0:00:02 > 0:00:04The teenage years - some of the toughest we face,
0:00:04 > 0:00:07with stress at school, at home and among our peers.
0:00:07 > 0:00:10I think there's a lot of pressure when you're a teenager,
0:00:10 > 0:00:12because you've got to choose your GCSEs.
0:00:12 > 0:00:14Then, if you want to go on to do A-levels,
0:00:14 > 0:00:16or if you want to go to college,
0:00:16 > 0:00:18then, if you want to go to university,
0:00:18 > 0:00:21there's so much you have to decide in two or three years.
0:00:21 > 0:00:24It's a time when we become aware of our body image -
0:00:24 > 0:00:26our looks, our hair, our shape,
0:00:26 > 0:00:30and if we're not happy with what we've got, problems can kick in.
0:00:30 > 0:00:33Anorexia has the highest mortality rate of any mental illness.
0:00:33 > 0:00:37And the number of teens hospitalised in Wales due to anorexia
0:00:37 > 0:00:39has almost doubled in five years.
0:00:41 > 0:00:45I didn't want to leave the house. I just thought everyone hated me.
0:00:45 > 0:00:49But now there is a new kid on the block - social media.
0:00:49 > 0:00:52This is the first generation that have grown up completely
0:00:52 > 0:00:56surrounded by and immersed by digital technology.
0:00:56 > 0:00:59More than three quarters of kids aged ten to 12
0:00:59 > 0:01:02- have social media accounts... - You get, like, addicted.
0:01:02 > 0:01:07As soon as you start looking, you're just flicking through it for hours.
0:01:07 > 0:01:10..bombarding our kids with supposedly perfect lives
0:01:10 > 0:01:11and perfect people.
0:01:11 > 0:01:15I follow Justin Bieber.
0:01:15 > 0:01:17But is social media friend or foe,
0:01:17 > 0:01:20and what is it doing to Welsh teenagers?
0:01:20 > 0:01:24You can get, like, lost in it sometimes.
0:01:24 > 0:01:26With child and adolescent mental health services
0:01:26 > 0:01:31bursting at the seams in Wales, what are our teens coping with
0:01:31 > 0:01:33and what can we do to help?
0:01:42 > 0:01:4524-year-old Abigail from Neath has survived one of the most
0:01:45 > 0:01:49destructive examples of body image disorders.
0:01:49 > 0:01:51MUSIC PLAYS
0:01:54 > 0:02:00I first developed signs of an eating disorder when I was nine years old.
0:02:00 > 0:02:05It initially came into my life as a companionship, as a friend,
0:02:05 > 0:02:07and tricked me, really,
0:02:07 > 0:02:10into believing that I could trust this voice inside my head.
0:02:10 > 0:02:13And at nine years old, I wasn't aware of an eating disorder.
0:02:13 > 0:02:16I didn't know what they entailed.
0:02:16 > 0:02:18It gradually wore me down,
0:02:18 > 0:02:21so it would tell me that I was worthless, that I wasn't deserving
0:02:21 > 0:02:26of happiness and, eventually, my mum took me to the doctor's.
0:02:26 > 0:02:29I explained all my symptoms and the doctor diagnosed me
0:02:29 > 0:02:32with anorexia nervosa and depression.
0:02:32 > 0:02:35But she said at the time that my BMI wasn't low enough for me
0:02:35 > 0:02:38to receive treatment, so she basically told me to come
0:02:38 > 0:02:40back when I had lost more weight, which, when you're
0:02:40 > 0:02:43in the grip of an eating disorder when you believe you
0:02:43 > 0:02:48need to be losing weight, that was the perfect thing for me to be told.
0:02:48 > 0:02:52Sent away from the doctor's at the age of 13, Abigail's weight
0:02:52 > 0:02:56continued to plummet, bringing her close to death.
0:02:56 > 0:02:58It was impossible because you feel isolated enough
0:02:58 > 0:03:02with an eating disorder when your friends don't understand that much,
0:03:02 > 0:03:05your family don't understand, so for the medical professionals
0:03:05 > 0:03:08to not understand it either, you just feel like there's no hope.
0:03:10 > 0:03:13It went on and on until the point where the doctor told me
0:03:13 > 0:03:15that I was at risk of having a heart attack
0:03:15 > 0:03:17and I was admitted to hospital straightaway.
0:03:17 > 0:03:19The thing is, with an eating disorder,
0:03:19 > 0:03:22your anorexia makes you believe that it'll stop
0:03:22 > 0:03:25once it's satisfied and you just need to get down to a certain
0:03:25 > 0:03:27weight and it will be satisfied.
0:03:27 > 0:03:30But what I didn't know is that you can't be satisfied with
0:03:30 > 0:03:33an eating disorder, because it won't stop until you die.
