Today, on Day 4 of Eating Disorder Awareness Week, Action Mental Health’s specialist eating disorder service, AMH everyBODY brings you more insight into the hurdles faced by people living with eating disorders. We bring you testimony from someone who knows personally, every bump in the journey to overcome their disorder.
All my life I had wanted to be smaller, it was through support I learnt that there are so many more valuable things to invest my time and energy into. Like my strengths of character, my interests, the things in life that bring me joy. The support helped me to realise that having an Eating Disorder does not make you a failure, that it wasn’t a choice. It was a way of coping and I learnt new ways of coping and dealing with emotions and thoughts.
I think most people will recognise signs of Anorexia or Bulimia but it can be particularly difficult with someone who does fall within a normal or higher weight. This is because generally a lot of people tend to look for physical symptoms of Eating Disorders and not realise that it is a Mental Illness and much more about how that person is feeling and what they are dealing with underneath the surface. You cannot tell someone has an Eating Disorder just by looking at them.
On the one hand I was obsessed with everything I was eating/tracking calories and very strict with exercise, but on the other hand I felt completely out of control around food and would the restriction would lead to bingeing.
It really hit home that I needed support when I had planned to take a trip away and it felt impossible to go because of my overwhelming thoughts around food, weight and exercise. I felt I couldn’t focus to find enjoyment in the things I wanted to.
My thoughts were completely consumed by food and self-critical thoughts. It became a vicious cycle of bingeing when I was feeling depressed, then feeling more guilt, then compensating with punishing behaviours and thoughts and I just couldn’t stop.
How it impacted me emotionally was huge, I felt depressed and had very low self-esteem. I felt constantly annoyed at myself, disappointed in myself and just generally hard on myself. It also took a toll on my relationship.
Through recovery I have learnt I was far too hard on myself, I learnt I needed to give myself a break!
I started to practice compassion for myself and it is something that I still do. That being happy with who I am, and within myself was far more important that trying to fit other people’s ideals. I learnt to get to know myself again, to make peace with myself.
In the beginning all I could see were the negative thoughts and bad things about myself, I learnt to challenge this mindset and recognise my own strengths.
I’ve certainly learnt to just listen to my body more, to let it rest when it needs to.
If you live in the Southern Health Trust Area you can contact the AMH everyBODY Team – T: 028 3839 2314 or E: [email protected]
Today, on Day 4 of Eating Disorder Awareness Week, Action Mental Health’s specialist eating disorder service, AMH everyBODY brings you more insight into the hurdles faced by people living with eating disorders.
Is anorexia the most serious type of eating disorder?
All eating disorders are harmful and I think there seems to be this misconception that anorexia is in some way superior which absolutely isn’t the case.
All eating disorders are serious emotional and physical illnesses and although they may manifest in different ways, typically in the form of anorexia (where an individual might restrict their intake), bulimia (characterised by episodes of bingeing and purging) or binge eating disorder (eating large quantities of food without feeling in control of doing so), psychological implications are common to each. These include:
A preoccupation with food and weight
Feelings of guilt and shame
An individual using food as a coping mechanism. Quite often someone with an eating disorder will feel they are lacking control over many elements of their life and so controlling food and their body is a means of relieving their distress.
Do you have to be really underweight to have an eating disorder?
So this is a really common misconception, that in order to qualify as having an eating disorder, an individual must have an extremely low body mass index and appear completely emaciated. While this is unfortunately the reality for some people affected by anorexia, a very small percentage of all eating disorder cases conform to this notion.
This is a really harmful and misleading stereotype that not only contributes to the weight stigma so prevalent in society today, it may prevent an individual from recognising themselves that are affected by an eating disorder simply because they do not meet the ‘thin ideal’. Leaving individuals feeling as though they are ‘not sick enough’, this in turn prevents many coming forward to seek support and the danger here is that their eating disorder behaviours could become more entrenched.
What causes Binge Eating Disorder?
As is the case for all eating disorders, no single cause can be identified as leading to the onset of BED. Onset typically results from the complex interaction of a range of biological, psychological and socio-cultural factors.
Genetic predisposition might mean some individuals are more vulnerable than others to the onset of BED.
Psychological characteristics such a low self-esteem and depression can make an individual vulnerable to developing BED. Quite often, the individual may have difficulty expressing their emotions and feelings. They might therefore use food as a means of dealing with these.
