Fifty years ago, Man landed on the Moon. As an 18-year-old exchange student studying in the United States at the time, my memory is vivid of this historic moment. My memory is not so much of the grey, grainy, ghostlike outline of men in white spacesuits stepping gingerly out to a lunar landing, but of […]
I feel deeply emotional about this week’s announcement on genetic discovery. For a start, contributing a DNA sample to this ground-breaking research led by Professor Cynthia Bulik has helped me and thousands of others to feel that our lives and illness experience count. We want to ease suffering of others. Participating in this research helps […]
Euthanasia, or voluntary assisted dying laws, must not be considered a solution for a person with an eating disorder. I will proceed to explain my position on this life and death issue. Instead of death as a solution for people with eating disorders, I urge us all to focus on hope, faith, trust, life quality, […]
Imagine being told: ‘You are naughty and a burden on your family’. Survivor voices are gaining momentum in calling on health professionals to treat their patients with care and respect. Hospitals are rarely known for their warmth, colour or homely touches; not to be confused with hospitality. They are often characterised by their clinical and […]
H: How do I put on weight? DE: How do you put on your PERSON? H: As I am putting on weight, I am putting on my person. DE: Maybe you put on your person and the weight follows… June Alexander Narrative therapy works by separating people from their problems. Developed by David Epston and Michael […]
DE: What is Anorexia calling out to you at the moment, Helen? What is it saying to you as you struggle towards the Anti-Anorexic side? What is it calling out to you? HW: Punish yourself! Starve yourself! Writing was both a survival tool and a recovery tool during my incarceration with the eating disorder, anorexia […]
“I don’t want to live like this anymore.” This sentence has surfaced during almost every phase of my eating disorder journey. When sitting on the floor in my bedroom, holding my head in my hands in desperation, with the carpet burning against my skin, feeling the fear that comes with seeing that scale creep higher […]
“Life is not fair,” my psychiatrist said rather bluntly some years ago, when I was bemoaning relationship losses. The losses – my parents, sister and extended family members – were ongoing casualties of my eating disorder and I was feeling sad. I felt very indignant and offended at first, at my psychiatrist’s dismissive phrase and […]
“Men Get Eating Disorders Too” was my mantra for 11 years. It’s not simple words, but is a statement. That has meaning. I was one of those men with an eating disorder. There’s no denying the impact it had. Or feeling like I was the “only one”. My story begins when I was 13 years […]
Nobody can afford to wait for treatment for an Eating Disorder. On World Eating Disorders Action Day 2019, Amy Cunningham and June Alexander, together with Kathy and Michael Cortese, explain why, and what we can all do about it. Today. A parent accessing a reputable online eating disorders support site for families and caregivers will […]