Children's Mental Health Statistics and Information



Statistics:

Serious emotional disturbances affect 1 in 10 young people.

The onset of major mental illness may occur as early as 7 to 11 years of age.

Estimated: between 118,700 and 186,600 youths in the juvenile justice system have at least one mental disorder.

73% of children in juvenile detention facilities reported having mental health problems with 57% reporting having had prior mental health treatment/hospitalization.

21% of low-income children and youth ages 6 -17 have mental health problems.

Approximately 5% of children were prescribed medication for emotional and behavioral difficulties. Approximately 89% of the %5 were prescribed medication for hyperactivity, concentration, or impulsivity difficulties.

Approximately 2.9 million children (5.1%) were prescribed medication for emotional or behavioral difficulties.

Approximately5.3% (2.9 million) children received treatment for emotional or behavioral difficulties in addition to, or other than, medication.

Approximately 2/3 of all young people with mental health problems do not get the help they need.

Approximately 79% of children with a mental disorder, between the ages of 6 -17 receive no mental health care.

Approximately 20% (1 in 5) of children/adolescents may have a diagnosable mental disorder.

Children with mental disorders are estimated to range from 7.7 million to 12.8 million.

High school students with mental health problems are more likely to fail or drop out of school.

Up to 14% of high school students with mental health problems receive grades consisting of mostly Ds & Fs compared to 7% of children with disabilities.

25%- 44% of high school students with mental health problems will drop out of school.


Approximately 30%-40% of children with ADHD have family member(s)/relatives with ADHD.

ADHD is the most common psychiatric condition for children, affecting approximately 5%-10%.

Approximately 50% of children with ADHD are never diagnosed.

Estimated: 15% - 20% of children with ADHD have "Specific Learning Disability."

Estimated: 50% of children with a learning disability also have ADHD.

Approximately 3.4 of 1,000 children between the ages of 3-10 have autism.

As many as 1 in 10 children may suffer from an anxiety disorder.

A child's chances of having an anxiety disorder are increased if their parents have an anxiety disorder.

Almost a third of 6-12 year old children diagnosed with major depression will, within a few years, develop bipolar disorders.

Approximately 40% of the children & teens in acute psychiatric hospitals suffer from bipolar disorder.

Approximately 1%-6% of school age children have Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD).

ODD is more common in prepubescent boys. After puberty both genders are equally affected.

Schizophrenia is rare in children under the age of 12.

Schizophrenia will affect approximately 1 out of 1,000 adolescents.

As many as 1 in 10 children/adolescents may have conduct disorder.

Conduct disorder affects 11%-4% of children 9-17 years old.

Conduct disorder is more common in boys than girls.

Suicide is the 3rd leading cause of death for 15 - 24 year olds.

Suicide is the 6th leading cause of death for 5-15 year olds.

Approximately 90% of children who commit suicide have a mental disorder.

50% of children/youth within the child welfare system have mental health problems.

85% of children/ youth in the child welfare system do not receive the mental health services they need.

79% of children who have private health insurance /73% with public health insurance have unmet mental health needs.

1 in every 100-200 adolescent girls are affected by Anorexia.

Anorexia is the 3rd most common chronic illness among adolescents.

Approximately 1 in 10 cases of Anorexia will lead to death from cardiac arrest, suicide, or starvation.

Approximately 5%-10% of those diagnosed with anorexia or bulimia are male.

Anorexics are up to 10 times more likely to die because of their illness

15% of young US women not diagnosed with an eating disorder display substantially disordered eating behaviors and attitudes.

Estimated: 11% of high school students have been diagnosed with an eating disorder.

The onset of Binge Eating Disorder usually occurs during the late adolescence or in the early twenties.


Facts, Signs and Symptoms for Children:


Resources:


See also:
Adult Mental Health Statistics


Compiled from the following sites:
http://www.nmha.org/go/information/get-info/children-s-mental-health/children-s-mental-health-statistics

http://www.aacap.org/cs/root/resources_for_families/child_and_adolescent_mental_illness_statistics
http://www.statistics.gov.uk/cci/nugget.asp?id=1229 http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db08.pdf
http://www.eatingdisorderinfo.org/Resources/EatingDisordersStatistics.aspx
http://www.nmha.org/ http://www.nccp.org/publications/pub_687.html
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Morning Ritual: Eating Disorder and Body Image Poetry



I brush my teeth
head dipped
staring at
the toothpaste trail

so that I cannot see you

I fill my head
with humming
a mental tally of chores
counting numbers

to drown out your voice

I sidestep your duplicate
in the hallway
and the bedroom
as I get ready

you whisper of my imperfection

a soft buzz
a glimpse
I pretend I do not hear
I pretend I do not see

.... I pretend I am not her
anonymous




Be featured on Weighing The Facts: Share Your Poetry and Writings



Recovery Quote Of The Week: May 4th, 2010


If we really love ourselves, everything in our life works.
Louise L. Hay



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Children's Mental Health Awareness Day 2010


Thursday, May 6th, is the fifth annual National Children's Mental Health Awareness Day.