Internalisation of societal pressures that equate our worth to our weight is also a risk factor for development of BED. This can leave an individual preoccupied with their shape and weight. Other social factors that might lead to someone developing BED include weight stigma, bullying, and exposure to parental dieting.
What’s most important to remember is that eating disorders do not discriminate. They can affect anyone of any age, gender, ethnicity or background.
Aren’t diets a good thing if someone needs to lose weight?
Research show us that diets are neither effective nor sustainable ways of managing our weight. They are a temporary solution.
A period of dieting is perhaps the single most important precipitating factor in BED. It does not address the root causes of BED.
An individual with BED will typically find themselves stuck in a vicious cycle of dieting and bingeing. Restricting food intake and avoiding certain types of foods can make this cycle much more intense by leading to binge eating, subsequent feelings of guilt and shame, dieting again to compensate…. REPEAT. The only way to break this cycle is to stop dieting.
If you live in the Southern Health Trust Area you can contact the AMH everyBODY Team – T: 028 3839 2314 or E: [email protected]
Some of the younger – and older – members of Enniskillen Gaels
Members of a County Fermanagh Gaelic Football club have sprung into action to enlist in Action Mental Health’s Spring Into Wellness fundraising campaign.
The Enniskillen Gaels have made a pledge to help raise funds for Action Mental Health as part of the charity’s drive to keep members active and motivated to help them get through the next weeks of Covid restrictions.
The Gaels set themselves the challenge to do at least 28 active minutes, for each of the 28 days of February 2021. During the month the Gaels got walking, running, rowing, swimming, doing yoga, cycling, lifting weights, shooting basketball hoops and all sorts besides – while adhering to current social distancing guidelines.
Members, and their families, were also encouraged to attempt an activity they had never tried before over the 28-day challenge. The youngest members of the club carried out football drills in their back gardens, while others engaged in online pilates classes and Just Dance – some even painted their walls! Some of those taking part who already had a high level of fitness used the challenge to push themselves and smashed some amazing long distance runs and hill sprints.
Participants were encouraged along the way by posting in the dedicated facebook page and we had a few prizes to be won from Erne Pharmacy and Susan Rogers Tropic Skincare.
Action Mental Health’s Fundraising and Communications Manager welcomed the Gaels’ efforts for the Spring Into Wellness campaign, stating: “We continue to be amazed at the generosity and enthusiasm of our local community to support the work of Action Mental Health. Our services have continued to support local people right throughout the pandemic and much of this work is only possible thanks to donations and fundraising by organisations such as The Enniskillen Gaels. We are sincerely thankful for their efforts.”
Brendan Rogers, from the club explained: “We set an initial target of £100 as we appreciate that it’s not the easiest of times for people financially right now, and it was more about the fitness and mental health aspect. But we managed to smash the £100 in the first few days so the next target was £500.
“We chose Action Mental Health as the local work they do is fantastic and we wanted to help raise the profile but also because a year into this pandemic we are seeing and hearing about the profound impact it is having on the mental health of so many, it seemed so relevant.”
Brendan added: “We are so appreciative of all who took part, donated money and especially to those who continued to post every day, like comments and post words of encouragement it really helped spur people on. We had folks join from all over the county and as far as Liverpool and Dunfermline so we are truly grateful.”
As Action Mental Health continues to mark Eating Disorder Awareness Week, the dedicated team from our specialist eating disorder service AMH everyBODY today offers useful tools on how to help someone you love cope with their disorder.
By offering patience, and reassurance, while listening without judgement, you can help people feel less alone as they journey through the frightening stages of their eating disorder.
Listen to them without judgement
It can be frustrating to see someone you love struggling and not fully understand. Be aware that part of BED is feelings of guilt and shame, so recognise how difficult it may be for your loved one to open up. Create a safe space for them to do so, pick an environment they are comfortable in and perhaps on a 1 to 1 basis. Use “I” statements so that your observations don’t come across as accusatory “I have noticed you’ve withdrawn a bit recently, how have you been feeling?” Show compassion for their experience and validate their feelings.
Be aware of your own language around food and weight and try to remain neutral and non-stigmatising
BED can have a lot of shame and stigma attached to it, so approach it sensitively. Don’t focus on weight or how much they are eating, make sure the focus is on their mental health and how they are feeling. Try not to use negative language around your own body or eating as this could lead to them feeling shame around their own body and eating habits.