0:03:33 > 0:03:34So I would look in the mirror,
0:03:34 > 0:03:39I would see myself as a healthy, or if not overweight person,
0:03:39 > 0:03:41so I was thinking everyone must be wrong,
0:03:41 > 0:03:43they must be trying to trick me.
0:03:43 > 0:03:47In the grip of my eating disorder, I felt disgusting.
0:03:47 > 0:03:49I loathed myself.
0:03:49 > 0:03:51I felt worthless.
0:03:51 > 0:03:53I felt empty, void of any emotion, really,
0:03:53 > 0:03:55and I think that's why I turned to self harm,
0:03:55 > 0:03:58because I just needed to feel something physical.
0:04:01 > 0:04:07Self harm is intentionally injuring your own body, usually by cutting.
0:04:07 > 0:04:11According to the NSPCC, almost 20,000 young people called
0:04:11 > 0:04:16ChildLine about self harm last year. 1,600 were in Wales.
0:04:18 > 0:04:21We do see youngsters who experience great distress
0:04:21 > 0:04:25and, on occasion, have used self harm to try and manage that.
0:04:26 > 0:04:31Daune Green is an occupational therapist specialising in body image
0:04:31 > 0:04:32and all the issues it can cause.
0:04:35 > 0:04:38A lot of youngsters that we see will use mirrors to engage
0:04:38 > 0:04:40in what we call an unhelpful behaviour.
0:04:40 > 0:04:42So they will be looking in the mirror
0:04:42 > 0:04:44and then they will start body checking.
0:04:44 > 0:04:45Daune is part of CAMHS,
0:04:45 > 0:04:48the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services,
0:04:48 > 0:04:52where youngsters are treated when they have difficulties.
0:04:52 > 0:04:56I run a body image group mainly for children
0:04:56 > 0:05:00and adolescents with many different difficulties,
0:05:00 > 0:05:04whether they have a diagnosed eating disorder, or whether they have
0:05:04 > 0:05:09heightened anxiety, or low mood in regards to their body image issues.
0:05:09 > 0:05:12So we look at what they're used for...
0:05:13 > 0:05:19'These youngsters truly believe that it is their outer exterior
0:05:19 > 0:05:21'that make them who they are.'
0:05:21 > 0:05:25Maybe for young men, they want to be more muscular in their appearance.
0:05:25 > 0:05:31If they looked, I don't know, like particular international
0:05:31 > 0:05:37rugby players or footballers, that that would make them be more liked.
0:05:37 > 0:05:39And if teenage boys want to find images to compare
0:05:39 > 0:05:42themselves to, they don't have to look far.
0:05:42 > 0:05:47Muscly male models are as available online as dangerously thin girls.
0:05:51 > 0:05:55One of Daune's group members is 18-year-old Jordan from Oakdale,
0:05:55 > 0:05:59who was bullied at school and grew up feeling that he didn't fit in.
0:05:59 > 0:06:02I'd rather be on my own, because most of the time in school, no-one
0:06:02 > 0:06:06would let me join in or anything, so I'd just rather be on my own.
0:06:06 > 0:06:11If I was with people, they were all fake friends anyway, so...
0:06:11 > 0:06:14- I'd just prefer to be on my own. - It was really difficult.
0:06:16 > 0:06:19Jordan is a very loving, sensitive child
0:06:19 > 0:06:24and academically very able, but socially struggles.
0:06:24 > 0:06:28School was really hard for Jordan. Really hard.
0:06:28 > 0:06:32It wasn't like punching bullying or bullying like that, it was just...
0:06:32 > 0:06:35I don't know, just picking and picking all the time, but...
0:06:38 > 0:06:42He felt the bullying was because of how he looked
0:06:42 > 0:06:45and this sort of progressed over time and he got very down about it.
0:06:45 > 0:06:47He never went out through the door,
0:06:47 > 0:06:49he would always stay in and play on his computer.
0:06:49 > 0:06:52But even then, they'd get at him through the Xbox
0:06:52 > 0:06:55and have a go at him, or wouldn't let him play on their team.
0:06:55 > 0:06:58There was no escape from them, really.
0:06:58 > 0:07:01At the age of 18, Jordan finally managed to find that escape
0:07:01 > 0:07:04by going to the local gym.
0:07:04 > 0:07:07If I don't go to the gym I don't feel right.
0:07:07 > 0:07:10I've got to do every body part, I can't miss one body part.
0:07:12 > 0:07:14I used to feel quite small,
0:07:14 > 0:07:18but then with a gym, it makes you feel a lot better and you feel...
0:07:18 > 0:07:21not scared of anyone, or anything like that,
0:07:21 > 0:07:23you just overcome your fears and you just...
0:07:23 > 0:07:25Yeah.
0:07:25 > 0:07:28His physique changed drastically.
0:07:28 > 0:07:33He went from 8.5 stone to 13.5 stone in 18 months.
