Recovery Quote Of The Week: May 31st 2009

"Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out."
Robert Collier

Picture source:Publicdomainpictures.net

Mental Health Month: Important Mental Health Links

Resources: Mental Health: Hotlines, Websites, and Organizations


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
Statistics


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

Additional Links:

Mental Health Resources By State

Mental Health Matters

Mental Health Resources On The Web For Families (PDF)

National Mental Health Consumers' Self-Help Clearinghouse

When You Can't Afford Treatment

*See More Mental Health Links

Sources linked above; picture source:Photos8.com

Eating Disorders Poll: What Are Your Favorite Recovery Tools?

Are you recovering/recovered from your eating disorder(s)? What are your favorite recovery tools? Please take a moment and participate in the poll located in the sidebar and share what tools have been most helpful to you.

Poll Results:

What are your favorite recovery tools?

(choose all that apply)

Journaling	24 (72%)
Art/ Creative Activities	16 (48%)
Inspirational Quotes	18 (54%)
Affirmations	7 (21%)
Group Meetings	10 (30%)
Therapy/Counseling	19 (57%)
Positive Self-Talk	8 (24%)
Supportive Friends	19 (57%)
Supportive Family	9 (27%)
Helping Others	9 (27%)
Websites	12 (36%)
Books	11 (33%)
Music (listening)	18 (54%)
Music (performing)	5 (15%)
Recovery Videos	7 (21%)
Meditation	9 (27%)
Physical Activity (non-obsessive)	11 (33%)
Blogging	12 (36%)
Religion/Faith	10 (30%)
Other	3 (9%)

Votes so far: 33

Additional polls and results can be found here.

picture source:publicdomainpictures.net

Eating Disorders Inspirational Recovery Quotes: Believing In Yourself

Believe it can be done. When you believe something can be done, really believe, your mind will find the ways to do it. Believing a solution paves the way to solution.
Dr. David Schwartz

Tentative efforts lead to tentative outcomes. Therefore, give yourself fully to your endeavors. Decide to construct your character through excellent actions and determine to pay the price of a worthy goal. The trials you encounter will introduce you to your strengths. Remain steadfast...and one day you will build something that endures, something worthy of your potential.
Epictetus

When there is no enemy within, the enemies outside cannot hurt you.
African Proverb

It is not the mountain we conquer but ourselves.
Edmund Hillary

The vision that you glorify in your mind, the ideal that you enthrone in your heart - this you will build your life by, and this you will become.
James Allen

Spirit can walk, spirit can swim, spirit can climb, spirit can crawl. There is no terrain you cannot overcome.
Irisa Hail

If you have made mistakes, there is always another chance for you. You may have a fresh start any moment you choose, for this thing we call "failure" is not the falling down, but the staying down.
Mary Pickford

Nothing happens by itself... it all will come your way, once you understand that you have to make it come your way, by your own exertions.
Ben Stein

Prepare your mind to receive the best that life has to offer.
Ernest Holmes

Nothing splendid has ever been achieved except by those who dared believe that something inside of them was superior to circumstance.
Bruce Barton

What a fool, quoth he, am I, thus to lie in a stinking dungeon, when I may as well walk at liberty! I have a key in my bosom, called Promise, that will, I am persuaded, open any lock in Doubting Castle.
John Bunyan

Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one's courage.
Anaïs Nin

If you really put a small value upon yourself, rest assured that the world will not raise your price.
Author Unknown

I've spent most of my life walking under that hovering cloud, jealousy, whose acid raindrops blurred my vision and burned holes in my heart. Once I learned to use the umbrella of confidence, the skies cleared up for me and the sunshine called joy became my faithful companion.
Astrid Alauda

It took me a long time not to judge myself through someone else's eyes.
Sally Field

A successful person is one who can lay a firm foundation with the bricks that others throw at him or her.
David Brinkley

We have to learn to be our own best friends because we fall too easily into the trap of being our own worst enemies.
Roderick Thorp

You have to expect things of yourself before you can do them.
Michael Jordan

The way you think, the way you behave, the way you eat, can influence your life by 30 to 50 years. Most people believe that aging is universal but there are biological organisms that never age.
Deepak Chopra

In the long run the pessimist may be proved right, but the optimist has a better time on the trip.
Daniel L. Reardon

When you come to the end of all the light you know, and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: Either you will be given something solid to stand on or you will be taught to fly.
Edward Teller

Don't let people drive you crazy when you know it's in walking distance.
Author Unknown

It's not what you go through that defines you; you can't help that. It's what you do AFTER you've gone through it that really tests who you are.
Kwame Floyd

Trust yourself. You know more than you think you do.
Benjamin Spock

Plant your own garden and decorate your own soul, instead of waiting for someone to bring you flowers.
Veronica A. Shoffstall