Be patient
Eating disorders are complex and it is more than likely an eating disorder didn’t develop overnight and may take some time to recover from. Recovery is not linear, and there will be bumps along the way. Check in regularly with your loved one you are supporting but also respect their boundaries and understand that they may not always be able to talk.
Avoid Assumptions
What we see about eating disorders in the media are very narrow, it’s important to remember that eating disorders do not have a look. Listen to the person you love, believe them when they talk about their struggles and above all don’t dismiss or belittle their experience if it doesn’t fit a stereotypical image of what you think an eating disorder is. It can be helpful to do research from reputable sources like Beat and BodyWhys on what BED is and how it impacts a person.
Avoid offering solutions
It can be natural to want to help and “fix” things but offering solutions may feel like pressure to your loved one and it’s important to understand that their eating disorder has served as a coping mechanism and will require targeted support to move away from. Keep the onus on their feelings and what they would like in terms of support. Offer to be there along the way and let them know they don’t have to do anything alone.
Encourage and Reassure
Your role is not to recover for your loved one, it is to be there and offer unconditional support through their recovery. Below are some supportive phrases that will be helpful during recovery.
Our case study from someone who has been assisted along their journey with an eating disorder by AMH everybody, also shows that help is available – you can get better.
To add a bit of context this lady’s experience is slightly different as she did first experience comfort eating (which is completely different than binge eating disorder and can be a part of normal eating at times). However due to life events that she has mentioned – grief, relationship break down, loneliness and post-partum body dissatisfaction, binge eating disorder developed as the only coping mechanism to deal with all of these difficulties, and what once served as a comfort became distressing and felt out of control.
Growing up we never had a lot of sugary foods in the house, penguin bars or club bars to eat with lunch in school was the height of it. Going to friends houses I was always amazed at the amount of chocolate and crisps they had in the cupboard and they had no interest in them at all, meanwhile I’m salivating and hoping they’ll say “do you want something to eat?”
In high school we had a tuck shop filled with all things colourful and delicious but I never was given money going to school, I had a packed lunch and that was enough to keep my body fuelled. We were not poor or anything my parents worked hard, they were savers and with 5 siblings at home handing out lunch money everyday was never going to happen. So, I had to get money from somewhere I wanted to go to the tuck shop, I started taking money from my older brothers’ room, loose change lying around, he wouldn’t miss it. This continued for a long time, I was getting my chocolate and my brother wasn’t noticing his money going missing. Until he did.
I was old enough now to get a part time job. I was 15 and earning £2.90 an hour. I had no bills to pay or responsibilities. I could get what I wanted. For a few years I went to school/tech, walked to a music class, walked to teach a dance class and then worked from 5-9. On my way home I would stop at a shop and buy £5 worth of chocolate and a fizzy drink go home and eat lying in my bed watching the TV. I would lie to my mum and tell her I had dinner in work because I didn’t want a full on a plate of potatoes, meat and veg, I wanted my chocolate.
I’m 31 now and I can finally see and understand that I have a binge eating disorder. For years I thought I just had a bad diet and loved chocolate which is true. I do love food and it has been a source of comfort for me for half my life. When I was pregnant, I couldn’t drink or smoke but that was ok because I could eat.
After my daughter was born someone very close to my heart was diagnosed with cancer and my 6-year relationship broke down. My life was upside down. I had no fight left in me, I hated my post baby body, I didn’t look the same in skirts as I did before and I felt so alone, my friends had disappeared. They continued with their own lives, going on nights out, weekend trips and I was at home with the baby and a sick parent. The only thing I could control and the only thing that gave me joy was food. I was eating all the time, multi packs of chocolate, cookies anything I could sneak into the house. I would find excuses to go to the shop just so I could get more.
I can’t remember why but one day I made an appointment to see my GP, while sitting in his surgery I cried and cried and told him about my eating habits and I needed help. He was so supportive, not at all what I expected after telling him my dark secrets. I thought I was heading for counselling. I was nervous about counselling, I had been before, I mentioned my eating habits and I was criticised and judged so I never went back and felt I would never be able to speak about it again. A few months passed after visiting my GP and I got a call from AMH everyBODY.
I had my first session; it was the exact opposite of what I was expecting. It wasn’t counselling at all. I was meeting with a support worker. What did I need a support worker for, I don’t have a disorder? I thought I would continue with the sessions because it was something to keep me going until I got to counselling. I have been going to sessions now for a few months and it has changed my life. My support worker has worked very hard with me, she has been understanding, supportive, encouraging and never once judged me. She has helped me to see food all as one colour, she has shown me that I have a choice.
