photo courtesy of http://www.kirtsenhaglund.org/

On February 17th, Kirsten Haglund, former Miss America and ongoing advocate for  prevention and education around eating disorders, joined The Center for Eating Disorders in an on-line chat.  Kirsten shared information about her new foundation and her own path towards recovery from anorexia.  You can read the transcript of the evening’s chat below!

webmaster: Hello everyone!! Welcome to The Center for Eating Disorders’ second on-line chat. This evening we are very excited to have Kirsten Haglund with us. Kirsten has just recently handed over her Miss America crown to the new winner but has a new foundation and I am sure can tell us much about that this evening. Kirsten, can you begin by letting us know a little about what you are doing now?

Kirsten: Sure! Having finished my year as Miss America I have started my own foundation, the Kirsten Haglund Foundation, to raise money to provide scholarships for individuals seeking treatment for Eating Disorders… very excited about that.  I’m also traveling, speaking and being an active part of events related to Eating Disorders Awareness Week, here at the end of February… I feel lucky to have the ability to peek interest as ‘Miss America?’…. and then go on to explain what is important to me, and how people can become aware and get involved.

webmaster: I think it is fantastic that you have started a foundation. It is exactly the thing I always say I would like to do if I ever win the lottery, but here you have the chance to do it. It is exciting! What goes in to doing something like that?

Kirsten: Oh it is a lot of work! You need a lot of people to help you, that is the first step! You need to assemble a Board of Directors, file with your state as a legal 501 (c) 3 non-profit organization, you obviously need to establish a mission and vision for the foundation, and assign duties to committee/board members. And of course, there is fundraising. In order to provide financial assistance in whatever way, you rely on donations and fundraising as much as possible, so that you can GIVE when you receive funds. Marketing the ‘brand’ is also essential as well, so as to attract attention and therefore, response. 

Chatter1: How will your foundation decide which individuals to provide financial help for? There are so many that need the treatment and I think it’s wonderful that you are taking this step to help in that area! Just wondering how it will all work??

Kirsten: While trust me, I would love to give money to anyone and everyone seeking treatment… In my talking with many other professionals in both the Eating Disorders community and the non-profit sector, providing scholarships based upon need, willingness to change, and other factors, seems to yield the most beneficial results for the individuals. Right now, we are going to post applications for scholarship online, and have a committee n the board review applications, with the help of professionals from the place where treatment is sought so that assistance is provided through the institution.

Chatter1: that definitely makes sense!

Chatter2: Would your foundation be oriented towards any particular type of eating disorder or across the spectrum of eating disorders?

Kirsten: Anyone seeking professional treatment for recovery from an eating disorder can apply for scholarship. And no, scholarships will not be awarded for one specific eating disorder. That factor would not be a basis of judgement.

Chatter1: That sounds great – I am excited for the people who that will help!

Kirsten: Yes I am so excited too! As soon as I come home to Michigan from LA here this week, I’ll be working with our web designer to publish the rest of our site and get the applications up.

Chatter2: When you have your website and applications up and running, do you think CED  (The Center for Eating Disorders) could post a link both for people in recovery who might want to apply but also for those who might want to donate? 

Kirsten: That would be WONDERFUL, absolutely.

Chatter3: What type of events are you attending next week for National Eating Disorder Awareness Week? Where will you be speaking?

Kirsten: I will be speaking at our state (Michigan) capital as a part of the Worldwide Charter for Action on Eating Disorders, with the Academy of Eating Disorders, as well as speaking for Health Programs at James Madison University in Virginia, and American University in DC coming up here in the next month! Busy busy.  This Friday, the 20th, I’ll be at James Madison University in Virginia, then I’m going to be in Lansing, MI at the state capital for the charter launch on Monday, the 23rd. Then on the 26th I’ll be speaking at American University in Washington, D.C., and the 28th, I’ll be speaking at a fundraiser for treatment costs at a private home in Connecticut! All good things!

Chatter4: What was your take on the fuss about Jessica Simpson and her supposed weight gain a couple of weeks ago?

Kirsten: BOOOO!!!! Wasn’t that ridiculous!? It is, once again, the media getting bored and using sensationalism to shock people and sell magazines. We ALL know that a silly, 2-dimensional image is never an accurate representation of one’s weight or overall health. And furthermore, would you see a male attacked like that for weight gain? No. Also, she is a SINGER. That is what she does for her profession. Did they make a comment about her voice, or her talent? Or her career, or her intelligence(although they do get on her about that sometimes too)? No. Once again they validated a woman based solely on her appearance and weight. Its horrible what they did to her and I pray Jessica stays strong. The media can be really stupid, but we don’t have to believe what they tell us to.

