Ana Velasquez shares her story as a woman of color struggling with and recovering from an eating disorder. “I could understand that we share an illness that makes us fear food and desire thinness, but the realities of a fat girl with an eating disorder and a thin girl with an eating disorder are so…
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Correlating eating disorders with body size/weight decreases diagnosis and treatment There are so many myths about eating disorders thanks to media portrayals and those stereotypes are perpetuated due to a lack of understanding about eating disorders. This misinformation is dangerous because it often prevents people from getting the help they need. Eating disorder myths also…
Yuki Noguchi describes the impact that COVID-19 has had on people who had eating disorders prior to the pandemic and people who were vulnerable to eating disorders in her article titled “Eating Disorders Thrive In Anxious Times, And Pose A Lethal Threat.” Additionally, the article covers the story of Stephanie Parker, her struggles with eating…
Our Student Action Committee received the 2021 Santa Clara County Behavioral Health Community Heroes Award in the category Young Movers and Shakers. Congratulations, team! The EDRC student action committee is a group of student volunteers based in the Bay Area who are passionate about helping those suffering from mental illnesses, specifically eating disorders. This year the…
The treatment of anorexia nervosa (AN) is a growing crisis in the United States as a result of fewer academic medical center programs, which steers patients to private programs and limits treatment for the underserved and uninsured. Recovery requires prolonged hospitalization and rehabilitation, with relapse rates approaching 50%. Anorexia nervosa has a mortality percentage of…
Studies show that despite receiving treatment, a sizable group of patients with anorexia nervosa continue to experience symptoms for a prolonged period of time. Some develop what is called severe and enduring anorexia nervosa (SE-AN). Common identifiers of SE-AN include long duration of illness, typically seven years or more, and a history of unsuccessful response…
The 12th annual Be-You-Tiful, Be Free Writing Contest from the Eating Disorders Resource Center is accepting submissions until March 5th! Students in grades 6-12 residing in the Bay Area are invited to send in a poem or essay that addresses one of the themes in the flyer below: Get your submission in soon, the contest…
The COVID-19 pandemic continues set new records in both cases and deaths here in California and across the nation. While it is commonly seen as a respiratory illness, COVID-19 also produces unwanted side effects in mental health communities as well. Kerrie Leonard, a PhD student in Developmental Science, Human Development, and Family Science at North…
Project HEAL has partnered with the Eating Anxiety Treatment Laboratory & Clinic (EAT Lab) at The University of Louisville to assess the obstacles to treatment access that exist for people with an eating disorder. Under the direction of Prof. Cheri Levinson, this study will measure the scope of these roadblocks that individuals with eating disorders…