Does PRO ANA mean practicing anorexia?

Answer

It can, yes -- but this is not the sole interpretation. ProAna has many different meanings for different people. ProAna websites vary in their position on the ProAna Movement and in particular beliefs/interpretations therein, as do their members. Most sites are intended as places for people who already have an eating disorder and are seeking support. For many, sites like these are their only source of support whatsoever. Anorexia is experienced as intensely private and personal, and often cause sufferers deep shame. This causes most to endure the rigors of the illness in silence and to take measures to hide their condition until their behaviors and/or wasting physique "out" them to friends and family. The Internet affords anorexics the benefit of human connection for two reasons: 1) It affords them a medium in which they have relative anonymity and thus feel safe enough to divulge these feelings; to connect and share with others who also suffer; and 2) it affords them a medium to locate those who endure similarly and thus not suffer alone.

Some sites affirm that anorexia is a lifestyle and not a disease, and this has become the hallmark point of contention on those opposing the ProAna Movement. The truth is that even most of the sites which proclaim this statement recognize that anorexia nervosa is a genuine illness. In this case, claiming it as a lifestyle and a choice can be a means of empowerment and a potent rejection of being victims of an insidious disease. There are those that practice "volitional anorexia," but such individuals typically have underlying eating disordered symptoms and tendencies to begin with, or do not adhere long to the often harsh, ascetic conditions demanded of such a life choice. ProAna advocates generally reject strongly the notion that such sites "recruit" people to become sick; most have recovery information on-site, and most encourage those in danger to seek medical assistance.