It ain't what they call you, it's what you answer to.
W.C. Fields

People are like stained-glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in their true beauty is revealed only if there is light from within.
Elisabeth Kübler-Ross

Your belief determines your action and your action determines your results, but first you have to believe.
Mark Victor Hansen

To succeed, we must first believe that we can.
Michael Korda

You can have anything you want if you will give up the belief that you can't have it.
Robert Anthony

Make the most of yourself, for that is all there is of you.
Ralph Waldo Emerson

Nobody can make you feel inferior without your consent.
Eleanor Roosevelt

Your problem is you're... too busy holding onto your unworthiness.
Ram Dass

Believe in yourself! Have faith in your abilities! Without a humble but reasonable confidence in your own powers you cannot be successful or happy.
Norman Vincent Peale

The way you treat yourself sets the standard for others.
Sonya Friedman

In order to succeed, we must first believe that we can.
Michael Korda

It's not who you are that holds you back, it's who you think you're not.
Anonymous

The thing always happens that you really believe in; and the belief in a thing makes it happen.
Frank Lloyd Wright

Let me never fall into the vulgar mistake of dreaming that I am persecuted whenever I am contradicted.
Ralph Waldo Emerson

If you think you can, you can. And if you think you can't, you're right.
Mary Kay Ash

Live your beliefs and you can turn the world around.
Henry David Thoreau

Other people's opinion of you does not have to become your reality.
Les Brown

It's me who is my enemy
Me who beats me up
Me who makes the monsters
Me who strips my confidence.
Paula Cole

Some things have to be believed to be seen.
Ralph Hodgson

Put your future in good hands - your own.
Author Unknown

The things we hate about ourselves aren't more real than things we like about ourselves.
Ellen Goodman

To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream; not only plan, but also believe.
Anatole France

The turning point, I think, was when I really realized that you can do it yourself. That you have to believe in you because sometimes that's the only person that does believe in your success ...
Tim Blixseth

Our ordinary mind always tries to persuade us that we are nothing but acorns and that our greatest happiness will be to become bigger, fatter, shinier acorns; but that is of interest only to pigs. Our faith gives us knowledge of something better: that we can become oak trees.
E.F. Schumacher

Confidence comes not from always being right but from not fearing to be wrong.
Peter T. Mcintyre

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

Of all our infirmities, the most savage is to despise our being.
Michel de Montaigne

Don’t limit yourself. Many people limit themselves to what they think they can do. You can go as far as your mind lets you. What you believe, remember, you can achieve.
Mary Kay Ash

I am not a has-been. I am a will be.
Lauren Bacall

It is easier to believe than to doubt.
Everett D. Martin

The courage to be is the courage to accept oneself, in spite of being unacceptable.
Paul Tillich

What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us. Ralph Waldo Emerson

Keep your dreams alive. Understand to achieve anything requires faith and belief in yourself, vision, hard work, determination, and dedication. Remember all things are possible for those who believe.
Gail Devers

Only as high as I reach can I grow,
Only as far as I seek can I go,
Only as deep as I look can I see,
Only as much as I dream can I be.
Karen Ravn

I just try to be the best I can be and hope that is the best ever.
Tiger Woods

Aerodynamically the bumblebee shouldn't be able to fly, but the bumblebee doesn't know that so it goes on flying anyway.
Mary Kay Ash

Never dull your shine for somebody else.
Tyra Banks

Our doubts are traitors, and make us lose the good we oft might win, by fearing to attempt. William Shakespeare

You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself in any direction you choose.
You're on your own.
And you know what you know.
You are the guy who'll decide where to go.
Dr. Seuss

*more Recovery Quotes and Quotes of the Week can be found in the sidebar drop down menus.


photo source:Bigfoto.com

Memorial Day Tribute

Memorial Day

We walked among the crosses
Where our fallen soldiers lay.
And listened to the bugle
As TAPS began to play.
The Chaplin led a prayer
We stood with heads bowed low.
And I thought of fallen comrades
I had known so long ago.
They came from every city
Across this fertile land.
That we might live in freedom.
They lie here 'neath the sand.
I felt a little guilty
My sacrifice was small.
I only lost a little time
But these men lost their all.
Now the services are over
For this Memorial Day.
To the names upon these crosses
I just want to say,
Thanks for what you've given
No one could ask for more.
May you rest with God in heaven
From now through evermore.

J.W. Johnson



Do Not Stand At My Grave And Weep

Do not stand at my grave and weep,
I am not there, I do not sleep.
I am in a thousand winds that blow;
I am the softly falling snow.

I am the gentle showers of rain;
I am the fields of ripening grain.
I am in the morning hush;
I am in the graceful rush.

Of beautiful birds in circling flight,
I am the starshine of the night.
I am in the flowers that bloom,
I am in a quiet room.

I am the birds that sing,
I am in each lovely thing.
Do not stand at my grave and cry,
I am not there. I do not die.