No longer do I restrict myself; I don’t have the Sunday night blues and promise myself every Monday I am going on a diet which I would fail at and hate myself even more. I no longer panic when I go to the shop and buy chocolate because I know I have a balance of food in the trolly. I enjoy cooking again. I have the ability to listen to my body and hear what it needs.
I still have my urges for a binge but with the help of my support worker I now have the tools to help me through and the urge 90% of the time passes. I still have issues with my body image but that is something that my support worker and I plan to work on next. I have no doubt that in time I will be able to love my body and appreciate all it has come through.
I never expected to receive the help I did from my support worker. I have never felt so safe telling a complete stranger my darkest secrets. I finally feel free.
If you live in the Southern Health Trust Area you can contact the AMH everyBODY Team – T: 028 3839 2314 or E: [email protected]
Under the spotlight during Eating Disorder Awareness Week 2021
In the year we all went into another lockdown, the incidence of binge eating disorder (BED) has gone up – just as the restrictions curtailed people’s activities, BED spiked because it is a disorder that particularly thrives in isolation.
As individuals were forced to isolate themselves from friends, family, work colleagues and almost all public interaction, it caused fractures in the support networks relied upon by people with eating disorders.
As Action Mental Health marks Eating Disorder Awareness Week 2021 – with a focus on BED – Deborah McCready, project worker with the charity’s specialist eating disorder service, AMH everyBODY gives an insight into how BED flourished in lockdown.
“In the backdrop of a pandemic, it’s significant that eating disorders thrive in isolation and it’s the one thing that we have all been forced into in the past year,” she explained. “We have all been more isolated and we are all finding that our normal coping mechanisms may have changed and that we have had to get more creative to develop new ways of coping. We haven’t been able to go out to chat with friends or get out into fresh air or pursue the hobbies that would have kept us well.
“Any eating disorder is a mental health condition; it’s a way of coping with difficult or distressing situations in life so it’s a coping mechanism and at the minute things have increased where our stress and anxiety have increased and the one that that is readily available for people to have some control over is food, so that’s why it has increased eating disorder during the pandemic.
“There are misconceptions that it’s young people but it’s a mental health condition so can affect people from every single walk of life and they have no particular look, shape or size. They are as diverse as the people they affect.”
The rest is best left to those whose daily battle with their binge eating disorder has been vastly improved by the intervention of AMH everyBODY.
Tips for Coping
Case study one
One man’s struggle to be seen and truly heard
Binge eating disorder is exhausting. Not only are you battling your own thoughts and feelings, that inner critic in your head (the eating disorder voice that often triggers a binge) but then there’s also the shame from medical professionals, family and friends that this is something you’re choosing to do to yourself. I was so lucky that I had a very compassionate GP who was able to signpost me to your service for support. That hasn’t always been the case though. I’ve lost count the amount of times over the years I’ve tried to speak about my struggles with binge eating disorder, only to be given weight loss advice. One GP gave me a leaflet for Slimming World and told me to keep the foods I binge on out of the house.
It’s felt like people just see a man in a larger body and that’s all they see. They see my weight before they see me. I know now that the weight stigma has delayed my access to treatment and support that I would have received if I had the very same symptoms but was in a smaller body. Feeling dismissed and shamed for my weight only left me further isolated and increased my binge behaviours. The very diets that were being prescribed to me led my binge eating disorder to spiral out of control. I was absolutely miserable and felt like I was failing at very corner, whilst constantly having to justify that I even deserved support. The harder I tried to diet, the bigger and more catastrophic the binge, and the more intense the feelings of shame after, and the cycle continued like that for a number of years.
From my very first meeting with AMH everyBODY I was treated like a human being. I was asked more about my feelings, what else was going on in my life, at no point at all during our whole support have I ever felt judged, I wasn’t reduced to a number on a scale. I can’t even begin to describe what that alone has done to remove the shame, and in turn reduce my bingeing. The biggest turning point for me was taking shifting the focus completely away from weight and instead looking at health behaviours, things like being able to express and communicate my feelings with my family. Looking at ways I can manage stress and the environments that can be triggers.
