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Post by Joelle on Jun 2, 2019 20:29:25 GMT -8
Atarah at the pottery wheel Kochava Naamah Menashe Batsheva Jesse Jesse & Atarah
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Post by starletinwaiting on Jun 2, 2019 21:17:38 GMT -8
"Awesome! Thank you," Emily says. "It's been great talking to you. I think I have enough here to write up a press release for ya. Anything else you guys think I should know?"
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Post by Joelle on Jun 3, 2019 5:39:58 GMT -8
(OOC: In things I've read, celebs do tend to reveal if they have fertility problems how the baby was conceived.)
"The baby is due the eighth of August." Jesse says. Tarah grins. "Oh! And we've been married for seven years, and trying for a baby for five."
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Post by starletinwaiting on Jun 3, 2019 6:04:17 GMT -8
"A summer baby, how sweet," Emily says as she makes note of the date. "And you conceived naturally, I'm assuming, since you didn't mention otherwise?"
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Post by Joelle on Jun 3, 2019 6:51:12 GMT -8
"Yes... though I did have my sperm count tested. It was low, and I found out a year or so after that- three years ago- that I had low zinc. I didn't realize that vitamin could be so important!" He chuckles.
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Post by starletinwaiting on Jun 3, 2019 7:06:43 GMT -8
"So your advice to fans experiencing the same thing then, is to be aware of how everything can affect fertility?" Emily asks, pen poised to take note of their responses.
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Post by Joelle on Jun 3, 2019 7:54:45 GMT -8
Jesse nods. "Stress- male and female- vitamin deficiencies, erectile dysfunction in guys, you name it. So even after trying for awhile, don't automatically assume you have to look into alternate methods, or that whatever is wrong can't be fixed. There are tests for both male and female to make sure, of course, but everything turned out normal other than the sperm count. Also, don't assume everything is going to work the same way for everyone, from supplements you may try to anything else." Tarah nods. "Complications such as diabetes or extra weight on both male and female can make it hard to conceive, regardless of if you have a problem like PCOS. I don't have diabetes, but it's common in my family, unfortunately. So the doctor advised me to lose a little weight- if you can believe that! To give you an idea of why I wasn't so sure losing weight would help..." She points to the picture sitting on top of the piano. "Our wedding. See? Am I really that unattractive?" She's half-joking and her eyes are sparkling.
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Post by starletinwaiting on Jun 3, 2019 9:30:32 GMT -8
"Girl, you are gorgeous!" Emily laughs reassuringly. "Were you actually overweight when the doctor suggested that? Because that seems like it could get really problematic really really fast."
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Post by Joelle on Jun 3, 2019 9:55:28 GMT -8
"According to their charts, maybe a little. But nowadays, medical information seems to change about every six months! So what do they know, anyway?" Tarah grins. "But you're right- on the other side of things, being too thin can mean you don't conceive, either."
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Post by starletinwaiting on Jun 3, 2019 10:07:03 GMT -8
"In my books, 'a little overweight' shouldn't be cause for a doctor to suggest weight loss. I'm sorry, but as long as you're healthy, it shouldn't matter. Am I the only one who thinks that?" Emily asks.
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Post by Joelle on Jun 3, 2019 12:23:42 GMT -8
"I agree. I've been reading, though, that a lot of those charts, body mass index for example, were created with men in mind. And maybe, on some level, some doctors buy into the 'thin is beautiful' thing we have going on as a culture. Who knows?" Tarah shrugs. "He may have been thinking of my family history, though, and that's the part I can't wish away."
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Post by starletinwaiting on Jun 3, 2019 12:35:22 GMT -8
"All this stuff is so complicated, huh?" Emily says with a sigh. "Body image and BMI and cultural beauty standards... There's a lot that goes into it. And different people see it differently. I'm glad that the cultural view of body image and beauty are shifting. I have two little sisters who are four years old and I do not want them to grow up with the same pressure that I did. To be super thin or look a certain way. I want them to be able to feel comfortable in their skin as who they are without having to worry about that. And I think we're heading in the right direction."