Mary Frye

A Moment Of Silence



Memorial Day Tribute: http://www.thememorialdaytribute.com/index.html

poems source:http://www.thememorialdaytribute.com/index.html
Video Tribute by JimNagle87

Kimkins Lawsuit: Class Certification Granted Again

Heidi Diaz portrayed herself as the beautiful woman in the red dress above left.
The real Heidi (in red, center) at one of her depositions. Heidi captured by PI surveillance.

After a stall caused by the bankruptcy filing of Heidi Diaz (which has been dismissed), class certification has once again been granted in the lawsuit against Kimkins, an internet diet fraught with fraudulent success stories and stolen Russian Bride pictures.


More about Kimkins:
Kimkins: Class Certification Granted (the first time)
Kimkins: An Internet Diet Scam
Kimkins: San Diego Victims Sought
Falling For a Diet Scam


Kimkins Videos:
Insider Exclusive
The Morning Show With M & J: #1
The Morning Show With M & J: #2
The Morning Show With M & J: #3
The Morning Show With M & J: #4
Surveillance Footage #1
Surveillance Footage #2
Google: Kimkins Fraud

Recovery Quote Of The Week: May 23rd, 2009

"The best way out is always through."
Robert Frost

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


drawing by: Frits Ahlefeldt
picture source:publicdomainpics.net

Anorexia Relapse: Study Shows Brain Changes A Factor

Persistent brain abnormalities in women with anorexia, even in those recovered (maintaining a healthy weight for a period of a year) may play a vital role in the high relapse rate for this disorder. According to a study at the University of Pittsburg and published in the American Journal of Psychiatry, anorexics show a decreased ability to differentiate between winning and losing, not fully experiencing immediate pleasure and so possibly not appreciating the positive feelings associated with food.

The study consisted of 13 women who had recovered from anorexia, had maintained healthy weight, and had regular menstrual cycles for at least a year, and 13 healthy women. Comparing fMRI (Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging) results of non Anorexics with recovered Anorexics during a guessing game showed reduced function in the anterior ventral striatum and excessive firing of circuits in the caudate.

“The high activity in the caudate probably reflects a heightened attempt to control the test situation. Unlike the normal controls, the anorexic women still thought they could find a way to control the outcome of the psychological challenge, even though this was impossible," said Dr. Angela Wagner.

The game: Guess if a number higher or lower than 5 was represnted by a flashing question mark on a computer screen. Correct answer; win $2. Incorrect answer; forfeit $1

Formerly anorexic women showed much more activity in the caudate regions during the game then the control group, leading Dr. Wagner to suspect that those with a history of anorexia nervosa focused excessively on the consequences of their choices, noting that anorexics are overly anxious and obsess about doing things the right way.

"The investigators believe that the results of this study indicate that healthy women respond to wins and losses by “living in the moment” and moving on to the next task. However, the women with a history of anorexia were unable to do this."

“Our study shows a biological background to the disease of anorexia nervosa,” commented Dr. Wagner. “It is not just a result of environmental influences. In the past, our approach as clinicians was to focus on behavior and on getting patients to eat. The functional studies suggest that perhaps we should also focus on mindset, on finding ways to train these patients to accept change and to experience pleasure. A logical next step also would be to study neurotransmitters, especially dopamine, and try to understand the differences we identified in brain circuits. This might, in turn, point the way to a new approach to pharmacologic therapy for anorexia nervosa.”

One question is whether these brain changes predate and predispose patients to anorexia nervosa or whether the changes are a “scar” in the brain resulting from past malnutrition and weight loss. The researchers are now using fMRI to study brain function in similar challenge situations in women with current anorexia nervosa.

According to another fMRI study at the University of Pittsburg, anorexics' sense of taste differes from non-anorexics. Responses to sucrose (pleasant taste) and water (neutral taste) were measured. Imaging showed the response to both sucrose and water were significantly reduced in the insula and other related brain regions when compared the non-anorexic control group, making it possible that those with anorexia may have difficulty recognizing taste or experiencing the pleasure associated with it. This same region of the brain contributes to the regulation of emotions which may explain why some anorexics don't respond to hunger and avoid what is normally considered pleasurable foods.

"We know that the insula and the connected regions are thought to play an important role in interoceptive information, which determines how the individual senses the physiological condition of the entire body," said Kaye. "Interoception has long been thought to be critical for self-awareness because it provides the link between thinking and mood, and the current body state."

This lack of interoceptive awareness may contribute to other symptoms of anorexia nervosa such as distorted body image, lack of recognition of the symptoms of malnutrition and diminished motivation to change, according to Kaye.

sources:http://www.neuropsychiatryreviews.com/08jan/brainfunction.html
andhttp://www.psychologyandwellbeing.org/pn/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=150 picturesource:http://math.lbl.gov/~deschamp/png/myBrain.png

Eating Disorders Poll: Were You Exposed To Disordered Eating Behaviors and/or Body Image Issues?

