Comments on: Why a hidden epidemic?

By: guinea pig

guinea pig — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 09:56:01 +0000

Adult women often have children/family situations that make it difficult to leave for the long periods of time recommended by hospitals and treatment programs … AND, those programs are very expensive, even with insurance, and I know that I am loathe to impose the cost of my illness (beyond the emotional and financial burdens already incurred) on my family. Moreover, I am more inclined to ante up for all the many ongoing and incidental expenses that come with raising children in favor of subsiziding my illness.

There is also guilt associated with “abandoning” the kids during formative years (and they’re all formative), and introducing additional stress in young peoples’ lives with your absence. Logistically, it is also difficult to find child-care/supervision (and a driver/chauffeur) to pick up all the tasks a parent-patient has responsibility for, especially if the spouse works full-time.

As an adult woman who has been an inpatiemt several times, I would also add that it’s difficult to adapt to the treatment milieu when you are accustomed to being on your own agenda, in charge, long out of school and dorms and settings where you do homework and live communally. Privacy and space are issues; familiarity of home and setting are more difficult than when I was younger; being paired with much-younger roommates; being monitored and treated by younger staff; feeling infantalized within the structure of programs; struggling to find relevance in groups not often geared toward the issues of older patients (in the many programs without age-based tracts … and we all know that patients tend to go wherever insurance allows/dictates).

I think I might have a million more, but those are some additional thoughts.

By: centerforeatingdisorders

centerforeatingdisorders — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 15:27:23 +0000

Thank you for calling attention to Dr. Trisha Gura’s interview on the Center for Eating Disorder’s blog. You brought up some great points about why adult women do not seek help for eating disorders!

Today, Tuesday, September 30, 2008 at 8:00 pm EDT, The Center for Eating Disorders at Sheppard Pratt is hosting a live chat with Dr. Trisha Gura in their forum. Participants will be able to chat one-on-one with Dr. Gura about any eating disorder related questions they may have. To participate, go to: http://www.eatingdisorder.org/forum/index.php

By: Laura Collins

Laura Collins — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 15:19:07 +0000

I’m not convinced that there is a change in the prevalence of older patients – there is little data on this. What we DO have are more treatment options marketing to that demographic. It could also be that generations of patients have suffered from inadequate treatment, or just were not treated although they had eating disorders all along.

I’m so glad you wrote “”Their parents are not seeking treatment for them.” That is probably the biggest difference between child and adult patients. I wish more parents knew they SHOULD and CAN. Too many parents are afraid, think the legalities are too complex, or more likely are told there is little they can do. The patient says he or she doesn’t want help, and society continues to think of that as a choice, not a symptom.

We have so far to go. But eating disorders at any age are still treatable – recovery, FULL recovery must be the goal for all patients.