Serious emotional and mental health disorders in children are treatable. Treatment is essential to a child's overall health and well-being. Children and their families should not have to face these challenges with shame but with dignity, support, understanding, and acceptance.


The goal of Children's Mental Health Awareness Day is to promote positive mental health from birth to adulthood:
  • to raise awareness of effective programs for children's mental health needs
  • to demonstrate how children's mental health initiatives promote positive youth development, recovery, and resilience
  • to show how children with mental health needs thrive in their communities.

SAMHSA explains:

The overall message of Awareness Day is that children and youth with mental health needs and their families can thrive if provided with the services and supports they need. Children's mental health initiatives promote positive youth development, prevention, recovery, and resilience for children and youth with serious emotional disturbances and their families. It is a goal of children's mental health initiatives to transform the mental health service delivery system for children and youth with mental health needs and their families. In 2010, Awareness Day will mark its 5th anniversary, as well as a first-time focus at the national level on the topic of early childhood. The key message for 2010 is that "positive mental health is essential to a child's healthy development from birth."

By shining a spotlight on early childhood, Awareness Day efforts will encourage the following actions:

  • Integrate mental health into every environment that impacts child development from birth
  • Nurture the social and emotional well-being of children from birth
  • Look for and discuss milestones of a child's social and emotional development from birth


compiled from links above & the following sources:
http://www.samhsa.gov/index.aspx


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Mental Health Statistics and Resources



It is estimated that approximately 1 out of 4 U.S. adults (26%), 18 years of age and older, suffer from a mental disorder. That's 57.7 million people, according to the 2004 census.

Only 30% will seek/carry through with treatment.

Approximately 6% (1 in 17) suffer from a serious mental illness.

Nearly half of those with a mental disorder (45%) meet the criteria for 2 or more disorders at a given time.

In the US and Canada mental disorders are the leading cause for disability for people ages 14-44.

1 in 5 families are affected by mental illness.

Only 7% of all health-care expenditures are designated for mental health disorders.

Approximately half of mental disorders will occur before the age of 14.

10% of children and adolescents suffer from mental illness that is severe enough to cause some level of impairment.

Less than 1/3 of adults and 1/2 of children with a diagnosable mental disorder receive any treatment in a given year.

Approximately 20% of children (1 in 5) with a mental illness will receive mental health services.

16% of incarcerated adults suffer from a serious mental illness.

50% to 75% of juveniles in justice facilities suffer from a diagnosable mental health disorder.

Depression ranks as the #1 cause of disability worldwide.

People between the ages of 15 and 24 are most likely to experience a major depressive episode.

Substance abuse affects 50-60% of those with severe mental disorders.

20% of ailments that Americans seek a doctor's care for are due to some form of anxiety disorder.

Schizophrenic disorders affect 2 million Americans, with 300,000 new cases occurring each year.

Approximately 1/4 of the elderly labeled as senile actually suffer from a form of mental illness that can be treated effectively.

The 3rd leading cause of death for those between the ages of 15 and 24 is suicide.

Men are more likely to suffer from personality disorders and drug and alcohol abuse.

Women are at higher risk of suffering from anxiety disorders and depression.

Data reveals that the "disease burden" of mental health issues is 15%, which exceeds the disease burden of all forms of cancer combined.

Mental Health Resources: Hotlines, Organizations, Websites


MHA (Mental Health America)

Finding Help
Finding Treatment
Parity Laws
FAQS


US Dept Of Health And Human Services

Children and Families
Organizations and Financing
Resources


NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness)

Eating Disorders
Bipolar Disorder
Major Depression
Schizophrenia
Borderline Personality Disorder
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
More: By Illness
Find Support


National Institute Of Mental Health

Outreach Partnership Program


Prescription Assistance Programs

Needy Meds
RX Assist
Partnership For Prescription Assistance
NAMI Prescription Assistance Programs
Merck Programs For Those In Need
The Access Project
Disability Resources Org
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK)
MHA Prescription Payment Assistance

More Information:
CDC PrevalenceData Search by State
CDC US Fast Stats
CDC Mental Health Organizations by State
CDC Trauma and Disaster Mental Health Resources



compiled from the follow sources and linked above:
http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/statistics/index.shtml http://www.mhag.org/mental_health_facts.cfm
http://www.who.int/features/factfiles/mental_health/mental_health_facts/en/index.html
http://www.naminh.org/action-facts-myths.php
weighingthefacts.blogspot.com http://www.umm.edu/mentalhealth/facts.htm
picture source:flickr.com commons

Mental Health Month 2010: Live Your Life Well


Since 1949, May has been designated as Mental Health Month. This year's theme is Live Your Life Well, which "challenges us to promote health and wellness in homes, communities, schools, and inform those who don't believe it's attainable."

Mental Health America's Live Your Life Well public education campaign was created to help people enhance their well-being, and encourage people to take care of their mental health in times of stress and personal challenge.

