Do the Harder Thing

Fashion is made for the body. It’s to accentuate its features, curves, and dips. Certain shapes

and styles flatter different physiques and builds. In an industry that profits off appearance and

making a statement, eating disorders and body insecurities are on the rise among models and

consumers.

In February of 2016, 85 models at New York Fashion Week participated in a study to eventually

make this industry healthier. Of those 85 participants, 46 recorded that they were told by their

agency that they would be more successful if they lost weight. In addition, 18 of the models

were told their agency would stop representing them unless they lost weight.

More and more often, clothing branding targets consumers by promoting thinness as the only

desirable and fashion-forward shape. Such ideals and messages make style a feared part of the

recovery process.

However, companies such as The Garment Project are using fashion as a powerful tool in

combating eating disorders and celebrating recovery. The Garment Project is a nonprofit

organization that teams up with retailers to provide women who are in recovery with size less-

clothing to fit their body (and soul).

Erin Drischler, founder and CEO, explained how The Garment Project came to be and her

motive for starting it. She said, “The Garment Project was created because of my personal

experiences with my eating disorder. I had always loved fashion, but while deep into my

disorder, I found myself utilizing my clothing to engage in negative behaviors and further my

eating disorder.”

“I couldn’t find that sense of confidence I had when I put on an amazing outfit. I had a hard time

getting rid of the clothing that I had at home, for many reasons,” Drischler said. “I knew I couldn't

be alone in this struggle. So we launched The Garment Project, a one-of-a-kind organization,

providing size-less clothing to women in recovery from their eating disorders.”

The Garment Project has paired with notable names in the fashion industry such as Aerie,

American Eagle Outfitters, and Modcloth, to name a few. They take steps to make fashion an

advantage rather than a hindrance.

“[We] remove all the sizing information and utilize our unique system to log each item based on

its true measurements. We partner with top treatment centers and specialized individual

therapists across the country to match with candidates that will benefit the most from the

Garment service,” Drischler said. “We aren’t just providing free clothing, we want to create an

opportunity for the candidates to try on new clothing in a safe environment, talk about emotions

that arise with a trusted therapist, and wear new items that make them feel their best without

size tags or any past associations attached.”

Creating a space that celebrates the human body and uses clothing as a way to achieve that is

powerful and gets to the core what fashion is all about. Fashion is a tool to showcase

personalism and expression and can help someone in recovery celebrate their body.

Drischler opened up more about how the fashion world is helping and hurting the body image

industry.

“Fashion, at its core, is meant to inspire and provide an outlet to express oneself creatively. Any

art form that encourages you to be who you want and allows you to give insight into your

personality without saying a word is helping a person find their true self,” she said. “I think that

only when a person finds self-worth in the size or cost of their clothing vs. the style are we

seeing those negative societal trends. Fashion can be a force for good, and Garment is here to

prove that.”

There is so much growth and momentum within the industry, and having real women such as

Drischler use their story to create a new voice and inspire other females is powerful. 

Where can we go from here? We asked Drischler to leave us with a piece of advice, something

that we can share with loved ones and ourselves and wear on the sleeve of clothes that make

us confident.

“Do the harder thing. Those words of wisdom not only got me to a place of real eating disorder

recovery, but I try to utilize them in all aspects of everyday life.” Drischler said. “I got to a point

where I could clearly pinpoint what behaviors I was engaging in that were healthy and those that

were disordered, but that did not mean it was easy to listen to my healthy self.

“Every time I was faced with a decision, I would ask myself, ‘What would make my eating

disorder angrier?’ And then I would do exactly that,” she said. “Sitting with that discomfort

seemed impossible, but eventually, doing the harder thing became empowering instead of

scary. I began to see glimpses of what a recovered life looked like, and it got easier and easier

to trust my body and behaviors.”

Sizes and labels no longer have power. Fashion has no limit regarding who it caters to, and

certain styles are not an exclusive club. The industry is full of passionate leaders paving the way

for a more inclusive and healthy business. Doing the harder thing has never looked so good.