Cultic Studies Review, Vol. 4, No. 1, 2005, Page 32
Weighing was a very serious business—particularly serious for us because if it
was considered that we were putting on too much weight we would have our
food rations cut down and that was a dreadful proposition, food being the
most important thing in our lives. We girls viewed the scales with hatred.
They made our miserable lives even worse. Some of the girls would even try
to induce vomiting on weighing mornings in an attempt to seem lighter
(Hamilton-Byrne, 1995: 22).
(Self-induced vomiting is a characteristic of bulimia, and although my model is concerned
primarily with anorexic-like behaviour, it is worth noting these instances of other disordered
eating habits.) Weighing oneself obsessively, sometimes multiple times daily, is a common
trait of anorexics. It is interesting that Anne was not weighing herself, but her surrogate
bodies were those of her adoptive children.
The children‘s caregivers, acting on behalf of Anne, gave them extremely restrictive diets to
the extent that some of the younger children developed swollen and bloated stomachs due
to malnutrition and protein deficiency (Hamilton-Byrne, 1995: 78). Anne, however, saw her
children‘s bloated stomachs as a sign of obesity and further restricted food for them. The
aunties almost starved to death one little girl named Cassandra. At the time that officials
intervened in the group and removed the children to state care, Cassandra was 12 years old
and weighed the same amount as a 5 year old should (under 20 kilograms [Hamilton-Byrne,
1995: 182]).
Anouree Crawford, who was raised in the group, has come forward recently with allegations
of cruel and inhumane practices against Anne Hamilton-Byrne. Crawford supports Sarah
Hamilton-Byrne‘s allegations of dietary restriction and deprivation. Crawford situates the
food restriction that she experienced as a child in the context of control issues within the
group, saying, ―Basically food deprivation was a daily event. The reason for the deprivation
was to control us, to make us weak and to feed us the most minimal amount of protein…..
We were always hungry []we stole food everyday‖ (Crawford quoted in The Age, 2004).
According to Australian media, Crawford‘s case will most likely be tried in 2005 (The Age,
2004).
Sarah Hamilton-Byrne hypothesizes that her adoptive mother cast her own unhealthy body
images onto her adoptive children (Hamilton-Byrne, 1995: 101). This hypothesis supports
my imposed anorexia model, since Anne Hamilton-Byrne struggled with her own weight and
her own negative self-image. Instead of limiting her own food intake and dealing with her
own weight issues, she instead made her adopted children the outlet of her own self-
regimentation. She made her children‘s under-nourished and anorexic-looking bodies
surrogates of her own body, apparently which she could not regulate. Restricted eating in
‗the Family,‘ therefore, almost certainly interconnected with Anne‘s own body image and
psychological mindset in relation to food control issues.
Doctrinal Accepted Anorexia
A leader or intermediary does not impose doctrinally imposed anorexia, but rather group
doctrine or publications demand dietary restrictions. Although usually ideological leaders
write group doctrines, doctrinal imposition differs from direct or mediated imposition. In
doctrinally imposed anorexia, the essence of the group‘s doctrine is food restriction and
diet, rather than just a subset or small part of its doctrines and or publications.
Breatharianism, for example, imposes anorexia on followers doctrinally. In Breatharianism
the ideological leader does not subject followers to his or her demands, but rather to the
extremely high demands of a strict diet supposedly set out by spiritual gurus. To be a
practicing Breatharian it is not necessary to live in a communal group or to even have
contact with other Breatharians, since one can follow a Breatharian lifestyle on one‘s own.
Weighing was a very serious business—particularly serious for us because if it
was considered that we were putting on too much weight we would have our
food rations cut down and that was a dreadful proposition, food being the
most important thing in our lives. We girls viewed the scales with hatred.
They made our miserable lives even worse. Some of the girls would even try
to induce vomiting on weighing mornings in an attempt to seem lighter
(Hamilton-Byrne, 1995: 22).
(Self-induced vomiting is a characteristic of bulimia, and although my model is concerned
primarily with anorexic-like behaviour, it is worth noting these instances of other disordered
eating habits.) Weighing oneself obsessively, sometimes multiple times daily, is a common
trait of anorexics. It is interesting that Anne was not weighing herself, but her surrogate
bodies were those of her adoptive children.
The children‘s caregivers, acting on behalf of Anne, gave them extremely restrictive diets to
the extent that some of the younger children developed swollen and bloated stomachs due
to malnutrition and protein deficiency (Hamilton-Byrne, 1995: 78). Anne, however, saw her
children‘s bloated stomachs as a sign of obesity and further restricted food for them. The
aunties almost starved to death one little girl named Cassandra. At the time that officials
intervened in the group and removed the children to state care, Cassandra was 12 years old
and weighed the same amount as a 5 year old should (under 20 kilograms [Hamilton-Byrne,
1995: 182]).
Anouree Crawford, who was raised in the group, has come forward recently with allegations
of cruel and inhumane practices against Anne Hamilton-Byrne. Crawford supports Sarah
Hamilton-Byrne‘s allegations of dietary restriction and deprivation. Crawford situates the
food restriction that she experienced as a child in the context of control issues within the
group, saying, ―Basically food deprivation was a daily event. The reason for the deprivation
was to control us, to make us weak and to feed us the most minimal amount of protein…..
We were always hungry []we stole food everyday‖ (Crawford quoted in The Age, 2004).
According to Australian media, Crawford‘s case will most likely be tried in 2005 (The Age,
2004).
Sarah Hamilton-Byrne hypothesizes that her adoptive mother cast her own unhealthy body
images onto her adoptive children (Hamilton-Byrne, 1995: 101). This hypothesis supports
my imposed anorexia model, since Anne Hamilton-Byrne struggled with her own weight and
her own negative self-image. Instead of limiting her own food intake and dealing with her
own weight issues, she instead made her adopted children the outlet of her own self-
regimentation. She made her children‘s under-nourished and anorexic-looking bodies
surrogates of her own body, apparently which she could not regulate. Restricted eating in
‗the Family,‘ therefore, almost certainly interconnected with Anne‘s own body image and
psychological mindset in relation to food control issues.
Doctrinal Accepted Anorexia
A leader or intermediary does not impose doctrinally imposed anorexia, but rather group
doctrine or publications demand dietary restrictions. Although usually ideological leaders
write group doctrines, doctrinal imposition differs from direct or mediated imposition. In
doctrinally imposed anorexia, the essence of the group‘s doctrine is food restriction and
diet, rather than just a subset or small part of its doctrines and or publications.
Breatharianism, for example, imposes anorexia on followers doctrinally. In Breatharianism
the ideological leader does not subject followers to his or her demands, but rather to the
extremely high demands of a strict diet supposedly set out by spiritual gurus. To be a
practicing Breatharian it is not necessary to live in a communal group or to even have
contact with other Breatharians, since one can follow a Breatharian lifestyle on one‘s own.