Here are some links to get you started:

Additional Help:
Suicide Prevention Resources
Self-Harm Resources
Sexual Abuse Resources
Domestic Abuse/Violence Resources
Eating Disorder Resources



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Inspirational Eating Disorder Recovery Quotes: Attitude


Could we change our attitude, we should not only
see life differently, but life itself would come to be different.
Katherine Mansfield

Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference.
Winston Churchill

Every thought is a seed. If you plant crab apples, don't count on harvesting Golden Delicious.
Bill Meyer

No life is so hard that you can't make it easier by the way you take it.
Ellen Glasgow

Defeat is not bitter unless you swallow it.
Joe Clark

He started to sing as he tackled the thing
That couldn't be done, and he did it.
Edgar A. Guest

Become a possibilitarian. No matter how dark things seem to be or actually are, raise your sights and see possibilities - always see them, for they're always there.
Norman Vincent Peale

Keep a green tree in your heart and perhaps a singing bird will come.
Chinese Proverb

Every day may not be good, but there's something good in every day.
Author Unknown

We awaken in others the same attitude of mind we hold toward them.
Elbert Hubbard

I have found that if you love life, life will love you back.
Arthur Rubinstein

Your heart is a sun -
Joy its stars,
Faith a moon, shining in your darkness...
Terri Guillemets

For every day that there is sunshine, there will be days of rain,
it's how we dance within them both that shows our love and pain.
Joey Tolbert

I always plucked a thistle and planted a flower where I thought a flower would grow.
Abraham Lincoln

I have learned to use the word impossible with the greatest caution.
Wernher von Braun

If you don't like something change it; if you can't change it, change the way you think about it.
Mary Engelbreit

Oh, my friend, it's not what they take away from you that counts. It's what you do with what you have left.
Hubert Humphrey

So often time it happens, we all live our life in chains, and we never even know we have the key.
The Eagles

Too many people miss the silver lining because they're expecting gold.
Maurice Setter

Turn your face to the sun and the shadows fall behind you.
Maori Proverb

Happiness is an attitude. We either make ourselves miserable, or happy and strong. The amount of work is the same.
Francesca Reigler

Wherever you go, no matter what the weather, always bring your own sunshine.
Anthony J. D'Angelo

Being in a good frame of mind helps keep one in the picture of health.
Unknown

I think, what has this day brought me, and what have I given it?
Henry Moore

Be of good cheer. Do not think of today's failures, but of the success that may come tomorrow. You have set yourselves a difficult task, but you will succeed if you persevere; and you will find a joy in overcoming obstacles. Remember, no effort that we make to attain something beautiful is ever lost.
Helen Keller

Your hopes, dreams and aspirations are legitimate. They are trying to take you airborne, above the clouds, above the storms, if you only let them.
William James

Now and then it’s good to pause in our pursuit of happiness and just be happy.
Robert Brault

A pessimist is one who makes difficulties of his opportunities and an optimist is one who makes opportunities of his difficulties.
Harry Truman

Clouds come floating into my life, no longer to carry rain or usher storm, but to add color to my sunset sky.
Rabindranath Tagore

Think big thoughts but relish small pleasures.
H. Jackson Brown, Jr

I wish I was a glow worm,
A glow worm's never glum.
'Cos how can you be grumpy
When the sun shines out your bum!
Unknown

You can do anything you think you can. This knowledge is literally the gift of the gods, for through it you can solve every human problem. It should make of you an incurable optimist. It is the open door.
Robert Collier

Swallow a toad in the morning and you will encounter nothing more disgusting the rest of the day.
Nicholas Chamfort

I have heard there are troubles of more than one kind.
Some come from ahead and some come from behind.
But I've bought a big bat. I'm all ready you see.
Now my troubles are going to have troubles with me!
Dr. Seuss

To be wronged is nothing unless you continue to remember it.
Confucius

If you don't get everything you want, think of the things you don't get that you don't want.
Oscar Wilde

Henceforth I ask not good-fortune, I myself am good-fortune.
Walt Whitman

A happy person is not a person in a certain set of circumstances, but rather a person with a certain set of attitudes.
Hugh Downs

Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for.
Epicurus

Say you are well, or all is well with you,
And God shall hear your words and make them true.
Ella Wheeler Wilcox

Optimism is the foundation of courage.
Nicholas Murray Butler

Anything's possible if you've got enough nerve.
J. K. Rowling

Life is a shipwreck but we must not forget to sing in the lifeboats.
Voltaire

Whenever you fall, pick something up.
Oswald Avery

The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes.
William James

Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence.
Helen Keller

It isn't our position but our disposition which makes us happy.
Author Unknown

The block of granite which was an obstacle in the pathway of the weak, became a stepping-stone in the pathway of the strong.
Thomas Carlyle

Where hope grows, miracles blossom.
Elna Rae

We can destroy ourselves by cynicism and disillusion, just as effectively as by bombs.
Kenneth Clark

I have learned to use the word impossible with the greatest caution.
Wernher von Braun

Some days there won't be a song in your heart. Sing anyway.
Emory Austin

A cloudy day is no match for a sunny disposition.
William Arthur Ward

This weary ol' workhorse is a unicorn, my friend.
Terri Guillemets

The human spirit is stronger than anything that can happen to it.
C.C. Scott

The impossible can always be broken down into possibilities.
Unknown

When the Japanese mend broken objects, they aggrandize the damage by filling the cracks with gold. They believe that when something's suffered damage and has a history it becomes more beautiful.
Barbara Bloom