0:07:35 > 0:07:40But what started as self-help soon became a bigger problem.
0:07:40 > 0:07:43Working out until, well, to the extremes. Doing press-ups
0:07:43 > 0:07:47until I felt better in myself and it just wouldn't happen.
0:07:47 > 0:07:49I would never be happy, so...
0:07:49 > 0:07:52One, two in the morning, he would be exercising.
0:07:52 > 0:07:54You know, he felt that he looked awful
0:07:54 > 0:07:56and that he had to do this exercising.
0:07:58 > 0:08:01Jordan became obsessed with how he looked.
0:08:02 > 0:08:05Just looking in the mirror for ages and ages,
0:08:05 > 0:08:08just making sure everything was the same in all my body parts.
0:08:08 > 0:08:11I used to work out at night just to try and get them the same.
0:08:11 > 0:08:14I used to be really bad.
0:08:14 > 0:08:16College flagged up a few concerns
0:08:16 > 0:08:19and obviously he was seen then under CAMHS -
0:08:19 > 0:08:22Children and Adult Mental Health Services -
0:08:22 > 0:08:25and they said that he had body dysmorphia.
0:08:26 > 0:08:29Body dysmorphia gives sufferers a distorted view
0:08:29 > 0:08:32of what they see when they look in the mirror.
0:08:32 > 0:08:35They don't actually look at what they're looking at.
0:08:35 > 0:08:37They look at what they think they're looking at
0:08:37 > 0:08:41and that is a message that I can't, you know, stress enough -
0:08:41 > 0:08:44you have to look at what you're looking at.
0:08:44 > 0:08:50There is no rationalising that you look fine, you know,
0:08:50 > 0:08:52you are a lovely person.
0:08:52 > 0:08:56It's just rigid thinking and he cannot see that he looks fine.
0:08:56 > 0:08:59He cannot see that he doesn't need to eat every two hours,
0:08:59 > 0:09:02he doesn't need to exercise in the gym all the time, he doesn't
0:09:02 > 0:09:05need to measure his body parts and think that they don't match up.
0:09:05 > 0:09:07It's really difficult to get through to somebody
0:09:07 > 0:09:09in that mind-set.
0:09:09 > 0:09:10So for a mother, yeah,
0:09:10 > 0:09:14I found it really difficult that I couldn't fix it for him.
0:09:14 > 0:09:17There are lots and lots of young lads out there who need support
0:09:17 > 0:09:21who are just not coming through to our services. I think they're...
0:09:23 > 0:09:27I think a lot of the young lads are maybe too frightened
0:09:27 > 0:09:30to ask for help or believe that this is normal.
0:09:30 > 0:09:34It was hard. You know, he would come home and say to me,
0:09:34 > 0:09:36"Oh, I didn't like this," or, "This was really hard,"
0:09:36 > 0:09:40but they talked about their bodies and their problems and
0:09:40 > 0:09:44they had to sort of open up and it was really good for his self-esteem.
0:09:46 > 0:09:50I still find it hard, but I feel a lot better than I used to, so...
0:09:50 > 0:09:52So better, but...
0:09:54 > 0:09:56After eight weeks working with Daune,
0:09:56 > 0:09:59Jordan is now more in control of his body dysmorphia.
0:09:59 > 0:10:02I'm happy with my all body now, maybe except from...
0:10:02 > 0:10:06Well, some of my parts are different to others, but I just got used
0:10:06 > 0:10:10to it and I accepted that not everyone is going to be perfect.
0:10:10 > 0:10:13A lot of these youngsters that we see have that perfectionist streak.
0:10:13 > 0:10:14They're very high-achievers,
0:10:14 > 0:10:18which then exacerbates all those things because they want to
0:10:18 > 0:10:22be the perfect child or they want to look a specific way.
0:10:22 > 0:10:25They want to be perfect and, again, through the group,
0:10:25 > 0:10:27we talk about what's perfect.
0:10:27 > 0:10:29Can any of us be perfect?
0:10:29 > 0:10:32Jordan is holding down a job as a classroom assistant,
0:10:32 > 0:10:35helping kids with one-to-one support.
0:10:35 > 0:10:39He has turned his life around and made it a success -
0:10:39 > 0:10:43from his own despair to be able to help others going through similar,
0:10:43 > 0:10:45so I am very proud of him.
0:10:47 > 0:10:49Jordan has turned a corner,
0:10:49 > 0:10:52but many believe that the pressures on teenagers are increasing.
0:10:55 > 0:10:58I have worked in psychiatry for 20-odd years now
0:10:58 > 0:11:03and I really believe that the introduction to social media,
0:11:03 > 0:11:07the more, I guess, intelligent technology is getting,
0:11:07 > 0:11:12it's having an adverse effect on the youngsters that we're seeing.
