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Random quote: You can do anything you wish to do, have anything you wish to have, be anything you wish to be
- (Added by: Lorena) |
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So it's the end of Februrary, do you have a date circled in your diary?
Perhaps you aren't aware that this week, the 23rd to 28th Febuary is National Eating Disorders Awareness Week.
What may also be a surprise is that this is not a new phenomeneon, in fact it dates back to 1987 and NEDAW has now become a valuable tool for the education and support of those who suffer from an eating disorder, those who care for those with an eating disorder and those in the medical field.
It is an international taskforce and the efforts of the week are to try and reach as many people as possible with the aim to spread:
" messages of prevention, hope and recovery"- nationaleatingdisorders.org
The hopes of this week may seem large, daunting perhaps in that they are hoping to try to reduce the stigma attached to eating disorders but thier mission is admirable. So many people around the world struggle with the variety of eating disorders and many, many more are suffering in silence, too afraid to speak out about thier symptoms. Thier mission statement reads:
"Eating disorders are serious, life-threatening illnesses-not choices- and it's important to recognize the pressures, attitudes and behaviours that shape the disorder".
So where do they focus thier efforts?
Well in short wherever they can seems to be the answer! You could see thier message at the gym, in your school, your workplace, in your places of worship, at a movie theatre and in your community- the only obstacle seems to be the number of volunteers needed to help spread the message.
The mission statements do vary from country to country in as far as they have to make amendments for the political structure of healthcare, the underlying message however remains the same.
In the USA this year they are stressing that they don't want to stop thier campaign until they can make eating disorders a part of history- this of course is a huge misison but it's nice to see they are thinking big. They want to stress that eating disorders are life threatening issues and they are in no means a lifestyle choice. They want to ensure that insurance covers appropriate treatment and that more effort needs to be made to educate those in the medical profession to the needs of the sufferer.
With a staggering 10 million females and 1 million males suffering from anorexia and/or bulimia in the USA the campaign seems vital to the welfare of the nation and it's sufferers. There are another 25 million struggling with binge eating disorder according to statistics but these are just the people that they know of, it is hard to believe that the figure in reality isn't at least double when you consider those suffering in silence.
In the Uk the satistics show that 1.1 million people are currently suffering from eating disorders and a horrifically high 20% of those affacted die form the disease. It is not surprising therefore that the nation's leading charity beat (beating eating disorders) have one vision for thier work: that eating disorders will be beaten.
So what will beat be doing during this EDAW?
Well today they launched a brand new report entitiled 'Choice or Chance?' where they have focused on the fact that only 15% of sufferers felt that their GP understood what eating disorders entail and how to help them. This report is calling on the NHS to deliver a promise that they set out to sufferers but have so far failed to live up to;
" The NHS consititution has promised a service based on choice, information and respect".
The report will be presented to the House of Commons during the week. The report in full is available on the beat website.
So what does EDAW mean for you?
Well it depends on how you feel about your disorder. If you are an active member of the charities then there are various events all across the UK and the USA where you can go, volunteer, talk to others and help spread the message.
However, you don't have to be a vocal and visible part of the week to make a change. Perhaps you could look at the websites and read the educational material, the reports and reach out for help for the first time. Perhaps you can start to look at your beahvaiours and realise that as much as denial is a 'safe' place to be that things aren't okay and that you would like to talk to someone. Perhaps learning the signs of the disorders that you aren't suffering from could be the helping hand for a friend, loved one or relative whom is also struggling alone. More importantly perhaps you are able to realise that you aren't alone, that eating disorders can be beaten and that life doesn't have to be this way.
Look after yourselves and those close to you with eating disorders, not just for this designated week but always becuase with so many suffering and with too many fatalties perhaps the hope of making these disorders history is something we should all be aiming for.
Submitted by cleanbones
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