Chatter1: I agree! How do we get everyone else to realize that though?

Kirsten: Well, having had a job that deals with media EVERY single day… you realize that yellow journalism and that sensationalism has ALWAYS sold. Whether or not the person typing that article believes a word of what message they’re sending, they’re going to type it anyway. Yes, that’s harmful. Yes, its horrible. Is its going to change and are people all over the publishing world suddenly going to start listening to common sense and help guide people’s moral compass? Probably not. So what do we do? 1. DON’T read it. Don’t buy it. 2. Be vocal. Use the conversations that come up about these tabloids to reinforce to people how those negative messages impact us , and banned together with others to condemn those lies. Maybe that person will stop buying them too. Maybe they won’t. ut you planted the seed, and thats what WE have the power to do.

Chatter4: Thanks for answering my question. I agree 100% with what you said!

Chatter5: At what point in your life did you realize that you had a serious problem with eating?

Kirsten: I was about 14 when I realized I didn’t behave around food normally… but at that point, I wanted to. I wanted to be different, I wanted to diet, I wanted a disordered relationship with food, and I wanted people to notice. It wasn’t until I felt the physical and emotional consequences of starving one’s body that I realized I was sick, and not strong.

Chatter6: Kirsten, can you talk a little about the pressure you felt when you were competing in beauty pageants and how you overcame them? I can’t image how hard it would be, everyday pressures are bad enough

Kirsten: Pageants could have been triggering, absolutely. But ballet was the main factor in my developing anorexia, having danced 6 days a week since the age of 3, and being very set on doing anything I could to become a professional ballerina. In order to fully recover, I had to remove myself from that world and that body ideal (very boy like figure), and sacrifice that love, that dream. I decided to compete in the pageant after I was healthy, and only for the purpose of scholarship, NOT expecting to win! I did though… at 17, and just kind of went along with it. For me, the Miss America program wasn’t about a goofy pageant night, or crown, but about the microphone and the opportunities it provided to get a message across… which then when I won Miss Michigan at 18, and Miss America at 19… I felt very blessed to do. But all very unexpected. And the swimsuit competition wasn’t triggering for me, it actually helped me to remember to respect my body, not appear as a walking eating disorder, and to celebrate my femininity, rather than strive for the ballet ideal. It actually helped me.

Chatter7: What was the first step you took when deciding that you needed to get help?

Kirsten: I didn’t take the 1st step. Well, I may have subconsciously, in that I kept asking my mom when I’d look in the mirror, don’t I look great? Mom? Do I still look fat?… crying out for help. My mom took me to see our pediatrician, against my will, and boy, did I HATE her that day!!! But he recommended us to an eating disorders specialist at a hospital nearby. Upon meeting with her I was given the diagnosis of anorexia nervosa and set up with a psychologist and nutritionist (my treatment team) to get on a path toward recovery.

Chatter3: so now how do you maintain recovery when you have to fly all over the place with your schedule and don’t always have your family or treatment team nearby? How do you cope? 

Kirsten: Oh my year was NOT easy at all. But it was good to learn how to make the right choices when you have absolutely NO control over your food, or when you get it. You have to prepare. You have to think in advance. Its a challenge because you don’t want to have to think about food all the time, but you have to in a way, because you have to put your recovery first. I remain in close communication with my nutritionist who helps me with ideas about snack and options at hotels and airports… and she is also an amazing person to talk to. It was a challenge, but it also gave me so much freedom, because it wrested CONTROL out of my hands completely… which actually, can be nice. When you really have no choice, you have no choice but to go with the flow. And when you do that, and your life doesn’t suddenly explode… you realize… hey!? I can chill out more often!

Chatter1: and did you tell your friends and relatives about it right away?

Kirsten: My family were the ones that helped me realize I was sick, and my parents, both being nurses, were very understanding.  My friends suspected… but other than two friends who were simultaneously struggling with eating disorders, no I did not tell them right away. Actually, that’s why some of the greatest healing came with competing at Miss Oakland County… because I had to choose a platform. When friends, or anyone asked, I had to say, I chose to raise awareness of eating disorders… which is usually accompanied by the question, “Why?” To which I would answer, honestly. That step was HUGE but helped me to heal and be very open and candid about this issue.

webmaster: We have just enough time to eek out one more question or comment before we wrap up for the night…. anyone come on and not been able to get their question out yet?

Chatter3: thanks for being a positive role model – I hope your foundation has great success

Kirsten: Thank you so much! Please check back to the website http://www.kirstenhaglund.org/ for updates!

webmaster: Thank you so much Kirsten for taking the time out of your busy schedule to be with us this evening!

Kirsten: Oh you’re so welcome!! Thanks for having me.