tube because you've starved yourself so much that your body doesn't recognize food as a good thing and tries to attack itself.
• Re-Feeding Syndrome, which can kill you.
• A father crying and pleading on his knees begging for you to get help
• A mother who cries every time she sees you because you look and SMELL like death.
• Almost every major organ in your body failing.
• And if you don't get help like I do, or even if you do, a coffin. Because I've lost more friends to this eating disorder then anything I've ever faced."

She wants people to know that she almost died from this mental illness, and it shouldn't be marketed as a sexy costume. Jessi concluded the post with, "Want to dress as "Anna Rexia"? Just go as a Vampire, or a Zombie. Because 1/3 of us are dead."

It's difficult to fully recover from anorexia, even with treatment, you can fall back into old habits. Jessi was recently married and is happily 27 weeks pregnant with a baby girl. Yay! Unfortunately, she's back in treatment and staying in the hospital due to her high-risk pregnancy, doing everything she can for her daughter's well-being.

@RingsideNews Severe morning sickness caused me to relapse into my anorexia. But I'm fighting hard for me & baby! http://pic.twitter.com/BvpCS0js0i
- Jessi Davin (@jessithebuckeye) July 20, 2015

Jessi told BuzzFeed, "If my post helps spread awareness for anorexia and other eating disorders and helps those who don't understand maybe comprehend just a little bit more, then I've accomplished what I set out to do."

In the Hospital, but Baby Scarlett and I are still all ready for the game! 27 weeks! GO BUCKS! #OhioState #GoBucks http://pic.twitter.com/saPA6rKc8T
- Jessi Davin (@jessithebuckeye) October 17, 2015

Share on Google Plus