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Post by Joelle on Jun 3, 2019 13:40:31 GMT -8
(OOC: celebs who refuse airbrushing people.com/celebrity/celebs-refuse-airbrush-photoshop/ ) "I hope so." Tarah sighs. "That's another thing I just thought of- some of those photographs the fans see... not the ones the journalists actually take, but what appears after editing in the magazines...a good bit of those photographs are airbrushed or PhotoShopped or whatever you call it nowadays. Just like nobody is perfect morally, nobody is perfect physically, either, but for whatever reason, the public wants people to think that celebrities are. It's disgusting. When I think of all the people- male and female- that we've maybe indirectly caused to have eating disorders from trying to look like us...it's sickening, you know?" "It's not just that, either. Even the little...what some people might term distinguishing characteristics, like moles, are brushed out sometimes. Some celebs refuse airbrushing- us included- but it continues to be a thing, this idea that you would be better any other way than the way you are." Jesse adds. Maybe now, more than ever, he can see where Naamah and Menashe are coming from regarding their sexual orientations.
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Post by starletinwaiting on Jun 3, 2019 13:51:12 GMT -8
((OOC: I *love* Jameela Jamil. Her "I Weigh" movement has actually helped me tremendously, even just subconsciously! So so so much respect for celebrities who refuse that kinda thing and even better speak out about it. They're the ones really helping to move us towards an airbrush-free world. ✊))
"Oh, trust me, I think it's absolutely sickening that that's even a thing people consider. It sets up unrealistic standards amd makes children and adults alike look at themselves and wonder what must be wrong with them when the fact of the matter is there's nothing wrong with them. It's the people insisting on the airbrushing who have something wrong with them. Not to sound judgemental or anything. They're just continuing a trend that is provably harmful to people," Emily says. "It angers me that people even think that some of those celebrities even need touching up. Like, why would these people who already gorgeous as they are need to be thinner or have lighter skin or moles removed? It's infuriating and it's disgusting and it's super harmful."
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Post by Joelle on Jun 3, 2019 14:28:43 GMT -8
"It goes a long way, doesn't it?" Tarah observes. "Russell Brand- because I have to mention a fellow Englishman- and Portia de Rossi are just a couple I can think of of the celebrities who have had eating disorders in the past. And that's to say nothing of anyone else. If this even affects other celebrities, as well as their fans, where have we gone wrong as a culture?"
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Post by starletinwaiting on Jun 3, 2019 14:32:32 GMT -8
"God only knows..." Emily mumbles with a sigh and a shake of her head. "I think it's incredibly important for all of us to see people out there living their best lives as themselves. It's incredibly validating when people with that kind of influence speak out to bring awareness to things that they themselves have struggled with. It makes the struggle seem more universal and a lot less lonely. Would you guys say this is an issue that's close to your heart? I know you mentioned refusing airbrushing, which is why I ask."
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Post by Joelle on Jun 3, 2019 15:01:57 GMT -8
"Chava considered it. After our parents died...with Sheva in the hospital... it was...it's not always about your perception of your body, though a good bit of the time, it can be," says Jesse softly. "In her case...it was something she could control. But to think of my sister even just considering what to so many others can be a major problem...it started somewhere. So it also has to stop somewhere. Especially with the recent move and Sheva having to be a year behind, and the unveiling ceremony coming up soon...that's like a funeral but smaller, where you show off the tombstone, though it's also religious.... we worry about her. She's been to counseling, but that's the thing about too much stress. You can be just a breath away from... well, doing anything, really."
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Post by starletinwaiting on Jun 3, 2019 15:58:49 GMT -8
Emily nods silently as she listens to Jesse's story about his sister. "I, umm, I have a cousin, actually, who had an eating disorder. He's very open about it, very vocal about what helped him and what research shows is most hepful. I also have a couple of siblings who got close too. It's scary, especially when you see it coming but no one listens to you and it just gets worse." She says nothing more, but she speaks from very personal experience.
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Post by Joelle on Jun 3, 2019 16:43:31 GMT -8
"We were almost too late ourselves," Jesse admits. "I didn't see it, being halfway around the world at the time- in Brazil, actually- and Tarah...didn't think. Chava has always been the kind of girl who would be more the 'purposely fail a test' type if she were to act out. Not...this. I think she knew that if she ever decided to become a gymnast professionally it might cause people to talk about how she 'almost ruined her career- and her life,' but...you can only fail so many tests in your senior year before you don't graduate."