I've got dreams in hidden places and extra smiles for when I'm blue.
Author Unknown

Good fortune shies away from gloom. Keep your spirits up. Good things will come to you and you will come to good things.
Glorie Abelhas

We all have our limitations, but when we give in to our critics, we also have theirs.
Robert Brault

I don't think of all the misery but of the beauty that still remains.
Anne Frank

Never, never, never give up.
Winston Churchill

We shall draw from the heart of suffering itself the means of inspiration and survival.
Winston Churchill

Look at everything as though you were seeing it either for the first or last time.
Betty Smith

We acquire the strength we have overcome.
Ralph Waldo Emerson

Wherever you go, no matter what the weather, always bring your own sunshine.
Anthony J. D'Angelo

The only disability in life is a bad attitude.
Scott Hamilton

Things turn out best for the people who make the best out of the way things turn out.
Art Linkletter

Nothing contributes so much to tranquilize the mind as a steady purpose - a point on which the soul may fix its intellectual eye.
Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley

Misery is a communicable disease.
Martha Graham

Be enthusiastic. Remember the placebo effect - 30% of medicine is showbiz.
Ronald Spark

Optimist: someone who isn't sure whether life is a tragedy or a comedy but is tickled silly just to be in the play.
Robert Brault

Some people are always grumbling because roses have thorns; I am thankful that thorns have roses.
Alphonse Karr

Surrounded by people who love life, you love it too; surrounded by people who don't, you don't.
Mignon McLaughlin


*Please see sidebar for more Inspirational Recovery Quotes and Quotes of The Week



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Eating Disorders In The News: April 29, 2010



Bill Aids Eating Disorder Care

By Tara Bannow mndaily.com

An act propelled by two Minnesota senators seeks to improve the plight of those suffering from eating disorders and prevent future cases from starting.

The Freed Act would allocate research money to the National Institutes of Health to better investigate the causes of eating disorders and improve treatment methods. The research would also seek to improve public data on eating disorders, including morbidity and mortality rates.

The act was sponsored Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., and recently introduced by Sens. Amy Klobuchar D-Minn., and Tom Harkin, D-Iowa.

“The fact is, we don’t know nearly enough about diagnosing, treating and preventing these diseases,” Franken wrote in a statement. “Today’s legislation is a major step forward in understanding eating disorders and how to stop them from destroying lives.”

When patients with less obvious eating disorders visit their doctors, it’s not uncommon for them to hear lines like “You look great, I wish all my patients looked like you,” said Jeanine Cogan, policy director of the Eating Disorders Coalition.

Read Bill Aids Eating Disorder Care in full.


A Better Body Image

By Molly Logan Anderson Uticaod.com

Can you feel the excitement in the air as school-age kids enter the summer months? Free of their tight schedule and normal routine, warm weather offers kids plenty of opportunities for fun in the sun and time with friends. Unfortunately, the same activities that kids enjoy so much can also cause anxiety about their appearance.For teens, tweens and even elementary-age children, physical appearance is a top concern. If parents start early and are consistent with positive body-image messages, children will be better able to avoid disordered eating patterns down the line.

According to the National Eating Disorders Association, a 1991 study found that 42 percent of first- through third-grade girls would like to be thinner. Another study that same year determined that 81 percent of 10-year-olds are afraid of being fat. Statistics like these suggest that a cultural bias toward thinness is leading our youth to value a particular size at a very young age. Parental guidance is more important than ever.

Why do kids care?

It seems as if childhood concerns regarding weight and appearance start earlier and earlier.

“I think the struggles affect kids at a much younger age,” says Kathy Kater, LICSW, psychotherapist and author of “Healthy Body Image: Teaching Kids to Eat and Love Their Bodies Too!”

Read A Better Body Image in full.


Fairmount Performing Arts Center play examines baffling world of food and body image

Cleveland.com


Amy is a teen who is happy to bake her dad his favorite chocolate cake for his birthday, but doesn't trust herself to eat one bite. Instead, she heads to her bedroom and madly runs in place to burn the calories she consumed at the family dinner.

Fortysomething "Calorie Woman" can spout off the number of calories in the most complicated "grande" coffee drink at Starbucks -- though she only orders the nonfat, sugar-free version, and panics when she tastes whole-milk foam added by mistake.

Read Fairmount Performing Arts in full.


Portland's Zoe Yates Tells Of Battle Back From Anorexia

Dorset Echo

A TEENAGER who fought against anorexia is warning others of the dangers posed by eating disorders.

Zoe Yates, from Portland, spent five years battling anorexia and ended up being sectioned under the Mental Health Act.

Her weight plummeted to under five stone as she refused to eat and spent prolonged periods in hospital.

Zoe, 19, is now well on her way to recovery and has used her savings to book an eight-week adventure in Southern India. She will be traveling with a friend who she met in hospital and together they will be going to volunteer in an orphanage.