0:11:12 > 0:11:15Daune is not alone in worrying that social media can exacerbate
0:11:15 > 0:11:18self-image problems, with such an emphasis on looking good.
0:11:21 > 0:11:23Dr Amy Slater is a psychologist
0:11:23 > 0:11:26based at the University of the West of England.
0:11:26 > 0:11:29She's undertaking a new study looking at social media's
0:11:29 > 0:11:32impact on teenagers.
0:11:32 > 0:11:35This is the first generation that have grown up completely
0:11:35 > 0:11:38surrounded by and immersed by digital technology.
0:11:38 > 0:11:41Unlike the rest of us, who have not been immersed by this,
0:11:41 > 0:11:44these young people, it's just been part of their daily life.
0:11:46 > 0:11:50Teens are spending between three and four hours a day online, which is
0:11:50 > 0:11:54why it's so important to understand the impact it's having on them.
0:11:54 > 0:11:56Our early studies are showing that, yeah,
0:11:56 > 0:12:00the more time young people spend engaged in this environment,
0:12:00 > 0:12:03they're having negative feelings about themselves
0:12:03 > 0:12:06and their bodies in particular.
0:12:06 > 0:12:07Hey, everyone.
0:12:07 > 0:12:11I'm going to show you how to capture the best version of yourself.
0:12:11 > 0:12:15This video is a guide on how to take the perfect selfie.
0:12:15 > 0:12:19Everybody is doing selfies, even, you know, the stars
0:12:19 > 0:12:24and a lot of these girls will take photographs of themselves
0:12:24 > 0:12:27and post them and, you know,
0:12:27 > 0:12:31if they don't get a like, then they will internalise that as being,
0:12:31 > 0:12:34"I'm not thin enough. I'm not pretty enough."
0:12:34 > 0:12:36You got up this morning, you probably went on your phones
0:12:36 > 0:12:38first thing and you were looking at Facebook
0:12:38 > 0:12:41and you've got all the advertising on Facebook.
0:12:41 > 0:12:42Then you may have gone on Twitter.
0:12:42 > 0:12:46One initiative in Wales attempting to intervene early
0:12:46 > 0:12:50and build self-esteem is The Go Girl Academy run by Wenda James-Rowe.
0:12:50 > 0:12:53Anybody go on Instagram this morning? Come on, put your hands up.
0:12:53 > 0:12:56Oh, my God, we've got some Instagram fans, then. Snapchat?
0:12:56 > 0:12:58Yes, hands go up again.
0:12:58 > 0:13:01I work with so many mums and daughters now
0:13:01 > 0:13:03and hear so many terrible stories
0:13:03 > 0:13:07of their daughters being affected by social media,
0:13:07 > 0:13:10by growing up in a very pressurised environment,
0:13:10 > 0:13:12having to feel that they have got to fit in.
0:13:12 > 0:13:16Instagram, you see all the models on there and you're like,
0:13:16 > 0:13:18"I wish I could be them," and, yeah,
0:13:18 > 0:13:20you just want to be them sometimes.
0:13:20 > 0:13:24If you fall out with friends or something, everyone knows about it.
0:13:24 > 0:13:27- Yeah, yeah. So it's out there, isn't it?- Yeah.
0:13:27 > 0:13:29So what I'd like you to do is, you've written
0:13:29 > 0:13:31a compliment about your friend. If you'd like to...
0:13:31 > 0:13:34Wenda is attempting to boost their confidence by sharing
0:13:34 > 0:13:37compliments with each other rather than internalising
0:13:37 > 0:13:40anxieties about themselves.
0:13:40 > 0:13:44I like Ellen because she laughs a lot. Her nail art is amazing.
0:13:44 > 0:13:48You realise that you're changing and you get confused about it
0:13:48 > 0:13:50and then other people are changing different to you.
0:13:50 > 0:13:54So you compare and then you think, "Well, I'm different.
0:13:54 > 0:13:57"Why am I different?" And then you get pressured.
0:13:57 > 0:14:02You are such a kind-hearted person and a beautiful girl inside and out.
0:14:02 > 0:14:04Oh, lovely!
0:14:04 > 0:14:08Obviously, being mixed-race or tall, I've always felt different
0:14:08 > 0:14:12and I didn't really like to speak about that or keep it...
0:14:12 > 0:14:16I'd keep it to myself, but now I've realised that the reason...
0:14:16 > 0:14:22Like, I have advantages and some people have advantages as well,
0:14:22 > 0:14:23but we're not all the same.
0:14:23 > 0:14:27- Yes, how does that make you feel? - Nice.- Lovely, big smile. Fab.
0:14:27 > 0:14:30I like your eyebrows.
0:14:30 > 0:14:34It makes you feel really warm and, like, happy.
0:14:34 > 0:14:36Oh, that is wonderful.
