Several thoughts flashed through my mind as I read the last few posts.
First and foremost, as is evident by the many posts, people have varying views on how best to treat ED's. As a parent, when you first go for help, this dichotomy of approaches should be fully explained. Parents need to be made aware of the differing viewpoints and ALLOWED TO CHOOSE their path of treatment. This didn't happen for me and my family and I think that's a very common experience. As for 'different approaches work for different people'--Richelle, these were the EXACT WORDS a highly regarded ED nutritionist said to me when I first sought help and asked about evidenced based practice for adolescents. Perhaps in a highly theoretical way this is true, but I needed specific, concrete help in a big hurry--we were in a huge crisis. I needed RESEARCH driven information. I needed phone numbers. I needed a how-to manual. I needed support. And I needed to know specific options. I am certainly smart enough to figure out what is best for my family. When I asked questions (and they were good questions)the answers seemed so vague. And, it left me reeling...was ED treatment really this fuzzy? (FYI, this was back in 2003)
Second, I have heard (and Shelley, you've verified through your own personal experiences for me) that therapists and nutritionists often have a history of past ED's themselves. If this is the case, I think it's an extremely important piece of information they should share with parents seeking services. Why, you might ask? (and you might say that this is a 'boundary violation' itself). However, having had a past ED might strongly predispose a person to one viewpoint of cause and treatment over another. And, while such a person might indeed be a dedicated, caring therapist or nutritionist and very sympathetic with their clients, it could also be that they share only their personal perspective on cause and treatment. And, I'd certainly want to know that they had no lingering illness themselves. Sort of a case of "full disclosure".
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Several thoughts flashed through my mind as I read the last few posts.
First and foremost, as is evident by the many posts, people have varying views on how best to treat ED's. As a parent, when you first go for help, this dichotomy of approaches should be fully explained. Parents need to be made aware of the differing viewpoints and ALLOWED TO CHOOSE their path of treatment. This didn't happen for me and my family and I think that's a very common experience. As for 'different approaches work for different people'--Richelle, these were the EXACT WORDS a highly regarded ED nutritionist said to me when I first sought help and asked about evidenced based practice for adolescents. Perhaps in a highly theoretical way this is true, but I needed specific, concrete help in a big hurry--we were in a huge crisis. I needed RESEARCH driven information. I needed phone numbers. I needed a how-to manual. I needed support. And I needed to know specific options. I am certainly smart enough to figure out what is best for my family. When I asked questions (and they were good questions)the answers seemed so vague. And, it left me reeling...was ED treatment really this fuzzy? (FYI, this was back in 2003)
Second, I have heard (and Shelley, you've verified through your own personal experiences for me) that therapists and nutritionists often have a history of past ED's themselves. If this is the case, I think it's an extremely important piece of information they should share with parents seeking services. Why, you might ask? (and you might say that this is a 'boundary violation' itself). However, having had a past ED might strongly predispose a person to one viewpoint of cause and treatment over another. And, while such a person might indeed be a dedicated, caring therapist or nutritionist and very sympathetic with their clients, it could also be that they share only their personal perspective on cause and treatment. And, I'd certainly want to know that they had no lingering illness themselves. Sort of a case of "full disclosure".
a late dinner is calling...
anne
June 9, 2009 - 5:42pmThis Comment
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