Read Zoe's story in full


Way To Go! Rebecca Allen Of Roslyn High School

Newsday.com

Rebecca Allen knows firsthand about the dangers of eating disorders.

Allen, a Roslyn High School senior, was diagnosed with anorexia nervosa in 2006, and missed the start of her freshman year because she was admitted to Schneider Children's Hospital. Since then, Allen initiated the idea for Project HEAL, a nonprofit that gives funding to people battling eating disorders who can't afford treatment, which can be $30,000 a month, she said. So far, she's raised some $100,000.

"Insurance rarely covers eating disorders," Allen, 17, said. "I saw people firsthand being turned down for treatment."

Read Rebecca's story in full.



HBS Fashionably Fights Eating Disorders

Thecrimson.com


April is the month for fashion shows with a cause, it seems, and on April 13, the Harvard Business School’s Retail and Apparel Club hosted its 7th annual HBS fashion show at Mantra, a restaurant in downtown Boston. Every year, the fashion show aims to raise awareness for a selected charity “through the lens of fashion,” according to a press kit for the fashion show.

This year, the students celebrated beautiful people, beautiful clothes, and beautiful bodies in an effort to raise awareness for this year’s charity, the Harris Center for Education and Advocacy in Eating Disorders at Massachusetts General Hospital.

Read HBS in full.


German school takes teenagers to see cremations of young people to warn them of the dangers of addiction

DailyMail


A German town has begun taking teenagers to witness cremations of young people killed through drink or drugs in a bid to wean them from a life of addictions.

Children aged between 14 and 16 in Meissen now have to go at least once to the town crematorium to see the coffins of young victims burned in the 920 degree oven.

They are also shown the ashes, a machine which grinds bones to dust and the remains of false teeth that melt into unidentifiable bits of metal in the flames.

The shock-therapy, a new concept in Germany which normally does its best to shield children from the grim realities of the adult world, is being observed by other cities and towns with a view to copying it.

This week 40 youngsters from the Ebersbacher Middle School in the town stood in the chilly cool room of the crematorium among 200 corpses awaiting cremation.

Read about the cremations in full.


*article sources linked above.
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Recovery Quote Of The Week: April 26th, 2010


Faith is the bird that feels the light when the dawn is still dark.
Rabindranath Tagore


*Please see sidebar for more Recovery Quotes Of The Week and Inspirational Recovery Quotes.


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Guest Blogger Margarita Tartakovsky: Inspiring Words On Seeking ED Recovery


I am excited and delighted to introduce my first guest blogger, Margarita Tartakovsky of Weightless, a blog on PsychCentral.com, which focuses on body image, disordered eating, and eating disorders. From her Q&A interviews on through to her positive Body Image bolstering articles, her posts are informative, interesting, and very inspiring. If you haven't had the opportunity yet to visit there, I suggest you run on over and check it out. I promise you, you'll be glad that you did.

Inspiring Words on Seeking Eating Disorder Recovery

By: Margarita Tartakovsky MS

Seeking help when you’re struggling with an eating disorder might seem out of the question. Maybe you think no one can help. Maybe you see your disorder as a friend or your identity. But you are not your eating disorder. An eating disorder is a serious illness.

At Weightless, I regularly feature interviews with women who’ve recovered from eating disorders. One of the questions I ask is what motivated them to seek treatment. Today, I’d like to share with you a few of these answers.

If the idea of getting treatment for your eating disorder scares you or you’re afraid of taking the next step toward recovery, I hope the words below inspire you to talk to someone and find professional treatment. Even if you’ve already seen several therapists or been in treatment a few times, that doesn’t mean you can’t recover. Maybe your therapist didn’t specialize in eating disorders or maybe the two of you just didn’t click. None of these are reasons to give up. You may have to see several practitioners before finding the right one, but with some persistence, hard work and a desire to recover, you will find the right one. All you have to do is begin.

From Andrea Roe:

I wanted to get rid of my eating disorder and tried numerous times to recover by myself but it never worked. Even though I had read that recovery does exist, I didn’t really believe it was possible for me.

My turning point was when I met my husband. He believed in me no matter what. His love and support were what I needed to find the strength in me to reach out and do what it takes to beat this disorder. He was always there for me and never judged me. With his help and support, I felt for the first time that recovery was possible, even for me.

I could not have recovered without the help and support from others. I was close to giving up the fight many times, but my support team was there for me and believed in me, no matter what. And whenever I fell, they helped me get back up again to continue on with my recovery and healing journey. And they also celebrated my successes with me and reminded me of my successes when I was only concentrating on my failures and what was wrong with me. If it wasn’t for my support team, I would not be where I am today.

From Kate Le Page:

The first time I sought treatment I had been at school for several months with … [mono] … and had become so weak as a result that I was barely able to get out of bed. I was really frightened that my anorexia was making the virus harder to fight and decided to see my family doctor. Unfortunately, all he did was begin to weigh me every month and put me on various anti-depressants. This negative experience really put me off seeking further treatment.