0:14:36 > 0:14:38Love it! Feel the love in the room, in there...
0:14:38 > 0:14:42Many feel that boosting self-esteem is essential these days...
0:14:42 > 0:14:44Try not to scrunch in your neck like this.
0:14:44 > 0:14:46..in such an image-obsessed culture,
0:14:46 > 0:14:49where girls are even told how to pose for a selfie.
0:14:49 > 0:14:50Try different angles.
0:14:50 > 0:14:54We know that poorer body image is related to a lot of negative
0:14:54 > 0:14:58health outcomes for young people, including disordered eating,
0:14:58 > 0:15:01lowered self-esteem, depression, erm,
0:15:01 > 0:15:04and a whole range of negative health consequences.
0:15:08 > 0:15:1224-year-old Keira from Brecon was hospitalised with anorexia
0:15:12 > 0:15:14in her late teens.
0:15:14 > 0:15:17Now recovered, she can see how social media can
0:15:17 > 0:15:19impact on young, impressionable minds.
0:15:22 > 0:15:25I think it can be very disfiguring
0:15:25 > 0:15:28and it can be, like, a bad influence,
0:15:28 > 0:15:30cos it's so easily accessible now,
0:15:30 > 0:15:33especially for young girls in particular.
0:15:33 > 0:15:35I know they say, like, there's supposed to be age limits,
0:15:35 > 0:15:37so you're not supposed to have Facebook
0:15:37 > 0:15:39until you're 12 or 13 or something like that,
0:15:39 > 0:15:43but you can't really stop younger children, like, accessing it.
0:15:43 > 0:15:46And they can do it without their parents knowing, up in their rooms,
0:15:46 > 0:15:47on their phones all the time,
0:15:47 > 0:15:50and they can just access anything they want,
0:15:50 > 0:15:52because there can be images of self-harm,
0:15:52 > 0:15:55of really, really thin people, which, you know,
0:15:55 > 0:15:58you shouldn't really be allowed to be on there.
0:15:58 > 0:16:02Even some of the images that have made it onto our magazine stands
0:16:02 > 0:16:04are shocking to Wenda's Go Girls...
0:16:04 > 0:16:09MUSIC: Disturbia by Rihanna
0:16:09 > 0:16:13..but it enables her to open up a discussion.
0:16:13 > 0:16:15How do those images make you feel?
0:16:15 > 0:16:18- Shocked, actually.- Shocked, yeah?
0:16:18 > 0:16:22- Some people were way too thin and it was just a bit disgusting.- Yeah.
0:16:22 > 0:16:25'We know that, from previous research,'
0:16:25 > 0:16:27where we've looked at traditional media,
0:16:27 > 0:16:30we know that, when we look at the images that are presented
0:16:30 > 0:16:34to us in the media, these are often unrealistic and unattainable.
0:16:36 > 0:16:38The reason this beauty is unattainable is
0:16:38 > 0:16:39because it's not real.
0:16:42 > 0:16:45This video, although an extreme example,
0:16:45 > 0:16:47shows how images can be manipulated...
0:17:18 > 0:17:22..and for some of Wenda's Go Girls, it's an eye-opener.
0:17:22 > 0:17:23Yeah. How does that make you feel, Lily?
0:17:23 > 0:17:25It makes me feel a little bit insecure.
0:17:25 > 0:17:27- Does it?- Yeah.
0:17:27 > 0:17:30It's basically making that girl feel more insecure now,
0:17:30 > 0:17:33- because they're changing the way she looks.- Yeah.
0:17:33 > 0:17:35What might be different in the social media environment is
0:17:35 > 0:17:39that it's also quite easy now to edit our photos that we're posting,
0:17:39 > 0:17:43whether this is just to put a simple filter on our Instagram images,
0:17:43 > 0:17:45or more serious editing,
0:17:45 > 0:17:48which has now become much more simple for the user to do.
0:17:48 > 0:17:50If we want to alter the shape of the nose...
0:17:50 > 0:17:52So the tools of the trade that were once in the hands
0:17:52 > 0:17:56of the professionals are now freely available to any of us
0:17:56 > 0:17:58via apps on our phones,
0:17:58 > 0:18:03allowing teenagers to become fixated on what they perceive as blemishes.
0:18:03 > 0:18:06Let's tuck in the patch of stray hair from the brow.
0:18:06 > 0:18:10Using Patch can help us fix the teeth and remove some blemishes.
0:18:10 > 0:18:13OK, we're done here.
0:18:13 > 0:18:14'We work with these youngsters
0:18:14 > 0:18:18'and they have this idealistic image of how they want to look.'
0:18:18 > 0:18:21I would love to have legs like Beyonce.
0:18:21 > 0:18:24No matter how much exercise, no matter what, you know,
0:18:24 > 0:18:27diet I do, it's never going to happen.