Were you exposed to disordered eating behaviors or body image issues as a child, teenager, or adult? Did this shape your own relationship with food and/or your body?
Please take a moment to participate in the poll in the sidebar and share your experience on these issues.
Thank you.
MrsM.

Completed Poll Results:

I was exposed to disordered eating behaviors and/or body image issues by... (choose all that apply. BI-body image)
votes 104

	Mother	55 (52%)
	Father	26 (25%)
	Grandmother	17 (16%)
	Grandfather	5 (4%)
	Sister	25 (24%)
	Brother	11 (10%)
	Aunt	15 (14%)
	Uncle	6 (5%)
	Close Adult	13 (12%)
	Friend	53 (50%)
	Other	19 (18%)
	None	13 (12%)
	Exposed as a Child	54 (51%)
	Exposed as a Teen	71 (68%)
	Exposed as an Adult	32 (30%)
	Continuing Exposure	51 (49%)
	To ED behaviors	60 (57%)
	To BI Issues	56 (53%)
	I have an ED	72 (69%)
	I don't have an ED	14 (13%)
	I have BI Issues	66 (63%)
	I don't have BI issues	5 (4%)
	In Recovery	46 (44%)
	Not In Recovery	26 (25%)
	I am Male	4 (3%)
	I am Female	96 (92%)

See more poll results here.


picture source:http://photos8.com/love_and_body-wallpapers.html

Eating Disorders In The News: May 2009

Will Anorexia Nervosa Receive More Funding As The Number Of Male Anorexic Increase?

People ask why I write about the painful subject of my daughter’s anorexia and eventual death. I’ve explained a few reasons in past articles, but there’s one more.

You see I just can’t stand that my loved daughter has become a statistic of the disease of anorexia. And I want people to learn, as I’m sure all moms would, that this young woman had a mom and dad, a sister, aunts and uncles, grandparents, friends and enemies, talents and shortcomings, loves and hates. In other words a life, not a perfect life, but what could have been a wonderful life. I want people to see Meg as a complex human being not a statistic. That’s why I write.

To continue, after losing over thirty lbs in her senior year of high school, Meg entered college looking great at 126 lbs. She came home for Thanksgiving weighing 114 lbs; came home for Christmas weighing 108.

During the Thanksgiving holidays, we talked to Meg about losing so much weight. But since she lost another six pounds from Thanksgiving break to her Christmas break, which amounted to a mere three weeks, she obviously hadn’t listened. I was so worried that I made an appointment with a psychologist who specialized in anorexia. Her face expressionless and her body tense with anger, Meg begrudgingly went to the appointment with me. But there was a problem. Meg turned eighteen the April before she started college: This seemingly minor detail became a major stumbling block during Meg’s seventeen year battle with anorexia.

Since Meg was eighteen, she could be seen by the doctor alone, and of course she chose to do so. And I had no legal right to stop her; at that point, I didn’t feel I should after all this was her first appointment for anorexia. Meg came to her appointment dressed in a fairly short skirt, thick tights and a long-sleeved sweatshirt. Now like me, Meg holds a good deal of her weight in her legs which were quite visible; nevertheless, her skinny arms and ribs were not. As I’ve said before, Meg was smart, smarter than I realized. The camouflage dressing trick went unnoticed by me for a while. In addition, Meg always portrayed herself, to others, as a capable young woman who has no problems except a mother who worries. After her appointment, the doctor said he really didn’t think we should be concerned about Meg. He informed me that many college freshmen either gain or lose weight while adjusting to their new lives. Obviously, the psychologist was deceived by her dress and her confident manner. So much for catching anorexia early.

Looking back, this is another example of the “insightful” advice we received from the medical profession about Meg’s overweight and underweight conditions.

Read in full here.

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Help For Those Struggling With Eating Disorders

While many individuals struggle with trying to lose weight, others have a difficult time trying to gain weight.

Whether someone seeks to recover from an eating disorder, manage a long-term illness (such as cancer, Alzheimer's disease, an autoimmune disorder or food sensitivities/allergies), needs to gain weight for sport or simply aims to try to gain a healthy body weight, healthy weight gain can often present many challenges.

For one, an individual may not wish to gain weight, but needs to do so for health reasons. Perhaps this is someone with an eating disorder. If the individual is a minor, a parent is often the one seeking out healthful ways to encourage his or her child's weight gain at an appropriate rate. In these situations, it is imperative to work with a team of health professionals who specialize in eating disorders, including a physician, psychotherapist, dietitian and perhaps a psychiatrist as well. In this way, the parents do not become the "food police," interrogating children at every meal and snack, nor do they choose unhealthy ways to gain weight (such as forcing unhealthful foods into a child's diet). Additionally, the team can address underlying concerns and focus on whole body recovery, rather than just the weight restoration.

