Seeking help for an eating disorder

PATRICIA BOS: If you have an eating disorder, you usually do not seek help yourself– sometimes because you are not aware that you’re doing negative things or dangerous things, or sometimes you feel ashamed. Asking help however, is very, very important. Talking about it can also be very difficult because you feel guilty or perhaps that you’re afraid of talking about it with your parents, or perhaps you feel comfort in binge eating. Asking for help however, is very important so that you can recover and get a nice life again. If it’s not going well with someone, friends often see first. It’s very important that friends offer and arrange help.

So of course a person with an eating disorder at first can be very angry if a friend arranges help. However, in the end when the person is recovered he or she is most of the time very grateful that help is arranged. If you recognise yourself or a friend in Romey’s story, don’t hesitate and ask for help. Perhaps you recognise something of the obsessive eating behaviour, or other things you’ve heard. Ask for help, it really can be lifesaving.