Hi there, Im a sufferer, Ill say that up front. But I spend a lot of time advocating and speaking with people who have all different experiences of ED which people seem to appreciate, to be able to hear the experiences of someone who is coming out the other side of ED, especially parents and I am always asked the same questions; - Did I do the wrong thing? (I always answer no) - What could I have done differently? (I always say that we cant change the past, we can only move forward from here. There is nothing you could have done differently or can do to change the past) - What is the answer? How do we stop our girls and boys falling trap to this insidious disease? (which I have no answer for). I always try my best to articulate the brain-based illness, not a vanity based illness and not a parent-caused illness. I explain the ANGI (Anorexia Nervosa Genetics Initiative) that is running through several countries at the moment. I always explain FEAST and ATDT and provide links. I always, always, always encourage as strongly as I can, parents to get their child a good GP, psychiatrist, psychologist, dietitian and other supports and for the parent to get support themselves and provide referral to the national eating disorders organisation here (Butterfly) and the state ones if they exist. I wish I could take away the pain of these parents, but I cant. I am always happy to meet, to talk, to be a sounding board. But with the lack of resources available, I so often hear I know my child has anorexia, but shes not underweight and theres a 6 week wait to see a psychiatrist and I cant get in to see a GP who knows what they are talking about and apart from keep trying, I cant offer anything. My question is; as parents, what has made you feel less alone? Are there any resources that I can provide to parents that have helped you? When youre in the middle of fighting for your childs life (& these people ask to meet with me, I dont seek them out, they seek me out because they want to talk to someone who has been through the pain their child is going through), is there ANYTHING that can ease that pain the tiniest amount? What helps from talking to someone who has been through it? DOES that help at all? As a sufferer I feel strongly that knowing I am not alone in this battle helps enormously, but as a parent, does that help any? Admin - I hope this is an appropriate post to make in F.E.A.S.T., if not, my apologies and please feel free to remove.
Posted on: Tue, 23 Sep 2014 02:07:27 +0000