0:18:27 > 0:18:30And these kids, they look at me as if, like, "What are you on about?"
0:18:30 > 0:18:32But they're having these similar ideas
0:18:32 > 0:18:37about particular pop stars or actresses,
0:18:37 > 0:18:41and they truly believe that they will achieve that,
0:18:41 > 0:18:42and it's unrealistic.
0:18:46 > 0:18:48Lovely.
0:18:48 > 0:18:5218-year-old Megan from Bridgend is a veteran of the Go Girl Academy
0:18:52 > 0:18:57and an avid user of Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat and Facebook.
0:18:57 > 0:19:00- Oh, Megan. Gah!- Well...
0:19:00 > 0:19:04For her, social media is a source of positive inspiration.
0:19:04 > 0:19:09I follow a lot of inspiring people - Ashley Graham being one of them.
0:19:09 > 0:19:11She's one of the first plus-size models to
0:19:11 > 0:19:15grace Sports Illustrated in America.
0:19:15 > 0:19:18The confident Megan we see today has flourished.
0:19:18 > 0:19:21In the past, she was bullied at school for being overweight.
0:19:21 > 0:19:25At the time, I wasn't a very body-confident person.
0:19:27 > 0:19:30It did make me cry an awful lot, which is why my mum made me
0:19:30 > 0:19:33sort it out with my head over here.
0:19:33 > 0:19:37Megan has now embraced the world of pageantry.
0:19:37 > 0:19:39I think that girls need to realise -
0:19:39 > 0:19:41and the media needs to realise -
0:19:41 > 0:19:43that beauty comes in all shapes and sizes,
0:19:43 > 0:19:45and I think social media is the way that we're able
0:19:45 > 0:19:50to show the bigger media - the big, wide world - that it does.
0:19:50 > 0:19:52It can be really daunting for some girls -
0:19:52 > 0:19:54especially like me, who's a plus-size girl.
0:19:54 > 0:19:59It really daunted me, which is why I thought, "Go big or go home."
0:19:59 > 0:20:02Body confidence is not about achieving the perfect body,
0:20:02 > 0:20:04it's about embracing the one you have.
0:20:06 > 0:20:08Whilst social media works for some,
0:20:08 > 0:20:11dietician Sioned Quirke believes it's brought with it
0:20:11 > 0:20:12a brand-new condition.
0:20:14 > 0:20:17Ten years ago, I hadn't seen anybody with orthorexia.
0:20:17 > 0:20:20I hadn't heard of it. I didn't know what it was.
0:20:20 > 0:20:24Then, about five years ago, as social media really grew,
0:20:24 > 0:20:28I would see, maybe, one case every six months.
0:20:28 > 0:20:33At the moment, I think I could easily see about one case a month.
0:20:33 > 0:20:37Orthorexia is an unhealthy obsession with healthy eating.
0:20:37 > 0:20:40Salads, fruit, vegetables,
0:20:40 > 0:20:44trendy foods like quinoa and bean sprouts,
0:20:44 > 0:20:48and things that are really seen on social media,
0:20:48 > 0:20:52that a lot of people are blogging about, or celebrities are eating.
0:20:52 > 0:20:55Although the foods are healthy, some unqualified bloggers
0:20:55 > 0:20:59are giving incorrect advice about what the body needs to
0:20:59 > 0:21:03function properly, missing out on essential food groups.
0:21:03 > 0:21:06So, you start to restrict your way of thinking,
0:21:06 > 0:21:10that you only eat certain things and you won't touch other things,
0:21:10 > 0:21:14and that can manifest very quickly into an eating disorder,
0:21:14 > 0:21:16but the other thing that it can do is
0:21:16 > 0:21:19if you don't obtain that perfect lifestyle,
0:21:19 > 0:21:22you are constantly putting yourself down.
0:21:23 > 0:21:27They look at these posts of somebody doing Pilates on the beach,
0:21:27 > 0:21:30or eating salad for breakfast, lunch, dinner and supper,
0:21:30 > 0:21:33and it makes you feel inadequate.
0:21:35 > 0:21:37They're not going to post themselves having a bad day,
0:21:37 > 0:21:41on the sofa, with a cup of tea and a biscuit, in their joggers,
0:21:41 > 0:21:44so they're creating an illusion that isn't factually correct.
0:21:44 > 0:21:46MUSIC: Shake It Off by Taylor Swift
0:21:46 > 0:21:50A whole industry has sprung up around bloggers.
0:21:50 > 0:21:52Welsh teens are following the lives of bloggers
0:21:52 > 0:21:55and vloggers across the globe, as if they lived next door...
0:21:55 > 0:21:57- Hi, everyone. Welcome back. - ..waiting for the next post
0:21:57 > 0:22:00about their perfect lives,
0:22:00 > 0:22:04but are we beginning to see a backlash among the bloggers?
