WHAT ARE EATING DISORDERS?

Eating disorders are complex mental health conditions characterised by abnormal eating habits that can really negatively impact a person's physical health, emotions, and overall well-being. These disorders often involve extreme preoccupation with food, weight, shape and body image. They are often described as a disorder of 'disconnection' because of the huge impact and disconnection from many parts of a person's self and wider world that can occur. Here's a brief description of  a few types of eating disorders :

• Anorexia Nervosa: Involves severe restriction of food intake, intense fear of gaining weight, and a distorted body image that leads to significant weight loss.
• Bulimia Nervosa: Characterised by cycles of binge eating followed by behaviours to prevent weight gain, such as vomiting or excessive exercise.
• Binge Eating Disorder (BED): Involves recurrent episodes of consuming large quantities of food in a short period, accompanied by a lack of control during these episodes, but without purging behaviors.
• Other Specified Feeding or Eating Disorder (OSFED): A category that encompasses eating disorders that don't fit neatly into the above diagnoses but still cause significant distress or impairment.
• Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID): Is characterised by a lack of interest in eating, an avoidance of certain foods, or a restriction of the types of foods consumed. It is more than just picky eating; it's a condition that can cause significant nutritional deficiencies and can impact an individual's physical, social, and emotional well-being. It is not connected to concerns about body, weight, shape etc. 

These disorders are often driven by a combination of genetic, environmental, and psychological factors, such as societal pressures, trauma, or underlying mental health conditions. We work in a way that is neuro-affirmative, meaning that we are aware that eating disorders are historically understood and treated from a neurotypical perspective. We work with many neurodivergent individuals for whom typical support for recovery is not always fully helpful - and using a neuro-affirmative approach is more useful e.g. tailoring support to work with the way someone experiences the world, not against it. This means that often we seek to harness neurodivergent traist as strengths in recovery, rather than working against them. Please see the next tab for more details.