Making the decision to send your adolescent daughter to an inpatient treatment center for an eating disorder may be one of the scariest and most difficult things you ever do as a parent. However, given the seriousness of eating disorders — anorexia, for example, has the highest death rate of all mental illnesses — it is important that you do insist that she get the treatment she needs. As a parent, your influence is more powerful than you may think.
The Paleo Diet, Clean Eating, The Whole30, The Raw Food Diet… Everywhere we turn there’s a new diet philosophy touted as “the answer” to living a healthier, happier life. Each of these diets typically promises not only weight loss but also disease prevention and overall better health.
Of course, there’s nothing wrong with eating healthy foods; but, if a person becomes fixated on a need to eat only what they consider the healthiest and most “pure” foods they could be suffering from an eating disorder called Orthorexia.
Without them, and my parent’s unwavering and often-tested support, I would not be where I am today both literally and figuratively. I am living out my dreams. I’m a flight attendant, somebody’s fiancé and, most importantly, I’m finally me. Becoming Me didn’t happen easily or quickly. I have struggled with an eating disorder for most […]
Saying that there is an unhealthy expectation in our culture when it comes to weight and female celebrities is an understatement. Disordered eating is so normalized in our society that few people acknowledge the gravity of the disease unless they’ve experienced it first hand.
The documentary Amy, which won the Documentary Feature Oscar Sunday night, skims the surface on the subject of disordered eating in female Hollywood and its role in the life and death of famous singer-songwriter Amy Winehouse. Unfortunately, it’s still a far cry away from bringing to light the gigantic reality of Winehouse’s probable battle with bulimia nervosa.
Changing Your Perceptions of Foods The first step for eating disorder patients in treatment is to avoid labeling foods and categorizing them as “good” or “bad.” This black and white thinking is a dieter’s mentality and leads to a dysfunctional relationship with food. When a patient eats a food on their “bad” or forbidden list, […]