After 2 and a half months, I was released from the hospital on May 9, 2017. With only a few weeks left in the semester, I wouldn’t be returning to university until the fall, which left me with a significant amount of free time. It was during this time that I attempted to practice self-care, good coping skills, and work through the grief over the death of one of my best friends. It was also during this time that I began looking for a job to occupy my mind until school started again.

I looked locally, sending my resume to cafes, donut shops, pools, and clothing stores. I found a job in a clothing store, yet that was short-lived. I had the job for a total of 4 hours. It wasn’t until the end of June that I finally had an “aha!” moment when I walked into my mall center’s American Eagle Outfitters, and had a conversation with the associate who mentioned that the store was hiring. After many denials, or no response, I had a hit with AEO and set up an interview with the manager.

The day of my interview came quickly, a Monday around noon. Aside from the typical conversational exchange, the manager asked me why I wanted to work for the company. At first thought, many may say that it’s for the money, or that they like to shop in the store. Although this may be true for me, it is not as true as the answer I gave. What drew me to AEO was not the store itself, but its “side by side” store, aerie.

Chances are, you’ve probably heard of the aerie REAL campaign, which features photos of their models, un-retouched. This campaign also comes with the encouragement and fact that we are all #aerieREAL, perfect in our own skin without the airbrushing that is so often seen in the media. I love aerie for this, yet, it is not the reason I wanted to work for the company.

The truth is, I have an eating disorder. I have struggled with anorexia since I was a junior in high school, and still have troubling thoughts that influence my actions. It is by far one of the hardest things I have ever been asked to cope with, but here I am - coping.

During my senior year of high school, I participated in my first NEDA Walk. NEDA is the National Eating Disorders Association, an organization that aims to raise funds to support those impacted by the disease by providing screenings, events, resources. Upon check-in, I received a bag that read “ALWAYS BE YOUR SELFIE #aerieREAL”. This is when I learned of the partnership between aerie and NEDA; it made so much sense.

Once I learned of the work that aerie was doing with NEDA, I developed a profound respect for the company, more than any I had prior. It isn’t every day that you find out that a brand you love to wear supports a cause that hits so close to home, that’s for sure. I went on to learn more about aerie and NEDA, such that aerie won the first NEDA Inspires ‘Seal of Approval’ and signed the model, Iskra, an ambassador for NEDA whom created the NEDA Inspires ‘Seal of Approval’ and has taken on the position of a body positive role model for young girls and women everywhere.

This is the narrative I told the manager, the story of my eating disorder and how I can personally relate to the company’s mission - thinking in the back of my mind, “How can you not want to work for a company that’s doing what they’re doing?”

Don’t you want to work for them now, too?

I impressed the manager, giving him an answer I’m sure he didn’t expect on a Monday morning. However, it wasn’t about impressing him. It was about creating the awareness of the partnership between aerie and NEDA, the cause that I hold the closest to my heart.

After being hired by the company, I took on the position of an aerie girl, and I can truthfully say that I have never been so happy in an employment place. I feel at home in my place of employment, and it is my hope that by joining the team of aerie girls that I will be able to share my story and spread awareness of eating disorders and the importance of “loving your selfie”.

To learn more about aerie and NEDA, you can follow the link below.

https://www.ae.com/featured-aerie-supports/aerie/s-cms/7610002