Funny story.
So, I was talking with a previous therapist today and inquiring about maybe working with her again. She told me that she was now using a new kind of therapy -- CBT-E. It sounded familiar to me, but all I could recall off the top of my head was that...
Get dressed in the dark
First, in case you don’t know what “body checking” is, there’s a great description at Eating Disorder Hope: The truth is, everyone checks their body on occasion; perhaps it’s taking note of how clothes fit or grabbing a quick peek at the reflection in a store window. However, those with eating disorders repeatedly check their...
Stealing from the holidays
What does the eating disorder steal from your holidays?
1. Time spent with friends and family
2. Holiday spirit
3. The world outside of treatment
4. Holiday food
5. Almost a whole season of the year that's different from any other time
4 ways to lie
Some interesting thoughts on truth vs. lies from two of my favorite philosophers — Mark Twain and Gregory House. “If you tell the truth, you don’t need to remember anything.” – Mark Twain “I don’t ask why patients lie, I just assume they all do.” “It’s a basic truth of the human condition that everybody...
Empowered discussion
Laura from “Eating With Your Anorexic” posted something the other day, that I just HAD to comment on: Something new is happening in eating disorders. The voice of eating disorder patients is less stereotyped, more empowered, and less victimized. Why? I attribute the changes to two separate but interacting elements: the cross-pollination of the Internet,...
Amenorrhea & pregnancy: not mutually exclusive
While it took me a few minutes to rationalize how unplanned pregnancies could be MORE common in those with an ED history, I did eventually come up with a few theories...
Not sold on shame
There was a post on Lifehack the other day called, “3 Reasons Why Shame is Your Friend.” I saw that headline and of course HAD to read it. It turns out it’s the third in a series, after “Why Fear is Your Friend” and “Why Sadness is Your Friend.” How many times have we talked...
Celebrity Rehab – Helpful or hurtful?
In case you missed it (like I did), the new season of Celebrity Rehab began a couple of weeks ago. I’m just now catching up, and in the process of trying to watch everything on VH1.com, ran across a blog post about Drew Pinsky and his interview in GQ magazine. When Vargas-Cooper asks Pinsky if...
Coded excuses
Dr. Walter Vandereycken did a really interesting study on how both professionals and patients viewed dropping out from eating disorder treatment. It's something that I've definitely observed (patients and staff having different takes on why someone leaves...
Social media — a new kind of medialization
I think that social media is creating a new kind of medialization -- one where you don't have that intermediary between researchers and the public. Sure, I retweet news articles all the time, but I can also talk to psychologists, doctors, and researchers directly. Now, I wouldn't consider twitter "a primary source of health information,"...
Medialization catch-22s
While mental illnesses are to some extent social constructions, the thing about research is that you are creating new knowledge by observing and writing about it. While new diagnoses may be fads, they also are probably worthy of additional study and analysis. It's only through additional study that scientists can determine if...
ELM: Inner Guidance
In case you missed the first post, I joined an ED blogger book club that’s reading “Eating in the Light of the Moon.” This week is Chapter 2: The Buried Moon – Rediscovering the Feminine. Also, I think I failed to mention this last time, but I skip all the fables (or whatever you want...
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