Another reason someone may be struggling with gaining weight is simply a side effect of having an illness. This can happen with Alzheimer's, where an individual forgets to eat or forgets how to eat, or cancer, where the body's reserves are being depleted at an accelerated rate.

Men, as well as women, can struggle with putting on weight, while trying to achieve high muscle mass for sport. With intense exercise, it is essential to consume enough calories to not only avoid unwanted weight loss, but also to achieve healthy lean muscle mass. Working with a dietitian who specializes in sports nutrition is helpful in this situation.

Read in full here.

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New Nonprofit Organization Targets Binge Eaters

These days, stress causes Chevese Turner to reach for a handful of potato chips and then feel disgusted.

But nearly a decade ago, difficult times would send her to finish off an entire bag of potato chips, or even go to McDonald's and eat several sandwiches.

That was before she was diagnosed as a binge eater. Now the Severna Park resident has created a nonprofit organization aimed at helping people with illnesses like hers.

Turner said she hopes her new organization, Binge Eating Disorder Association, will help other sufferers realize help is available. The group is planning a conference in June that will feature panel discussions and workshops about the disorder, and its Web site - www.bedaonline.com - provides links to resources, assistance and information about binge eating.

Turner's struggles with the illness also were recently featured in a "Good Morning America" segment on eating disorders.

"I still have my moments," Turner said. "It's a longterm thing. It's not something that changes overnight. I've done a lot of work and now I'm at a place where I manage my food intake."

Read in full here.

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Plans To Ban Internet Sites That Promote Diet Disease Anorexia

WEBSITES that promote anorexia are facing a campaign to outlaw them.

MSPs want the UK Government to introduce laws that fine or jail owners of sites promoting self-harm.

There are around 500 "pro-ana" websites promoting the eating disorder which kills up to one in 10 sufferers.

Many show disturbing images of anorexics and offer tips on vomiting and using laxatives to lose weight.

Tv presenter Fearne Cotton is furious at the sites after one portrayed her as a role model.

The SNP's Kenneth Gibson, backed in a Scottish Parliament motion by fellow MSPs, called on Westminster to crack down on the websites.

More than 80,000 people in Scotland are estimated to suffer from anorexia.

Gibson said: "I am deeply concerned about sites that portray anorexia as a glamorous lifestyle choice rather than potentially fatal with the highest mortality rate of any psychiatric illness.

"Messages on these sites fiercely defend weight loss as an act of self-control to be admired.

Read in full here.

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Learning To Love Every Inch Of Your Body

Food and weight issues for young girls and women have long been a battle to conquer.

But a researcher and author who specializes in body image says boys and men are joining the ranks of the body obsessed.

'I'm, Like, So Fat!, author Dianne Neumark-Sztainer shared this insight with an audience of parents, teens and professionals last week a workshop entitled: Eating in a Weight-Obsessed World: Helping your child have a healthy body image and healthy weight.

Hosted by the National Eating Disorder Information Centre (NEDIC) in Toronto, Neumark-Sztainer covered a multitude of topics affecting our youth with the goal of helping them to achieve healthy bodies and body images.

With a society placing emphasis on being thin as the ideal, it can be a difficult task, but initially she said parents have to identify their child has a weight or body image issue, decide how to bring it up to them and address the potential problem.

"It's important to bring up the problem when both you and your child are not upset," she said. "Tell them what you've noticed, for example, 'I heard you vomiting' and I'm concerned.'"

Once you've done this, Neumark-Sztainer said you will get a mixed reaction of "relief, anger and fear," but at least now there's a dialogue and an opportunity to seek help.

There are many factors contributing to weight and body image issues, many of which come from society. Media, like television and magazines, and movies and music videos, are filled with thin people, but in food ads, portion sizes are huge, which sends mixed-messages.

"Not only are models' pictures being modified, but so are food advertisements so they look bigger than they really are so they look better," she said.

Read in full here.

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Parent's Plea: Send Charlotte Home

THE parents of the jailed Swedish woman Charlotte Lindstrom have spoken out for the first time to beg Australian authorities to let their daughter transfer to a jail in Sweden, saying they fear her anorexia will kill her if she stays in Australia.

"We are deeply concerned and worried for our daughter's life," Anita and Hans Lindstrom told the Herald in a statement, their first since their daughter's arrest.

They said she had been treated well in jail but four Australian doctors had recommended that she be transferred to Sweden, where she could be supported by her family, feel safer and avoid the stress of directly facing her former fiance in court.

Lindstrom, 24, is in solitary confinement in a NSW prison due to threats to her life. Her family says her health is so fragile that she could suffer heart failure.

