Victoria, age 22, has been battling anorexia nervosa since she was 11. After a thin frame and hair loss forced her into treatment, Victoria relapsed just two years later. Now she shares her experience with over 600,000 readers on her website: www.victoriasproana.com.

      Victoria, one of the 8-11 million sufferers of an eating disorder, is also one of the many using the Internet to form eating disorder or "E.D." connections. Though her website is one of the few of its kind to offer information on recovery, most of it is muted by her laundry list of tips for "ana" or anorexia success.

      Victoria's website, which claims, "being thin is more important than being healthy" and suggests "[doing] aerobics until you want to faint," is directed at those "not yet willing to recover."

      In personal pages and blogging communities, the Internet pro-eating disorder movement has surrounded itself with the stories and company of fellow sufferers. Such communities, like those hosted by www.livejournal.com, are spaces where "pro-ana" bloggers relate to others with 100 calorie daily meal plans, trading secrets about purging and tips for staying alert during a four-day fast. The sense of normality has led many to the false and dangerous classification of anorexia as a way of life.

      A site with the username: 0_perfection_0 proclaims, "We will be the thinnest" as its title line, followed by the graphic of a Barbie doll's waist clinched by measuring tape. Such sites act almost as vehicles of competition, posting "stats" including desired weight loss followed by desperate apologies for a current weight.

      "Just a recap on my stats," says Live Journal user kittywa.

      "Height: 5'3"

      cw (current weight): 108 (cries)

      hw (highest weight): 121

      lw (lowest weight): 97

      gw (goal weight): 99 (at this stage)

      xx Kitty."

      "The more they feel like we -- 'the others' -- are trying to shut them down, the more united they stand," said psychologist Alison Tarlow of Coconut Creek, Florida's Renfew Center, a treatment center for eating disorders.

      For many of the sites' viewers, "ana" becomes a person, teacher or leader, disciplining those who stray from starvation and becoming an ally in the process. Tokens like red "ana bracelets" allow anorexics to identify one another as well as remind themselves of their plight.

      According to a survey of teens diagnosed with eating disorders at Stanford University's Lucile Packard Children's Hospital, 40 percent of patients had visited websites promoting eating disorders. With website readership readily accessible, therapists are doing their best to hinder their triggering effects.

      Ultimately, the web's contribution to the anorexia movement has weakened the recognition of the disease's severity. In the wake of community interaction, the disorder's transition from a problem to a lifestyle is far too simple.

      Though the pro-eating disorder movement has spread across the web, recovery is still a possibility. Opposition to these dangerous sites is out there. In an interest search on www.livejournal.com for "E.D. recovery," 13 results are given for support on recovering. Some promote a daily approach to improvement, others, like ed_medfacts, provide useful information on the rarely discussed side effects of the disorders. Though these communities barely dent the 103 results that pop up from the keywords "pro-ed," they are a promising start. Other websites, including www.healthyplace.com and www.something-fishy.org, aid with group discussions and links to treatment centers.

      "I've lost control of 'being in control.' I don't want to live like this forever, and I won't for long if I keep it up," said Livejournal user thesillyhearton the community pstive_recovery. "I can't change people or certain situations, but I can change myself and my responses."