I was thinking about my all too short foray into the world of modeling. I was thinking about how I almost got caught up in “It.” In what you ask? In the lifestyle that led to the destruction of many young lives. Women who were granted supreme access that bestowed upon them the ability of accomplishing great things.
Oh not great things merely because they were pretty, hell I’m pretty.
These women possessed something intangible in their beauty which belied the tragedy that would befall them.
Each one of these models died tragically and unnecessarily, whether they succumbed to self-destructive behavior or were victimized by circumstances
beyond their control, like model: Mariana Brindi whose striking beauty made her a Miss World finalist and a top model that died from septic shock [blood poisoning] that began as a simple urinary tract infection.
Brindi was poised to accomplish great things in the context of philanthropy and humanitarian efforts, achieved through the promise of wealth and fame that her beauty afforded her.
One of the saddest things about these lost lives is how many of them died from self inflicted traumas such as heart failure that was the result of Anorexia Nervosa, a disease they developed and succumbed to while trying to maintain the extreme weight loss required by modeling agencies and was another reason I was never became a top model.
I like food. In fact I love it. I was not about to purge that slice of
pepperoni pizza I had consumed.
However many models did exactly that and the strain on their hearts proved to be too much.
How atrocious for modeling agencies to have exploited these young women with such pressure to be skinny that Luisel Ramos went from a healthy body image [right]:
To a tragedy seen in the photo below that was so sensational the modeling industry began to force models to carry certificates proving they are healthy as part of a crackdown on size zero women on the catwalk.
Ramos died of heart failure caused by anorexia nervosa
while participating in a fashion show during Fashion Week in Montevideo, Uruguay.
She felt ill after walking the runway and subsequently fainted on her way back to the dressing room. She died at the age of 22. Ramos's father told police that she had gone "several days" without eating.
The photo reflects how dangerously thin Ramos had become. It’s appalling how humans feign being clueless and pretend to be stupid when it concerns the well being of other humans, demanding models prove they are healthy as opposed to not insisting that women be a size zero.
Ramos wasn’t the only model to so conspicuously succumb to the disease.
shoot, the model was warned she was too fat. Two years later, and two stone lighter, she died from complications arising from anorexia. Tom Phillips reports from Sao Paulo on the tragic waste of a woman whose childhood dreams of being a cover girl came true - but for all the wrong reasons.
I like fashions by Chico's but I don’t like the fact that they don’t have real women’s sizes, which is why I adore fashions by Eileen Fisher.
After Gia died I thought that I had become immune to the Vampiric nature of the Beauty industry. I thought that I would no longer be shocked by the extremes that modeling agencies would go to. The enormous influence it held over women who were unable to cope with the new reality they found themselves in.
Women like: Kuljeet Randhawa [1 January 1976 – 8
February 2006] who began modeling as a student, and working for major designers, who despite earning her Honors in Psychology from Delhi University, hanged herself at her apartment in Juhu, a suburb of Mumbai. In a suicide note, Kuljeet stated that she was ending her life as she was unable to cope with life's pressures.
Gia Carangi was most likely BiPolar [As evidenced by her well documented
mood swings] and self -medicated with Heroin eventually succumbing to AIDS.
Other models suffered depression and committed suicide. While others literally starved themselves to death and then there were the models that expired due to no fault of their own: Car accident, Fire, Murder. It's all a great loss.
I’m not rich, you won’t see my face on any old pages fashion periodicals or on the cover of Cosmopolitan Magazine or Vogue, I guess that’s the trade off. Someone once told me that either the universe can gift us with beauty or brains or luck, but rarely all three combined. Gratefully I am still alive, I must have received luck and brains.
Oh not great things merely because they were pretty, hell I’m pretty.
These women possessed something intangible in their beauty which belied the tragedy that would befall them.
Each one of these models died tragically and unnecessarily, whether they succumbed to self-destructive behavior or were victimized by circumstances
beyond their control, like model: Mariana Brindi whose striking beauty made her a Miss World finalist and a top model that died from septic shock [blood poisoning] that began as a simple urinary tract infection.Brindi was poised to accomplish great things in the context of philanthropy and humanitarian efforts, achieved through the promise of wealth and fame that her beauty afforded her.
One of the saddest things about these lost lives is how many of them died from self inflicted traumas such as heart failure that was the result of Anorexia Nervosa, a disease they developed and succumbed to while trying to maintain the extreme weight loss required by modeling agencies and was another reason I was never became a top model.
I like food. In fact I love it. I was not about to purge that slice of
pepperoni pizza I had consumed. However many models did exactly that and the strain on their hearts proved to be too much.
How atrocious for modeling agencies to have exploited these young women with such pressure to be skinny that Luisel Ramos went from a healthy body image [right]:
To a tragedy seen in the photo below that was so sensational the modeling industry began to force models to carry certificates proving they are healthy as part of a crackdown on size zero women on the catwalk.
'Everyone knew she was ill. The other girls, the model agencies ... don't believe it when they say they didn't'
Luisel Ramos before her death in 2006
Ramos died of heart failure caused by anorexia nervosawhile participating in a fashion show during Fashion Week in Montevideo, Uruguay.
She felt ill after walking the runway and subsequently fainted on her way back to the dressing room. She died at the age of 22. Ramos's father told police that she had gone "several days" without eating.
The photo reflects how dangerously thin Ramos had become. It’s appalling how humans feign being clueless and pretend to be stupid when it concerns the well being of other humans, demanding models prove they are healthy as opposed to not insisting that women be a size zero.
Ramos wasn’t the only model to so conspicuously succumb to the disease.
The obsession called ‘Size Zero'
When Ana Carolina Reston arrived for her first foreign fashionshoot, the model was warned she was too fat. Two years later, and two stone lighter, she died from complications arising from anorexia. Tom Phillips reports from Sao Paulo on the tragic waste of a woman whose childhood dreams of being a cover girl came true - but for all the wrong reasons.
Eileen Fisher designs clothes for "Real Sized" women. I am not going to use the term plus-size as that can be misleading. Women are constantly affected by hormonal
changes, and water weight. One day we can feel larger than the previous
day. So I opt for clothes that allow such changes. Real women with
real sizes.
Hope For Today's Woman:
After Gia died I thought that I had become immune to the Vampiric nature of the Beauty industry. I thought that I would no longer be shocked by the extremes that modeling agencies would go to. The enormous influence it held over women who were unable to cope with the new reality they found themselves in.
Women like: Kuljeet Randhawa [1 January 1976 – 8
February 2006] who began modeling as a student, and working for major designers, who despite earning her Honors in Psychology from Delhi University, hanged herself at her apartment in Juhu, a suburb of Mumbai. In a suicide note, Kuljeet stated that she was ending her life as she was unable to cope with life's pressures.The Last Taboo
Mental Illness is the last of the taboo subjects in modeling, for the fashion industry to admit that some of its models are adversely affected by the demands set upon them would mean that the power brokers are aware that they hold expectations that are impossible to attain.
Gia Carangi was most likely BiPolar [As evidenced by her well documented mood swings] and self -medicated with Heroin eventually succumbing to AIDS.
Other models suffered depression and committed suicide. While others literally starved themselves to death and then there were the models that expired due to no fault of their own: Car accident, Fire, Murder. It's all a great loss.
I’m not rich, you won’t see my face on any old pages fashion periodicals or on the cover of Cosmopolitan Magazine or Vogue, I guess that’s the trade off. Someone once told me that either the universe can gift us with beauty or brains or luck, but rarely all three combined. Gratefully I am still alive, I must have received luck and brains.