Lindstrom will be the key witness in her former fiance's drug trial, which is due to begin in a few months. The Swedish Government has offered to cover both the costs of the transfer and of a video link so she could give evidence from Sweden.

But NSW authorities say the testimony - which could take 15 days - is essential to the prosecution case and could be inadequate if given via video link from Sweden.

Read in full here.

sources linked above.

Recovery Quote Of The Week: May 13th, 2009

"The time is always right to do what is right."
Martin Luther King, Jr.

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

Happy Mother's Day!

Hundreds of dewdrops to greet the dawn,
Hundreds of bees in the purple clover,
Hundreds of butterflies on the lawn,
But only one mother the wide world over.
George Cooper

Happy Mother's Day!

Eating Disorders and Body Image Blogs: What Some Are Discussing

A New Girl Guide Badge For Self-Esteem. Has Guiding Gone Mad?

As I was reading The Globe and Mail this morning, I came across an article written by the very talented Margaret Wente. Entitled "Not every girl can be a Winner," I was dumbstruck that the Girl Guides now have a self-esteem badge. Say what?

In my youth, I spent years as a member of Brownies and Girl Guides. I traipsed through the woods with the rest of the pack, trying to light fires by rubbing two sticks together in the pouring rain, suffering cuts and scratches and burns from campfires, getting lost in the wood (still can't figure out how a compass works), near-drowning in canoes on choppy lakes, and learning how to do the sheep shank and the round-turn-and-two-half-hitches knots.

Summers were spent at Girl Guide Camp building lean-tos and roughing it in the woods. It was a rough-and-tumble life and I loved every minute of it. Nary was a mention made of my having to study up to earn a self-esteem badge.

Read in full here.
2Medusa.com


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FTC Charges Hoodia Marketers

FTC Charges Marketers Of 'Hoodia' Weight Loss Supplements With Deceptive Advertising

The Federal Trade Commission has charged the suppliers of supposed Hoodia gordonii, also known as hoodia, with deceptive advertising for claiming that using their product would lead to weight loss and appetite suppression. In its complaint, the FTC alleges that the defendants not only made false and deceptive claims about what hoodia could do, but also, on one or more occasions, claimed that their product was Hoodia gordonii, a plant native to southern Africa, when it was not. The FTC has requested that the court order the defendants not to make false or deceptive statements or destroy documents pending trial. The Commission seeks to permanently bar the defendants from deceptively advertising hoodia, and to obtain disgorgement of the defendants’ profits from their hoodia sales. The defendants allegedly made false and deceptive claims when advertising their fake hoodia to trade customers who manufactured and marketed supplements.

Read in full here.
mariasols.com

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Another Death To ED

Sarah's Death at 19 Left Her Family Struggling to Understand the Power of an Eating Disorder.

By Caitlin Gibson
Special to The Washington Post
Tuesday, May 5, 2009

Leah's voice was calm on the phone.

I'm on my way home, she said. Sarah died this morning.

In the steady tone my best friend would use to say she had a flat tire or was late for class, Leah explained that she was about to board a flight to join her family as they prepared for her little sister's funeral.

Leah had known on some level that this might happen. She'd read the books, done the research and understood that girls with eating disorders got better, or they didn't. She saw Sarah as what she was: the everygirl of her illness, not immune because she was smart and beautiful, popular and athletic. But the knowledge that it might happen did nothing to prepare Leah.

Read in full here.
freedfoundation.org/blog

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Woman With Anorexia Issues Public Plea For Help

If you can’t feed a hundred people, then feed just one. ~Mother Teresa

I think it’s a tragic conviction of the woeful inadequacy of our current health care system that a 20-year-old college student with anorexia who wants help has no other recourse than to turn to the public in getting that help. Karina Dewing of Cape Girardeau, Missouri today issued this plea in her local newspaper: I am a 20-year-old college student, I weigh 83 pounds. Shocking? What’s even more shocking is that I can’t get the help I need. There are no treatment programs in Cape Girardeau or the surrounding area for those who suffer from eating disorders.

Read in full here.
the-f-word.org/blog

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Freedom And Joy

More than once this weekend, I have found myself dancing around in my kitchen, absolutely filled with joy. I'm not even sure why, and I suppose that is the best part. I have no reasons. I just feel at peace with where I am at the moment. I'm making good choices and decisions, and that really hasn't happened in my life for a very long time. I'm not afraid to go to sleep at night because I fear what the next day will bring. I'm looking forward to the warmth of summer, the sunshine, and spending time with my family. I feel as if I can reach out and touch the changes in my life, and for once, not feel anxiety, apprehension, and worry over what may happen.