I was also encouraged to start to learn to tune in and listen to my body, to learn to identify hunger and fullness cues, move away from rules and restrictions around food and also reframe some of my critical thinking. I found joy in walking again, previously I viewed exercise or movement as pressure and was only successful if I was focusing on weight loss or numbers. When I started to focus on how my body actually felt and that walking was a time for me to relieve stress, I started to get so much joy from it. It didn’t feel like pressure. I was learning to tap in to and trust and listen to my body.
My advice to anyone supporting a person with binge eating disorder is to listen to them without judgement. The shame of binge eating disorder sits so heavy on your shoulders and when you’re met with support and understanding, when people see you as a whole person that’s when you start to recover.
Case study two
BED is like a ‘bully in your own head’
“I can’t quite remember just exactly when my experience with binge eating disorder began, but from early childhood I’ve felt a deep shame about my body. My first experience of body shame was during P.E in school. I was left out of team sports because my body was bigger than the others so assumed that I couldn’t be as good at the sports. I was picked last and during hockey matches I was overlooked and dismissed. I felt completely invisible. Everybody else thought my body was wrong, so it wasn’t long before I just stopped trying. The shame others made me feel about my body made me just want to hide myself away, and that’s exactly what I did. That’s when food became my comfort, my distraction from the deep feelings of self-loathing I had been taught about my body. We aren’t born believing our bodies are wrong, that’s something we learn from others and that body dissatisfaction was just one of the reasons behind nearly two decades of binge eating disorder.
I was probably about 12 when I started my first diet. Of course this only made things worse. My obsession with those numbers was anything but healthy. The stress and shame over my body became all consuming. Before others made me feel like my body was wrong and the shame started I actually felt like I probably was quite healthy. Healthy in the sense that I had no feelings of self- hatred, I wasn’t binge eating, I did actually enjoy sports and I was certainly less stressed. My silence and isolation became a prison. My shame was an iron gate keeping me trapped. Any time I felt any form of pain, I binged.
I was overlooked for a promotion in work, I binged. I fought with family, I binged. I felt shamed at a doctors appointment, I binged. My marriage broke down, I binged. I binged any time I dealt with pain to temporarily numb myself, but then the disgust I would feel after started the whole process all over again. Living with an eating disorder is like having a bully in your head waiting for you to trip up, offering you a solution to ease the distress but then making you feel bad for “giving in.”
For years I didn’t tell anyone about my binge eating disorder because honestly I didn’t even realise it was recognised as a serious eating disorder until I saw something shared online. An article that spoke about it not being a choice, that it wasn’t about greed or lack of will power or just eating too much. That it was a mental health condition and that a binge felt out of control. That’s exactly how I felt, it was almost like an out of body experience and felt so distressing because I felt powerless and unable to stop. I didn’t enjoy or even taste food during a binge.
In fact, my relationship with food because so disordered that I couldn’t even remember the last time I fully enjoyed or felt satisfied with food. What I’d like people to understand about binge eating disorder is that it is never really about the food. For me it was all about how I felt, and I didn’t know how to deal with any of those feelings, or deal with any early trauma.
Talking helps. It so scary to speak up, especially if you’re apprehensive about being believed but if you are suffering in silence you deserve support and every time you start talking you take away some of that shame. You take the power away from your eating disorder.
Because of the support I’m receiving from AMH everyBODY I feel free. I feel lighter in my head. Now I don’t feel pushed in any way to do things, because of other people’s choices. I’ve been able to switch off from hating myself and actually start to see that actually I do have a lot of strengths that I just hadn’t been paying any attention to. I feel like I can cope a bit better, and have hope that I can continue to find myself.
If you live in the Southern Health Trust Area you can contact the AMH everyBODY Team – T: 028 3839 2314 or E: [email protected]
Joe came to us via Andrea Warwick at AMH New Horizons Lisburn back in February of 2020.
AMH’s and our aim was to provide a work placement which would give Joe a chance to get back out into the work environment, doing something he enjoyed at a pace that suited him.
We had several initial meetings with Andrea, and then with both Andrea and Joe to gauge what he wanted from the work placement and to discuss what we might be able to offer him. Andrea was very informative and this enabled us to make a decision very quickly that we could offer a placement to Joe through AMH.
Our companies cover a wide variety of businesses so we discussed with Joe the variety of duties he could be asked to assist with.
With all agreements and paperwork in place, we moved forward with the placement and Joe started with us, carrying out Action Mental Health’s Induction Checklist on his first day.