0:22:04 > 0:22:07Australian Essena O'Neill had over 600,000 followers
0:22:07 > 0:22:10and recently threw in the towel.
0:22:10 > 0:22:13Taking myself off social media is a wake-up call to
0:22:13 > 0:22:16anyone and everyone who follows me.
0:22:16 > 0:22:18I had the "dream life".
0:22:18 > 0:22:20I'm the girl that "had it all",
0:22:20 > 0:22:22and I want to tell you that "having it all"
0:22:22 > 0:22:25on social media means absolutely nothing to your real life.
0:22:25 > 0:22:29Everything I was doing was edited and contrived,
0:22:29 > 0:22:31and to get more views.
0:22:31 > 0:22:35When I was 12, I told myself I meant nothing -
0:22:35 > 0:22:38that I was worthy of nothing, because I wasn't popular online.
0:22:38 > 0:22:41I wasn't a model. I wasn't beautiful by society's standards.
0:22:41 > 0:22:45I have been googling models, the centimetres of their waists
0:22:45 > 0:22:49and their thighs, and then measuring my own to compare.
0:22:49 > 0:22:52At 12, I thought I was nothing,
0:22:52 > 0:22:57and then, here, at nearly 19, with all of these followers,
0:22:57 > 0:23:00I don't even know what is real and what is not,
0:23:00 > 0:23:04because I've let myself be defined by something that is so not real.
0:23:07 > 0:23:08Instagram, to me...
0:23:08 > 0:23:12I use Instagram, but it's very much...
0:23:12 > 0:23:14You post what you want people to see -
0:23:14 > 0:23:17you don't post all of real life, you know?
0:23:17 > 0:23:20I could live a life on Instagram where I look happy all the time.
0:23:20 > 0:23:23I'm, you know, I'm always having a great time,
0:23:23 > 0:23:24but that's not the reality of life.
0:23:24 > 0:23:27Everybody has a day where they don't feel great,
0:23:27 > 0:23:30but you don't particularly portray that on social media,
0:23:30 > 0:23:34so it's, again, an unattainable thing for you to just
0:23:34 > 0:23:38look at Instagram and see that as something that you can live,
0:23:38 > 0:23:41but, as a teenager, you look at that and maybe you don't understand
0:23:41 > 0:23:43that there is another side to people's lives.
0:23:43 > 0:23:47And it was seeing a new side to life that was to prove fundamental
0:23:47 > 0:23:49to Abigail's recovery.
0:23:49 > 0:23:52On this side, we have the other side of me,
0:23:52 > 0:23:55so this is all my football jerseys.
0:23:55 > 0:23:58This is the shirt that Wales qualified for the Euros in.
0:23:58 > 0:24:00So this one...
0:24:00 > 0:24:02'One evening, my uncle asked if he could take me'
0:24:02 > 0:24:05out of hospital to go and watch a football match and I initially
0:24:05 > 0:24:08saw that as just, you know, a bit of time away from hospital.
0:24:08 > 0:24:10I didn't think anything of it.
0:24:10 > 0:24:12And he took me to the football
0:24:12 > 0:24:15and that's where I found a different purpose in life, really.
0:24:15 > 0:24:17I found something that I could be passionate about,
0:24:17 > 0:24:21that I could be successful in, without having an eating disorder.
0:24:23 > 0:24:26'It was initially escapism from my eating disorder.
0:24:26 > 0:24:27'It was 90 minutes a week where
0:24:27 > 0:24:30I could just think about another thing...' Yeah. See you in a bit.
0:24:30 > 0:24:32'..as opposed to how many calories you're consuming
0:24:32 > 0:24:35'and things like that, so it was great to have that and then,
0:24:35 > 0:24:39'over time, it's become more and more my life, my passion...'
0:24:39 > 0:24:41Yeah. Thank you. Ta.
0:24:41 > 0:24:45- What are you having?- Cider. - CASH REGISTER CLICKS
0:24:45 > 0:24:47'We normally get to the ground about 2pm.
0:24:47 > 0:24:50'We'll get a pint and then it's match time.'
0:24:50 > 0:24:53The one furthest, actually, that's Lukasz Fabianski, isn't it?
0:24:53 > 0:24:56- Now kicking the ball.- You have better eyesight than I have.
0:24:56 > 0:24:58'All the build-up throughout the week and it comes to this.
0:24:58 > 0:25:00'You wake up on a Saturday and it is'
0:25:00 > 0:25:02the best 90 minutes of the week.
0:25:02 > 0:25:03- Cheers.- Cheers.
0:25:03 > 0:25:06Up the Swans.
0:25:06 > 0:25:09The catalyst to Abigail's recovery was sport -
0:25:09 > 0:25:12something real, away from the pressures of screens -
0:25:12 > 0:25:15and when Ruth Steggles' daughter developed anorexia,
0:25:15 > 0:25:18they also found solace in the outdoors.