By 1998, in my first year at university, my friends had begun to spot that something wasn’t right with my eating habits and they confronted me about it. My attendance was already beginning to suffer as I often felt so weak and exhausted that I would skip lectures. I had really gotten to a point where I knew the anorexia was preventing me from achieving my goal of getting a good degree.

From Kate Thieda:

A former teacher of mine who had been a mentor and second mother to me for over ten years confronted me during a visit to see her when I was twenty-eight. By this time, I had struggled with disordered eating for over eight years, and was virtually paralyzed when it came to making appropriate, healthy food choices. This was not the first time she had pushed me to reconsider my behavior, but I finally acknowledged that she was right and I needed help.

From Michelle Myers:

After a near-death experience (you can read my story on my blog here), I decided enough was enough. Though the thought of dying had intrigued me for a while, once I was almost there, I realized I desperately wanted to live – and REALLY live.

For the past four years of my life, I had merely existed. Avoiding food, pushing people away in my life, spending all of my time alone on the treadmill was no way to spend my time here on earth. I lost four years of my life, and my motivation to get better was my determination not to lose any more time.

Remember that while you didn’t choose to have any eating disorder, you can choose to get help and you can choose to fight. I hope you will.


Read why Margarita Tartakovsky blogs about these issues: Eating Disorders and Body Image Advocates & Why They Blog.


Eating Disorders Poll: My ED And My Marriage / Romantic Relationships


Please take a moment and share your experience with how your eating disorder affects your marriage /romantic relationships. Choose as many answers as apply. If you'd like to add more, please feel free to do so in the comments section of this post.
Thank you.
MrsM


Click here for This and Previous Polls and Results



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Recovery Quote Of The Week: April 19th, 2010


Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.
Lao Tzu


*Please see sidebar for links to more Recovery Quotes Of The Week and Inspirational Recovery Quotes.



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Eating Disorders In The News: April 03, 2010




Binge Eating Disorder: The Emotional Roots of a Physical Condition
Huffington Post: Sunny Gold

Something happened this morning in a nondescript "multipurpose room" on the campus of Pace University that could end up saving (literally) tens of thousands of lives. The Stop Obesity Alliance, the National Eating Disorders Association and key members of the mass media--three groups which, throughout the years have often been at loggerheads--got together for a long overdue talk. The subject? How the three groups can come together for the greatest good and talk about weight and health in a new, better way. I was there, in part, because I'm kind of a walking, breathing chimera of all three groups. I am recovered from binge eating disorder (BED) and obesity (I weighed 225 pounds during college, when my bingeing was at its worst), and I'm also a long-time health editor at Glamour magazine.

I've covered the health risks of obesity, smart nutrition and healthy weight loss--among many other women's health topics--for years. And, perhaps because of my personal history of BED, have often wondered why (oh God, why?) more obesity research and discussion of the obesity epidemic didn't focus on "disordered" eating. Of course obesity isn't an eating disorder, but it's undeniable that many people who are obese have one! Research has found that 10 to 15 percent of mildly obese individuals have BED, and it's been reported that many, many more engage in binge eating episodes. And we know from other research that binge eating creates real physiological changes in the brain that reinforce more binge eating, and therefore more depression, weight gain, obsession, dieting and ultimately, bingeing again. Except for patients lucky enough to be seen by top respected obesity treatment institutions, most obese people are treated for the physical symptoms and tangible causes of their ills--but not the emotional and mental roots.
Binge Eating Disorder: The Emotional Roots of a Physical Condition in full.



Rats Fed On Bacon, Cheesecake, and Ding-Dongs Become Addicted to Junk Food
Discover Magazine

Do you often feel the need for a sweet sugar rush or a moment of bacon-induced bliss? A new study offers evidence that that surge of pleasure is similar to a heroin high, and that eating junk food regularly can significantly change the brain’s chemical make-up, creating junk food addicts who are driven to overeat.

Lead researcher Paul Kenny says it had previously been unclear whether extreme overeating was initiated by a chemical irregularity in the brain or if the behavior itself was changing the brain’s biochemical makeup. The new research by Kenny and his colleague Paul Johnson, a graduate student, shows that both conditions are possible [Scientific American].
Rats Fed On Bacon, Cheesecake, and Ding-Dongs Become Addicted to Junk Food in full



Book and Talking Therapy Helped Binge Eaters Cut Down, US Study
Medical News Today

New research from the US found that reading a self-help book and 12 weeks of talking therapy helped binge eaters cut down for up to a year, and saved them money.

Two studies on the research, by investigators from the Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Research, Wesleyan University and Rutgers University, are due to be published in the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology.

Affecting around 9 million Americans, or more than 3 per cent of the population, binge eating is the most common eating disorder in the US, yet there aren't many ways to treat it.

The condition has received a lot press recently because the American Psychiatric Association has recommended it be regarded as a separate, distinct eating disorder like bulimia and anorexia. This distinction could focus more attention on bingeing and how it should be treated, as well as affect the numbers diagnosed and how insurers will cover treatment, noted the authors.
Book and Talking Therapy Helped Binge Eaters Cut Down, US Study in full.


