• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Think Positive

Improving student mental wellbeing and tackling the stigma attached to mental illness.

  • Home
  • Our Work
    • 2020 MH Research
    • Student Mental Health Agreement Project
      • Sign-up
      • 2019/20 Participants
      • FAQs
    • Consultancy Support Appointment Booking
    • Small Grant Scheme
  • 2020 conference
    • Session sign-up
    • Sign-up – now closed
  • Resources
    • Project resources
    • Order activity freebies
    • Refreshers’ Event
    • Support and Links
    • Research and other
    • COVID-19
      • Resources
    • Other
      • Recovery
      • Self Management
      • Student Mental Health Campaigns
      • Stigma and Discrimination
      • Supporting students: Mental Health Journeys
      • Mental Health Quick Info
      • Newsletter
  • News and Blogs
  • E-mail
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter

26th February 2014

Eating Disorders Come in Many Sizes – #EDAW14

This week, 24th February – 2nd March 2014, is eating disorder awareness week (EDAW).

When you think about eating disorders, anorexia and bulimia are perhaps the words that come to mind – but actually the majority of people with an eating disorder would actually fall into the categories of Eating Disorder Not Otherwise Specified (EDNOS) or binge eating disorder. It is estimated that 40% of those with eating disorders would be classified as having bulimia, and 10% as having anorexia. Anorexia is the least common eating disorder, but the one that probably gets the most attention in the media.

All eating disorders can be destructive, painful and cause disruption to study, relationships, work, family life and social life. Anyone who is experiencing an eating disorder is entitled to and deserves the help they want and need to recover.

Eating disorders are mental illnesses, and they cannot be seen by looking at someone. Only a small percentage of people with eating disorders will be underweight, the majority are within what we’d classify as a normal weight or are overweight. Mental health problems can’t be seen or measured by a physical symptom – so it is important that we remember that we can’t judge someone’s experience with an eating disorder by their weight, shape or size.

There seems to be many more blogs and articles around anorexia than any other eating disorder, and having experienced both anorexia and bulimia, I think I am more comfortable talking about anorexia because bulimia (for me) had so much more shame attached to it. How many times do you see food waste adverts, or have you had a friend or relative tell you not to waste food because there are children starving somewhere in the world? Yet I was wasting huge quantities of food by vomiting after I had eaten. Also, being sick is quite gross – why would anyone want to talk about being sick? As for laxatives, well no one wants to discuss the effects of those. I think because I felt so out of control, so full of guilt and shame, and so lonely, it was more difficult to live with than anorexia, for me. I didn’t tell anyone about it, I was so secretive; I was convinced people could smell sick from me or tell I had been sick. I would vary which shops I went to so that no one knew how much or what odd foods I was buying and I was even followed round some shops by security guards because of my unusual habits and frequent visits.

What I hoped to do in this blog was to raise awareness of the number of eating disorders around and make clear that you can’t see who is ill and who isn’t. To end, I’ll share with you a quote I like: “Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.”

You can find out more about eating disorders and the support available by looking at B-eats website: http://www.b-eat.co.uk They have information, online support, live chats and forums, as well as a helpline for adults (over 18): 0845 634 1414,  email: help@b-eat.co.uk and their Youthline for young people under 25: 0845 634 7650,  email: fyp@b-eat.org.uk – they can also call you back if you text ‘call back’ to 07786 20 18 20 (they aim to call back within 24 hours.)

Share on FacebookShare on Google+Tweet about this on TwitterShare on LinkedInPrint this page
Previous Post
Next Post

Reader Interactions

Trackbacks

  1. “Eating Disorders: Many Different Forms, All a Challenge to Beat” | Pennsylvania Mental Health Issues says:
    27th February 2014 at 5:08 pm

    […] Eating Disorders Come in Many Sizes – #EDAW14 (thinkpositivenusblog.wordpress.com) […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

We want to hear from you

We want to keep you up to date with our work and the landscape for student mental health in Scotland.

We also want to share the voices and experience of staff and students in Education. This blog area is where we will publish blogs and other content from you.

Get in touch if you would like to write something: thinkpositive@nus-scotland.org.uk

You can also keep an eye on our social media for us doing shout outs for contributors!

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter for regular updates!

stigma Sarah

More from the blog

The Feeling Good App – University of Edinburgh

26th October 2020

World Mental Health Day – 2020

12th October 2020

Digital Wellbeing

1st September 2020

Tweets by thinkposNUS
  • Is your university signed-up to our Student Mental Health Agreement Project? 🌟 Make sure book a consultancy appoint… https://t.co/Awi14twubJ 22nd January 2021 12:30 pm

Footer

Contact us

NUS Scotland
1 Papermill Wynd,
McDonald Road,
Edinburgh
EH7 4QL

Registered charity: SCO043361

E:  thinkpositive@nus-scotland.org.uk

thinkpositive.scot

National union of students scotland logo

Healthier Scotland logo

  • Sitemap
  • Privacy
  • Accessibility

Copyright © 2021 National Union of Students · Illustrations by createpod · Site by graphics.coop · Powered by WordPress