Read in full here.
hereandnow4angel.blogspot.com

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Values: Me vs ED

I did this exercise on values in a group at the EDU last year and it taught me some things about myself, so I thought I would share it. People with eating disorders often say that they have no idea who they are outside of their illness. I think it's really important to find out different things that make you *you* so that you can shove them in the eating disorder's face when it tries to convince you that you are nothing without it ;)

In the group we were given this handout called 'Choosing your values' from a book called 'Get out of your mind and into your life' (which is a great title, hehe). It had a list of different relationships (e.g. marriage, friendship) and aspects of every day life (e.g. work, spirituality), and the idea was to write down what sort of person you would like to be in that area of your life and then try and distill your answer down to one key phrase. These were my answers, with my most important values in italics:

Read in full here.
katie-underthestars.blogspot.com

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Eating Disorder Myth #26: You Don't Need Anyone

Rewind back to the Friday night before Easter, mid-meltdown while talking to my mom and sister.

My sister told my mom that she wants to support me in my recovery more than anything, but she needs to know that I'm really trying. This was really upsetting to me - she wasn't HERE when I was at the height of restricting. She had no idea how limited my intake really was, and what a big deal it is for me to be eating 2% yogurt instead of fat-free, or heaping avocado on to my sandwiches. Things that normal people would do without a second's hesitation are significant milestones in my journey to recovery.

Read in full here.
elle-dente.blogspot.com

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Raising An Eating Disorder-Free Child

In a recent study published in the Medical Journal of Australia, 101 children aged 5-13 who had been diagnosed with eating disorders were studied. 78% were so severely ill they had to be admitted to hospital. About half required nasogastric tube feeding and one third were given psychotropic medications such as anti-depressants. Only 27% met the diagnostic criteria for anorexia nervosa while half did not meet the weight criteria (which requires the patient to be less than 85% of their ideal weight for their height). 61% had potentially life-threatening complications such as malnutrition.

The study has shown that the criteria for diagnosing eating disorders in adults should not be applied to young children because they are not being recognised as having eating disorders until they are extremely ill.

The study also found that a quarter of the sufferers were boys.

Read in full here.
melindahutchings.blogspot.com

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How Big Are Those Robes

As you probably know, Supreme Court Justice David Souter has indicated his plans to retire later this spring, and, as it is in the great game of politics, pundits and commentators have been speculating about who will replace him. Names of several really fascinating people have been tossed around (including my boyfriend’s civil procedure professor, Judge Diane Wood), most of whom have been women.

But apparently, too many of them are fat women (h/t David.)

Within hours after the news broke that Souter was resigning, concerns arose that [Elena] Kagan and [Sonia] Sotomayor might be too fat to replace him. A commentator on the site DemConWatch.com noted that of the three most-mentioned candidates “the oldest (federal judge Diane Wood) is the only one who looks healthy,” while Kagan and Sotomayor “are quite overweight. That’s a risk factor that they may not last too long on the court because of their health.”

Read in full here.
happybodies.wordpress.com

* apologies for the multiple postings of this post as I tried to fix a glitch with the blog.
sources linked above

Posting Issues

I'm having difficulties with a post I posted today only showing up occasionally. In an attempt to fix this (with my less than awesome tech abilities), the post about ED / Body Awareness Blogs will appear tomorrow.
Sorry for any inconvenience.
MrsM

Eating Disorders In the News: Recent Articles

It's Time To Mount A Full Offensive Against Eating Disorders

At only 4 years old, I worried that I was fat. Over time, these worries became a life-threatening eating disorder. I was so sick that I turned down an acceptance to medical school after college graduation. I was diagnosed with osteoporosis at 22, and I am one of the lucky ones; I got help.

While my health insurance benefits were slim to none for anorexia and bulimia, my parents helped me to cover the cost of my treatment, which can run in the tens of thousands of dollars. With treatment, I fully recovered and live a normal, happy life today. I did not realize just how lucky I was until I began writing and speaking publicly about recovery — until the e-mails floated into my inbox. As many as 10 million women and 1 million men in the U.S. battle anorexia and bulimia. Millions more struggle with binge-eating disorder. I hear from them daily.I hear stories from people who do not have insurance coverage or the personal resources to pay for appropriate and much-needed treatment. This is an outrage. My friend, Kathy, lost her battle to anorexia last year at age 41. She fought for years to overcome her illness but never received the continuum of quality care that she needed due to the high financial costs that, tragically, cost her life. Without help, many people struggle for years and, if they do survive, they end up with serious long-term health consequences.
Read in full here.

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Anorexia Clinics Needed In Australia

The Auckland District Health Board has traditionally sent girls suffering from anorexia to Australia for acute treatment, but the Furse family are calling for the ADHB to invest in a clinic for New Zealand.

The Furse family has finally been reunited in their Auckland home, after four and a half months of separation.

Millie Furse and her mum, Michelle, have been living in Sydney while the 17-year-old underwent treatment for anorexia.

18-year-old Hannah Furse has been looking after the house as well as caring for 13-year-old younger sister Laura.

Michelle says everyone in the family has had to make sacrifices for Millie’s treatment.

