SEED

I just want to take a break from my usual blog posts. I've mentioned the charity SEED a few times before but for those of you who might not be familiar with it it is a local charity dedicated to supporting people recovering from an eating disorder and supporting families and carers of those with an eating disorder. They played a huge role in my recovery from my eating disorder and I would just like to take this opportunity to tell you about some of their services, in case I have any local readers I don't know about and also to ask for your support as they have a runner in the London Marathon and any sponsorship for him would be very gratefully received and would be put to great use.

Youth Self Help United
A group I will be co-facilitating. It is for eating disorder sufferers aged 10-17 and it meets the first Monday of every month at the Endsleigh Centre from 6-7.30. We meet in the Garden Room entry via the side staff entrance and there is provision for carers to stop and have a coffee or just relax for an hour or so. Emily, who is in recovery from anorexia and saw the gap for people under 18. is keen to support young people and dispel the isolation she felt when she was affectedby this devastating illness.. It is a great addition to the SEED services.

Support Group
For sufferers and carers, it is held every first Wednesday of the month also at the Endsleigh Centre from 7-9. We meet in the Garden Room – entry via the side staff entrance. This was the first group I ever went to with Mike and they were so welcoming.

Self Help Group
Taken from the website... This group is for sufferers only and we concentrate on motivational work, confidence building and problem solving, giving you the tools to deal with everyday problems and difficult situations you may be experiencing in a way that is not through the 'control' of an Eating Disorder. We encourage that you make small changes that are realistic and achievable so that you regain 'management' over your illness. A warm welcome guaranteed! They have a rolling program so you can start at any time. This group is held from 7-9 also at the Endsleigh centre on the 2nd Tuesday of every month and again we meet in the Garden Room – entry via the side staff entrance.

Email and Telephone buddies.
Eating disorder sufferers can be paired up with either an email or telephone buddy who they can talk to about their eating disorder. They offer support on a weekly basis and it is particularly useful to those facing long waiting lists for NHS services.

Walking on Eggshells
A workshop for carers which Mike is involved with. This isn't a monthly group but a structured day long workshop, information about when the next one is running can be found on the SEED website. It is based on the Maudsley Method.

They also offer an eating disorder helpline, nutritional helpline and monthly one off workshops which include a wide variety of topics from CBT work to laughter workshops.

So you can see why I want to support them! Any local person (Hull and East Riding) interested in any of the above services do not hesitate to get in touch with me at box-run-eat@live.co.uk or go direct to SEED info@seedeatingdisorders.co.uk or telephone 01482 718130.

Also, last but not least, the cheeky part! Please go here and support Chris, he is running the London Marathon for SEED and any amount you can donate would be so glady received! You can donate via paypal on the top left hand corner. Thanks so much for reading my little plug! All in a good cause :-)

NEDAwareness Week

NEDAwareness Week 2010: February 21-27
Theme: It's Time to Talk About It

As some of you may know, I struggled with an eating disorder for a long time, aged 16-23 and although I class myself as recovered now I do still have bad days. The illness has had a huge impact on my life and will probably be present, but in a controlled way for the rest of my life. Eating disorder awareness is really important to me. It is misunderstood by so many, even many doctors. Many of the doctors I have seen in the past have had no idea what to do with someone with an eating disorder, the most memorable was one telling me that I didn't need to look like Kate Moss so just start eating properly... So I would just like to dedicate a quick post to the National Eating Disorders Awareness Week.

Taken from the website;
2010 Theme: It’s Time to Talk About It
This year the National Eating Disorders Association is stressing that it’s time to talk about eating disorders. We live in a culture saturated with unrealistic body-image messages and almost all of us know somebody struggling with an eating disorder. Because this is true, we urge you to talk about it......and do just one thing during NEDAwareness Week to 1) raise awareness that eating disorders are serious illnesses, not lifestyle choices; 2) provide accurate information to medical, educational and/or business communities, and 3) direct people to information and resources about eating disorders.

They also raise three key points,
1) Eating disorders are illnesses, not lifestyle choices
2) Prevention, education and access to care are critical
3) Help is available and recovery is possibly

More on these points is available here and the NEDA homepage is here

British websites
B-eat
B-eat for young people
Seed - the self help group and charity which helped me

If you are reading this and you're struggling with an eating disorder, there are lots of helpful websites out there. There are also lots of self help groups, through the British group BEAT you can use a search function to locate one near you.

There are also many communities on facebook and myspace which are recovery focussed which I've found helpful in the past.

If anyone has any questions feel free to ask.