Facebook Pixel

Mom Uses Family Support for Treatment of Anorexia, Bulimia

 
Rate This

Families Empowered and Supporting Treatments of Eating Disorders or F.E.A.S.T., with its seemingly ironic acronym, is an eating disorder alliance founded by Laura Collins and an international group of parent activists according to their Web site, http://www.feast-ed.org/feast.html.

Laura Collins’ personal story is actually the story of how F.E.A.S.T. came into existence. Laura tells this story in her book "Eating with Your Anorexic: How My Child Recovered Through Family-Based Treatment and Yours Can Too." She writes that she had a normal, happy family. As parents, they were engaged with their children in a healthy, loving way. Then one day everything changed.

How did this happen? Laura writes, “…something about her [daughter’s] thighs being too big.” Something about her daughter’s thighs being too big catapulted Laura’s family into an anorexic nightmare.

Something about stomachs being too big. Something about backsides being too big. Something about cheekbones not being as defined as they “should be.” It’s always something in this superficial society.

But Laura’s story gets worse. When these distraught parents brought their depleted daughter to professionals for help, were they greeted with sympathy and guidance? No, they were treated with suspicion and locked out of her treatment. Laura, like so many parents, was supposed to leave her child’s care in the hands of professionals while she watched her daughter’s health deteriorate.

This is the story of thousands of parents. But you see, Laura asked too many questions and wanted to follow her own maternal instinct and feed her daughter. Imagine. Laura writes, “The therapist fired us for insubordination.” This sacking by the therapist was actually the beginning of her daughter’s recovery.

In fact, Laura and her husband tried a radical treatment. They started eating with their daughter at home and she responded and started to gain weight. It wasn’t easy; they were struggling. Fortunately, Laura read about the Maudsley Method and found a doctor who was willing to try it with their family.

The Maudsley Method is a family-based therapy for treating anorexia and bulimia, and unlike so many eating disorder therapies, the Maudsley Method does not demonize parents. Instead parents are trained by an eating disorder professional and actually put in charge of re-feeding their own child. In addition, this therapy provides support for parents and siblings because every member of the family is affected when one member has an eating disorder.

Practitioners of the Maudsley Method differ in another way from other therapists: they believe that there is a strong biological component to eating disorders. So when Laura’s daughter was bothered by thighs being too big, that was a reaction to our superficial culture. However, to stop eating because of this was, most likely, the genetic predisposition to anorexia.

Due to the family’s efforts and the Maudsley Method Laura’s daughter is thriving today. Of course a relapse is always possible, but both parents and daughter are ever vigilant and know what to do if one occurs.

While Laura was treating her daughter, she was also reaching out to other activist parents worldwide who together started F.E.A.S.T. in 2008. I’ll write about this family-support resource in my next post.

http://www.feast-ed.org/feast.html
Collins, Laura. Eating with Your Anorexic: How My Child Recovered Through Family-Based Treatment and Yours Can Too. McGraw-Hill: U.S.A. 2005.

Add a Comment1 Comments

EmpowHER Guest
Anonymous

this cd is helped me:

http://www.justbewell.com/acatalog/Overcome_Bulimia.html

i am also exercising everyday, but i do not do any exercise that might make me bulkier. i like figure skating, irish step dance, ballet, pilates, gyrotonics, horseback riding, gymnastics, and yoga. i also walk a lot. i don't do cardio because it causes me to overeat and throw up.

i found raw honey (not the regular kind, but the kind you can order from amazon.com), all natural coconut water, and all natural aloe drinks (from amazon.com)helped with the physical damage. i drink a lot of tea (licorice tea is supposed to help) and water. fresh soups (the canned ones have too much sodium so i bloat and start panicking about my weight- i am also lactose intolerant so i avoid dairy foods so i do not bloat and panic about my weight) and oatmeal with a lot of milk (lactose-free for me)and brown sugar are good meal replacements for me.

i stopped talking to anyone that was mean to me if i told them to stop and they didnt. i also do not tell people everything because people would get too involved and stress me out. i also made my life more simple. i take naps or a bubble baths now when i feel overwhelmed.

i don't buy any trigger foods anymore, either.

i took control of my life. i do not listen to what others have to say. i make decisions for myself and i do what is best for me.

it takes time, but everything will be okay. i don't think it is supposed to go away one hundred percent, but if you slip up a few times a year is not damaging.

December 18, 2010 - 1:53am
Image CAPTCHA
Enter the characters shown in the image.
By submitting this form, you agree to EmpowHER's terms of service and privacy policy
Add a Comment

We value and respect our HERWriters' experiences, but everyone is different. Many of our writers are speaking from personal experience, and what's worked for them may not work for you. Their articles are not a substitute for medical advice, although we hope you can gain knowledge from their insight.

Bulimia Nervosa

Get Email Updates

Bulimia Nervosa Guide

HERWriter Guide

Have a question? We're here to help. Ask the Community.

ASK

Health Newsletter

Receive the latest and greatest in women's health and wellness from EmpowHER - for free!