“I've had to go back on a benefit, I'm on a domestic purposes benefit because I haven't been able to work," says Michelle.

"Even now I still can't go back to work at this stage.”

“Hannah also, she's just finished school, and she was going to go to Teacher's College this year but she hasn't been able to - she's had to stay home and look after Laura.”

Read in full here.

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The Art Of Slimming Under Pressure

When it comes to the perfect body obsession, eating disorders become the answer to many.

I am 5 feet 7 inches and 135 pounds. I’d rather have Cheetos than carrots, I can’t eat dinner without dessert and just the thought of going to the gym makes me tired.

I’ll be the first to admit my body looks nothing like the stick-thin glamour girls gleaming on magazine covers, strutting down runways and capturing daily headlines.

Like a lot of people — young, old, female and male — I’ve struggled with my weight and body image all my life. Never skinny or fat, I always seem to fall somewhere in the middle.

Rather than accept the fact I may never fit into a size two, I constantly find myself trying.

I scarf down salads with non-fat dressing when I’d rather have a burger, I order frozen yogurt instead of ice cream and I gasp for breath four times a week as I attempt a twenty-minute jog of death on the treadmill.

No matter how many times I hear “You’re fine just the way you are,” I still find myself standing in the mirror, pinching every ounce of fat I could stand to lose and imagining what I would look like if every bone protruded from my body like those of the sucked-up celebrities on TV.

Am I pointing the finger at the media? Well, if the jeans fit.

The simple fact is we compare ourselves to those considered beautiful.

Read in full here.

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Eating Disorder Sufferers To Get New Scots Unit

SCOTS suffering from eating disorders are to be treated at the country’s first ever dedicated unit. Anorexia and bulimia patients across the country are to be housed at the specialist ward at St John’s Hospital, Livingston under new plans revealed yesterday. Scots sports stars David Coulthard, Chris Boardman and Craig MacLean are among the country’s high-profile sufferers of the sometimes fatal condition, And one mother, who has been campaigning for the new facilities for the past five years, has claimed if the centre existed before her daughter “would be alive today”.

Read in full here.

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New Program To Address Body Image

With so much pressure the media and society to be the perfect size, many college women and men have started bashing their bodies and becoming obsessed with food, weight, and exercise. Many of these behaviors have led to eating disorders.

Dr. Kerry Luke, staff psychologist at the counseling center at UA, has created a program, called Body Acceptance and Self Kindness, designed to prevent the onset of eating disorders and discuss issues surrounding food, weight and body image.

“I created B.A.S.K. because the prevalence for anorexia and bulimia are so high,” said Luke. “This group is important because these disorders are the most lethal when it comes to psychological disorders.”

While the program is relatively new, Luke has an idea of where she wants the program to go. Eight to 10 college students would be picked based on a screening process that would evaluate where they stand in regards to body image. The students selected would then meet on a regular basis to talk about body image, body issues, and ideals of beauty.

Read in full here.

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Are You At Risk For Osteoporosis?

Osteoporosis can strike at any age, but it is most common in older women. In fact, 80 percent of Americans with osteoporosis are women. One in every two women over age 50 will break a bone in her lifetime due to osteoporosis. Men fare somewhat better, with one in every four men over age 50 suffering an osteoporosis-related fracture.

The bottom line: Both men and women should take steps to maintain and improve bone health. And there’s no better time than May —National Osteoporosis Awareness and Prevention Month — to deliver this message.

The risk factors

A number of factors can increase your risk of bone loss and osteoporosis.

Read in full here.
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Eating Disorder Bill Gets House Committee Hearing

JEFFERSON CITY — Supporters of a bill that would require insurance coverage of eating disorders have accomplished their goal for the session: a committee hearing in both chambers. The House Special Committee on Health Insurance devoted 35 minutes to the bill today, most of which involved emotional testimony from those most affected by eating disorders. John Culp, whose daughter died of an eating disorder last week, invited those opposed to the bill to her funeral. “There is nothing worse in the world than to lose a son or daughter,” he said.

“Put away your damn parties and do something for Missourians,” he said later.

Dr. Kim McCallum, who runs a treatment center for eating disorders in St. Louis, said she’s had many patients who had to leave before they were well. One patient. McCallum said, told her it was like being pulled off a respirator before she could breathe.

And Rebecca Lester, a medical anthropologist who studies eating disorders at Washington University, said this sort of treatment is crucial.

“Relapse is inevitable if the patients don’t get the care they need,” she said.

Brook Balentine, 30, got help for her eating disorder in 2007. She said after two weeks of treatment, her insurance company determined she had reached a healthy weight, and ended treatment. “My mental state regarding this disorder was far from healthy,” she said. Balentine continued treatment anyway.

Read in full here.

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*Apologies to those who subscribe for the glitches in posting today.

sources linked above