Category: Eating Disorders

advocacy My Kid is Back – After the storm, a mother’s view of Eating Disorder recovery

My Kid is Back – After the storm, a mother’s view of Eating Disorder recovery

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It is surprising how life can change. A storm, a diagnosis. Two years ago, I was driving on the motorway, torrential rain pouring down, making it hard to see anything. Summer and I were on our way home, following a specialist’s appointment, trying to figure out what was going on...

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advocacy The Scientist and the Storyteller

The Scientist and the Storyteller

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Why this relationship matters There are many kinds of relationships that steady a life: family, friends, cherished companions (including the furry ones). Then there are the few who become anchors for the work we feel called to do. For almost two decades, Professor Daniel Le Grange has been one of...

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advocacy Living my next chapter

Living my next chapter

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I am often asked if I plan to write another book.  My answer is, “No, I’m living my next chapter.”  Four years have passed since the publication of my memoir, The Longest Match: Rallying to Defeat an Eating Disorder in Midlife.  Now is a good time to write about that...

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advocacy Childhood pictures have a story to tell

Childhood pictures have a story to tell

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Recently, I looked through years and years of old family photographs. I’d seen these pictures before, but this time was different. I didn’t begin looking at them with my eating disorder in mind, but as I watched myself grow from an infant to a toddler to a schoolgirl to a...

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eating disorders My Kid is Back – book launch with June Alexander

My Kid is Back – book launch with June Alexander

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I’m delighted to share that in a special event for Australia’s National Carers Week, Eating Disorders Victoria (EDV) will launch the exciting second edition of My Kid is Back. This well-loved publication has guided many families caring for a loved one with an eating disorder. It is full of stories from...

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advocacy Redefining ‘Letting myself go’: Embracing life at 70

Redefining ‘Letting myself go’: Embracing life at 70

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About six weeks from now, I will be 70 years old. 70! That feels like a big number, signifying that I have been on this planet for seven decades and entering the eighth. I can hardly believe it! I certainly don’t feel that old, whatever that means. Ten years ago...

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advocacy When Anorexia Nervosa pretends to help

When Anorexia Nervosa pretends to help

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For many years, anorexia was my protector. For many years, from age 11, I did not know I had an illness called anorexia. I mean, I thought I was me. Period. Sure, I’d been feeling very anxious about things happening around me; things beyond my control. And then what seemed...

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advocacy Together, we’re building a global community for eating disorder research and hope

Together, we’re building a global community for eating disorder research and hope

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In late 2023, I had a dream: to create a global meeting place for anyone and everyone working toward a better understanding and care for eating disorders. Together with my team, that dream has come to life as CoRe-ED – the Consortium for Research in Eating Disorders  – and I’m...

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advocacy Emerging whole: a life reclaimed

Emerging whole: a life reclaimed

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There was a time when I didn’t know who I was. Not really. Not in the way that lets you walk into a room, make a choice, or even sit with your own thoughts and trust that they’re truly yours. Anorexia nervosa took hold of me when I was 11...

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advocacy Lived experience must lead change: eating disorders, systemic silence, and a layperson’s resolve

Lived experience must lead change: eating disorders, systemic silence, and a layperson’s resolve

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Professor Kim’s reply had arrived in my inbox the previous evening, but I couldn’t bring myself to open it right away. When I opened it the next morning at my desk, I felt relieved. Prof. Kim wrote: It feels like [the eating disorders field is] several decades behind compared to...

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