Emily's Mother Told Her She Wasn't Welcome at Home While She Was Anorexic-So Did Tough Love Work?
DailyMail

After ten years of watching her beautiful and academically gifted daughter wasting away before her eyes, Sue Blackmore snapped.

Weighing less than six stone, Oxford graduate Emily Troscianko was little more than skin and bone, but she seemed determined to starve herself to death.

Overwhelmed by sadness, helplessness and anger, Sue suddenly realised she could no longer tolerate this 'ghost' sucking the life out of the family.

'Your anorexia is not welcome at our new house,' she told Emily on the phone, as they talked about the planned family move from Bristol to Devon.

Emily's Mother Told Her She Wasn't Welcome at Home While She Was Anorexic-So Did Tough Love Work? in full.


How Bristol Uni Thinks Plate Will Help Eating Disorders BBC

As Bristol University applies for funding to use a computerised plate which weighs food, Matthew Hill travels to Sweden to find out how effective it can be.

It's spaghetti carbonara and fresh salad on the menu at this specialist clinic for patients with eating disorders at Stockholm's prestigious Karolinska Institute.

Marisa Berzens is one of some 30 young women and teenagers tucking into their plate of food, perched on a pre-programmed device called a Mandometer, which tells them if they are eating enough and at the right speed.

Only weeks ago many of the patients were only able to consume, and keep down, a dangerously small amount of food.

Marisa, 23, flew all the way from Australia for her treatment. When she arrived for the seven-week course she weighed just over six stone (35kg) but she is already a much healthier weight.

Throughout her teenage years the former opera singer struggled with bulimia nervosa.

How Bristol Uni Thinks Plate Will Help Eating Disorders in full



Recovery Quote Of The Week: March 26th 2010


All that is required now is that you continue to till the soil of your soul. Just as you would not neglect seeds that you planted with the hope that they will bear vegetables and fruit and flowers, so you must attend to and nourish the garden of your becoming.
Jean Houston



picture source:

New Beginnings: Inspirational Recovery Quotes



Each day the world is born anew
for him who takes it rightly.
~James Russell Lowell

Your present circumstances don't determine where you can go; they merely determine where you start.
~Nido Qubein

If all you can do is crawl, start crawling.
~Rumi

Gratitude is a form of wisdom. It is patient, loving, hopeful, and rigorously honest. It denies nothing, and it overlooks nothing. It looks reality full in the face and says: This is true, this is me, this is my situation, and I have the opportunity to build from here. This is my starting point, and I will succeed!
~Phil Humbert

Do not wait until the conditions are perfect to begin. Beginning makes the conditions perfect.
~Alan Cohen

Begin doing what you want to do now. We have only this moment, sparkling like a star in our hand ... and melting like a snowflake.
~Marie Beyon Ray


Start by doing what's necessary; then do what's possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible.
~St. Francis of Assisi

You don't have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great.
~Joe Sabah

More powerful than the will to win is the courage to begin.
~Unkown

I wake up every morning with a great desire to live joyfully.
~Alexandra Stoddard

Every morning is a fresh beginning. Every day is the world made new. Today is a new day. Today is my world made new. I have lived all my life up to this moment, to come to this day. This moment...this day...is as good as any moment in all eternity. I shall make of this day...each moment of this day...a heaven on earth. This is my day of opportunity.
~Dan Custer

The two important things I did learn were that you are as powerful and strong as you allow yourself to be, and that the most difficult part of any endeavor is taking the first step, making the first decision.
~Robyn Davidson

Every day is a fresh beginning. Every morn is the world made anew.
~Sarah Chauncey Woolsey

Be willing to be a beginner every single morning.
~Meister Eckhart

All this will not be finished in the first one hundred days. Nor will it be finished in the first thousand days, nor in the life of this administration, nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet. But let us begin.
~JFK

Your mind, this globe of awareness, is a starry universe. When you push off with your foot, a thousand new roads become clear.
~Rumi

With the new day comes new strength and new thoughts.
~Eleanor Roosevelt

Whatever you do or dream you can do ... begin it. Boldness has genius and power and magic in it.
~J.W. von Goethe

The beginning is the most important part of the work.
~Plato

He has half the deed done who has made a beginning.
~Horace

Failure is the opportunity to begin again more intelligently.
~Henry Ford

You will never win if you never begin.
~Helen Rowland

I wake expectant, hoping to see a new thing.
~Annie Dillard


From small beginnings come great things.
~Proverb

Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.
~Theodore Roosevelt

A hard beginning maketh a good ending.
~John Heywood

There must be a beginning of any great matter, but the continuing unto the end until it be thoroughly finished yields the true glory.
~Sir Francis Drake

A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step.
~Lao Tzu

The greatest masterpieces were once only pigments on a palette.
~Henry S. Hoskins

What the caterpillar calls the end the rest of the world calls a butterfly.
~Lao Tzu

Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.
~Maria Robinson

The distance is nothing; it's only the first step that is difficult.
~Marquise du Deffand