0:25:18 > 0:25:20When you sit and talk to somebody,
0:25:20 > 0:25:22you can have the problem between you
0:25:22 > 0:25:24and it can become quite uncomfortable,
0:25:24 > 0:25:27and it can be quite aggressive, but actually when you're walking,
0:25:27 > 0:25:28you're facing a problem together,
0:25:28 > 0:25:29so it's not between you.
0:25:29 > 0:25:31It's not an obstacle between you but
0:25:31 > 0:25:33it's something you face together,
0:25:33 > 0:25:37and we think much more clearly and much more creatively
0:25:37 > 0:25:40when we're outside.
0:25:40 > 0:25:42Ruth's daughter is now doing well
0:25:42 > 0:25:44and they've written a book to share their experiences
0:25:44 > 0:25:47with other families.
0:25:47 > 0:25:49I think it's really tough for teenagers these days.
0:25:49 > 0:25:54Certainly, when I was at school, you'd be at school
0:25:54 > 0:25:57and whatever happened at school, you'd come home
0:25:57 > 0:26:01and it was left at school, whereas, now I see...
0:26:01 > 0:26:04I see the kids - they're constantly on their phones
0:26:04 > 0:26:07and if they're not on their phones in the group chat,
0:26:07 > 0:26:09then they're worried that they're going to be left out
0:26:09 > 0:26:12and that they're not in the same place, so there's this absolute
0:26:12 > 0:26:16constant bombardment to be public and be performing.
0:26:18 > 0:26:20And the other thing is, you know,
0:26:20 > 0:26:22it can be dark, it can be really tough,
0:26:22 > 0:26:25and everybody in the family can feel, actually, really miserable,
0:26:25 > 0:26:28so one of the things that we tried very much to do was to
0:26:28 > 0:26:30put some humour into our life.
0:26:30 > 0:26:33We watched a load of really rubbish movies
0:26:33 > 0:26:36because, actually, we needed to change our state.
0:26:36 > 0:26:37You know, you can't...
0:26:37 > 0:26:39You've got to put some normality into life.
0:26:39 > 0:26:42You need to carry on having fun as a family,
0:26:42 > 0:26:44cos that's where the hope is,
0:26:44 > 0:26:48so, yeah, rent some rubbish films and have a laugh.
0:26:50 > 0:26:53Body image issues can vary from a niggling worry about
0:26:53 > 0:26:58being too tall or too thin, to an all-consuming mental illness
0:26:58 > 0:27:00that can bring a family to its knees.
0:27:01 > 0:27:03I would love to stand there and say,
0:27:03 > 0:27:06"I have no issue with my body image at all."
0:27:06 > 0:27:09I'd be lying, because each and everyone of us,
0:27:09 > 0:27:10at some stage in our lives,
0:27:10 > 0:27:13or a particular day is better than another...
0:27:13 > 0:27:15We all experience that,
0:27:15 > 0:27:16and it's about, you know,
0:27:16 > 0:27:18putting your hand up and saying, "Yeah, I do."
0:27:18 > 0:27:20But it's how I deal with it
0:27:20 > 0:27:23and, unfortunately, these youngsters that we see
0:27:23 > 0:27:25struggle with dealing with that.
0:27:26 > 0:27:28Don't be afraid to talk about it
0:27:28 > 0:27:30and if you think someone's struggling,
0:27:30 > 0:27:32or you notice they're a bit funny with their eating,
0:27:32 > 0:27:35maybe losing a bit of weight, like, try and approach them
0:27:35 > 0:27:39and don't be afraid, because they may not realise themselves what is
0:27:39 > 0:27:43going on, that they're starting to develop signs of an eating disorder.
0:27:43 > 0:27:47Yeah, you still have to use some of the techniques when...
0:27:47 > 0:27:49when you get annoyed or anything like that.
0:27:49 > 0:27:52Just... Just remember to think positive instead of just
0:27:52 > 0:27:54going off on one or something.
0:27:55 > 0:27:59If I could speak to anyone who's suffering from an eating disorder,
0:27:59 > 0:28:02firstly, I'd tell them that they're worthy of life
0:28:02 > 0:28:04and they're worthy of happiness,
0:28:04 > 0:28:07and everything that their eating disorder is telling them,
0:28:07 > 0:28:09they may not believe it now, but it is a lie,
0:28:09 > 0:28:14and the only way that you're going to achieve any real happiness
0:28:14 > 0:28:17in your life is to get rid of your eating disorder,
0:28:17 > 0:28:19and it's going to be a hard battle,
0:28:19 > 0:28:21but it's one that's really worthwhile, and I know that,
0:28:21 > 0:28:23because I've been there, I've done it,
0:28:23 > 0:28:26and it's the best battle I've ever fought in my life.