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Post by starletinwaiting on Jun 3, 2019 21:05:42 GMT -8
"And being a gymnast... I bet eating disorders and distorted body image runs rampant among those girls," Emily shudders at the thought. "It's easy to overlook them too when it's seemingly just a diet. There's a reason dieting can be so dangerous. If it's not done in just the right way, it could easily lead into disordered eating habits."
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Post by Joelle on Jun 4, 2019 2:35:01 GMT -8
Jesse nods. "Yeah. 'Just a diet.' What a bunch of crap. And sometimes even the trainers don't notice what these kids are doing. So... it was way too easy to blame myself. Or my career. Or long flights."
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Post by starletinwaiting on Jun 4, 2019 3:54:59 GMT -8
"Ah, yes, the guilt." A familiar feeling in Emily's books. "Funny how we blame ourselves for things out of our control. How were you supposed to notice when trainers don't and they're working directly with the girls while you're halfway across the world?" Or, she adds in her head, how was she supposed to notice when her sister already just naturally slipped away quietly, when her sister already fell silent when asked about anything, when her sister didn't have the typical characteristic dramatic weight loss?
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Post by Joelle on Jun 4, 2019 5:23:16 GMT -8
"I didn't know what to look for or I'd have at least tried to help," says Tarah. "Jesse knew better, since he has female soccer player friends, but he didn't suspect it of his own sister. But even if I had known the signs, all the change the family was going through didn't help. In fact it made things harder, because what person doesn't need alone time when someone dies? And would she have confided in me personally regardless? At that point, I didn't know."
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Post by starletinwaiting on Jun 4, 2019 5:56:01 GMT -8
"It's hard to spot if you don't know what to look for," Emily reassures Tarah. "It can look just like you said, someone excusing themselves for some alone time." That's how it started with her sister, slipping away quietly. "And people always associate major weight loss with eating disorders, but it doesn't have to be as dramatic as the internet always seems to depict."
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Post by Joelle on Jun 4, 2019 10:04:42 GMT -8
"That wasn't what tipped me off, either. There was hardly any weight loss at all. In her case, it was bulimia, so it was the amount of candy she ate. Which is so not like Kochava at all- she's a kid, but...she's careful. Always has been, even before the gymnastics, Jesse said. She wasn't like a lot of kids we knew, just shoveling in candy and soda every day. I- I should maybe have been concerned, but who doesn't need a little extra comforting when...?"
"She was careful to hide the wrappers. She wouldn't even let us take out her trash- she did it herself, which should have alerted at least me." Jesse says as he wraps an arm around his wife. "Most teenage boys complain, maybe, but they will take out the trash... but some girls... all of ours included..." He shakes his head and smiles ironically.
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Post by starletinwaiting on Jun 4, 2019 13:08:11 GMT -8
Emily nods somberly. "There's so many different kinds, too," she says softly. "It's hard to catch it if you don't know what you're looking for. There's not enough education on that specific subject."
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Post by Joelle on Jun 4, 2019 13:22:21 GMT -8
"Definitely not. You'd think based on the sheer number of people who deal with them that there would be. Or that speaking out by celebrities would have helped there to be more information somehow. But it hasn't, and I wonder, if medical information changes every six months nowadays, why isn't this changing?" asks Tarah rhetorically.
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Post by starletinwaiting on Jun 4, 2019 13:25:32 GMT -8
"God only knows," Emily sighs. "I'm beginning to think that if this is going to change it'll have to start with the normal, everyday people. They're going to have to be the ones to speak up and start asking ahout it and searching for the information. It is a lot easier to find nowadays. With the internet and all."
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Post by Joelle on Jun 4, 2019 13:32:53 GMT -8
"True, but I also wonder if it might have to do with medical funding," Jesse says. "No disrespect to anyone whose family is fighting cancer or heart problems, but this is important, too. And from where I'm standing, although heart problems or cancer happen to young people too, this seems to be affecting more of them."
Tarah nods. "Maybe if we made a donation, though...to fund a project like what you're talking about... do you think people would help? As far as something like this goes, a lot of info could be outdated, but outdated info still means somebody was doing research somewhere!"
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Post by starletinwaiting on Jun 4, 2019 15:39:51 GMT -8
"It would be fantastic if you guys donated somewhere!" Emily says. "I think it would show the world exactly where you stand on a lot of things but specifically on the issues of mental health and eating disorders. I know that it always makes me smile and feel like maybe the world isn't as damaged as we think when celebrities speak out on topics close to my heart."
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