Joe fitted in with the rest of the team very quickly and we made sure that we regularly touched base with him both in the early stages of the placement, and throughout the entirety of the placement, to make sure he felt comfortable and was enjoying it.
He very soon became a very valuable member of our team and his varied skill set was particularly suited to our Antiques and Restoration business.
Action Mental Health and in particular Andrea Warwick, have been very supportive of both ourselves and Joe throughout this time and made a point of coming in regularly to meet with Joe and us to monitor progress. When face to face meetings had to stop due to the pandemic Andrea ensured she kept regular contact via phone and email.
The placement is due to end in February 2021 but we are delighted to say that we have found it to be a huge success and of huge benefit. It has been nothing but a positive experience. We are now engaging in discussions with Joe to come up with a paid contract that will suit both him and ourselves and we have no doubt it will be a successful pairing moving forward into the future.
I would encourage any business to link in with AMH New Horizons and see what benefits their work placement program can bring to them and others.
Many thanks to the team at On the Square Emporium. The Action Mental Health ‘Working it Out’ project is part-funded through the NI European Social Fund Programme 2014-20 and the Department for the Economy.
If you would be interested in providing a placement please get in touch!
It is estimated that approximately 1.25 million people in the UK are affected by an eating disorder with an estimated 18,000 and 20,000 individuals living with an eating disorder in Northern Ireland at any one time. That person might be you, your sibling, your parent, child, neighbour – anyone.
This year, Action Mental Health marks Eating Disorder Awareness Week 2021 during the unprecedented times of a pandemic, when one particular illness has been on the rise – Binge Eating Disorder (BED). It is estimated that one in fifty people experience Binge Eating Disorder.
Fittingly, Eating Disorder Awareness Week this year focuses on Binge Eating Disorder and how it has thrived in the isolation Covid-19 has enforced on society, when sufferers have been denied their usual coping mechanisms and support networks.
Among Action Mental Health’s myriad services is its own specialist eating disorder service AMH everyBODY. Serving people with eating disorders in the Southern Health and Social Care Trust (SHSCT) area, its team are this week sharing their expertise and guidance on coping with an eating disorder to everyone.
Seen as a ‘lifeline’ by the clients, AMH everyBODY not only supports service users, in partnership with the SHSCT, but also their families, who are often left feeling helpless and unsure how to help their loved ones in need.
Statistics show that eating disorders claim more lives than any other mental illness, with one in five of the most seriously affected dying prematurely from the physical consequences or by suicide.
AMH everyBODY promotes a greater understanding and awareness of eating disorders, promotes positive lifestyle choices in people about eating to develop preventative, self-supporting skills and break the associated stigma.
Often, unhelpful assumptions that eating disorders are merely attention-seeking behaviour or fad dieting is what stops people seeking the support they need – having an eating disorder is a serious mental health condition.
“The focus of Action Mental Health everyBODY’s approach is recovery through partnership; a partnership between the person, their family and the SHSCT, who, in working collectively, will provide comprehensive support towards recovery. AMH everyBODY provides much needed support not only to the person affected but also to their families and friends at the very popular Carers’ Group monthly meeting – which is currently online.
“AMH everyBODY exists to bridge the gap on the clients’ journey from the moment they seek help until they eventually get to speak to a medical expert, as with existing waiting lists this can be a long time.
“When people have taken that important step and are willing to engage and seek help AMH everyBODY offers a recovery approach in sessions when people will receive information and support to develop skills, stay focused and healthy until they see a therapist.”
Prior to appointments people can feel unsupported and alone, contact with AMH everyBODY at this time will help people support themselves and get the best from their therapist when they meet.
Eating disorders affect over 700,000 women and men in the UK at any one time, with research suggesting that this figure is vastly underestimated. It is thought some 80% of individuals who screen positively for having an eating disorder have never accessed help or support. One of the most harmful symptoms of an eating disorder is silence – AMH everyBODY encourages people affected to speak out for support and know that a listening, understanding and confidential ear will be there to provide support towards recovery.
AMH everyBODY Manager, Colin Loughran said:
“This is a very practical model and one that could be used as a model of best practice throughout Northern Ireland. There is a significant shortfall in support services for people experiencing eating disorder and their families, prior to patients being seen by clinicians.”
If you live in the Southern Health Trust Area you can contact the AMH everyBODY Team – T: 028 3839 2314 or E: [email protected]
