Disordered Eating as a Precursor to Eating Disorders

It is important to have awareness of disordered eating behaviors (including dieting) because they can be precursors to eating disorders. Disordered eating may include (and is not limited to) a rigid food and exercise regime; feelings of guilt or shame when unable to maintain said regime; a preoccupation with food, body, and exercise that has […]

Ending Weight-Based Bullying: Encouraging Health Without the Weight Talk

Bullying is a harsh form of judgment. It’s painful. And the scars, whether emotional or physical, can last for years to come. Weight-based and any other form of bullying leaves the victim feeling insecure, excluded, and unsafe. Children will do whatever they can to change what’s “wrong” to find safety and fit in with their […]

Everyone Says I Should Journal, But What’s the Point?

I was told early on, that journaling might be a really effective tool to help me on my journey to recovery. I know from talking to so many other people who suffer with an eating disorder that I’m not the only one who has been encouraged to use writing as a way to connect to […]

Yoga for Self-Care

I often use the beautiful words of the poet Rumi to probe my yoga students: “Do you pay regular visits to yourself? Start now.” I follow this with the very powerful declaration of the first verse of the treatise Yoga Sutra, “Atha Yoganushasanam,” which means, “Now is the time for Yoga.” Most people know what yoga […]

World Mental Health Day 2018: Resource Round-Up

Today is World Mental Health Day, an annual awareness and education initiative spearheaded by the World Federation for Mental Health (WFMH). This year’s campaign highlights the importance of increased mental health awareness, services, and care for young people in a changing world. Through NEDA’s Student Life initiative, we’ve heard from our young constituents about the need for […]

More than picky eating—7 things to know about ARFID

Most parents can attest to the difficulty of getting kids to try new foods. Picky eating is nothing new, but what happens when it involves many foods, never goes away, or gets worse? Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID) is an eating disorder involving an extreme avoidance or low intake of food. Dr. Julie Lesser, MD, […]

Climbing into My Body

Eating disorders disconnect sufferers from healthy intuition by fixating on trivial externalities, falsely assigning meaning to numbers, objects, and food in an effort to soothe a damaged psyche. Having an eating disorder is living half in the failures of the past and half in the dreaded unknown of the future, and never fully aware of […]