Whatever you want in life, start today. Not tomorrow ... today. Let it be a small beginning ... a tiny beginning. Your happiness depends on starting today ... every day.
~Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Making the beginning is one third of the work.
~Irish Proverb

Sometimes when you think you are done, it is just the edge of beginning. Probably that's why we decide we're done. It's getting too scary. We are touching down onto something real. It is beyond the point when you think you are done that often something strong comes out.
~Natalie Goldberg

So many fail because they don't get started... they don't go. They don't overcome inertia. They don't begin.
~W. C. Stone

There will come a time when you believe everything is finished. That will be the beginning.
~Louis L'Amour

Standing in the inspiring vision of my future, I boldly take every step - large and small - with courage and intent.
~Jonathan Lockwood Huie

All glory comes from daring to begin.
~Eugene F. Ware

Don’t wait until everything is just right. It will never be perfect. There will always be challenges, obstacles and less than perfect conditions. So what. Get started now. With each step you take, you will grow stronger and stronger, more and more skilled, more and more self-confident, and more and more successful.
~Mark Victor Hansen

When there is a start to be made, don't step over! Start where you are.
~Edgar Cayce

The world is round and the place which may seem like the end may also be the beginning.
~Ivy Baker Priest

What we call the beginning is often the end. And to make an end is to make a beginning. The end is where we start from.
~T.S. Eliot

The journey of a thousand leagues begins with a single step.
~Lao Tzu

The man who removes a mountain begins by carrying away small stones.
~Chinese proverb

What appears to be the end may really be a new beginning.
~ Unknown

Life isn't about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.
~George Bernard Shaw

Almost everything comes from nothing.
~Henry F. Amiel

You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.
~C. S. Lewis

Though no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending.
~Carl Bard

Don't be afraid if things seem difficult in the beginning. That's only the initial impression. The important thing is not to retreat; you have to master yourself.
~Olga Korbut

It is necessary; therefore, it is possible.
~Guiseppe Borghese

Every end is a new beginning.
~Proverb

Keep on beginning and failing. Each time you fail, start all over again, and you will grow stronger until you have accomplished a purpose ... not the one you began with perhaps, but one you'll be glad to remember.
~Anne Sullivan

Exploration leads to accomplishment. All of it begins at the beginning, with the first small and scary step.
~Julia Cameron

Take the first step in faith. You don't have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.
~Martin Luther King Jr.

Every day is a new beginning. Treat it that way. Stay away from what might have been, and look at what can be.
~Marsha Petrie Sue

One step must start each journey.
~Unknown

Do not despise the bottom rungs in the ascent to greatness.
~Publilius Syrus

Every exit is an entry somewhere else.
~Tom Stoppard

It was on that road and at that hour that I first became aware of my own self, experienced an inexpressible state of grace, and felt one with the first breath of air that stirred, the first bird, and the sun so newly born that it still looked not quite round.
~Colette

When you feel that you have reached the end and that you cannot go one step further, when life seems to be drained of all purpose; what a wonderful opportunity to start all over again, to turn over a new page.
~Eileen Caddy

If your ship doesn't come in, swim out to it.
~Jonathan Winters

The metamorphosis that transforms the lowly worm into a beautiful butterfly reminds us of the loving miracle producing Creator always at work before us, around us, and in us. To witness this marvel is to experience our own resurrection, new life, and beginning.
~J. Lloyd Ewart

Dreams are renewable. No matter what our age or condition, there are still untapped possibilities
within us and new beauty waiting to be born.
~Dr. Dale Turner

Wherever you are is always the right place. There is never a need to fix anything, to hitch up the bootstraps of the soul and start at some higher place. Start right where you are.
~Julia Cameron

How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before beginning to improve the world.
~Anne Frank

Great things are not done by impulse, but by a series of small things brought together.
~Vincent van Gogh

Today is the first day of the rest of your life.
~Anonymous

Celebrate endings for they precede new beginnings.
~ Jonathan Lockwood Huie

*See sidebar menu for more Inspirational Recovery Quotes



picture source:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/kayveeinc/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

PURGE: Eating Disorders Poetry



Purge

Pain devours my judgment.
Unsatisfied it consumes my spirit.
My heart lay torn
All the threads of time
Will never make me whole again.

My eyes scream for mercy.
But my shallow breath
Gets caught in my throat-
Choking all that is left of me.

Tears stain battered soul.
As I long for forgiveness
The evil in me strikes.
Naked and bruised
It has finally stolen the last of my strength.

My worn and crippled body waits.
Sweet starvation softens the ache
Until torture rots my veins.
My enemy. Myself.
I beg you to stop.
Let go.

Yet I cling to you.
My disorder- my comfort.
You take me as your victim,
Smirk at my weakness.
Removing my identity until all that remains
is the outline of everything I used to be.

Beautiful. Thin. Free.

Lost and judged
I suffer on my own.
Tainted by obsession
Wounds masked by smiles.
You wouldn’t understand.

Nowhere else to turn, I depend on You.
Always faithful and always present.
Forever linked to me like a bad dream.
Please, God, wake me up.
I’d die to know how life feels.
written by: Anonymous


See sidebar menu for more ED poetry and writings