#5 Eating Disorder Awareness

NEDA Week

This week is marked as the National Eating Disorder Awareness (NEDA) Week in The United States, which aims to bring light to different eating disorders to increase the awareness, provide support for those suffering, as well as to educate the general public. I will be sharing more about eating disorders and the importance of raising awareness about such mental illness in our community, which to me is the elephant in the room that needs to be addressed. In Singapore where mental illness awareness is rarely touched on and many avoid the conversation of such illnesses, I personally believe that it’s of paramount importance to shed light on such disorders.

 

Why is there a need? 

I feel the need for this blog as it can help those who are in recovery, those who are still lost and seeking help. Shedding light to such topics to the public would hopefully allow for a better understanding of how individuals can make Singapore a more inclusive society through actions and words with regards to such mental illnesses. 

 

As Donna Brazile once said: 

“it takes but one person, one moment, 

one conviction, to start a ripple of change”. 

Giving Credit 

Although there have been recent efforts by organisations such as NCSS to raise awareness of mental illnesses like depression and bipolar disorder. This is evident here: https://www.ncss.gov.sg/Our-Initiatives. However, other mental illness, such as eating disorders and schizophrenia, have rarely been shared or talked about. 

About eating disorders

According to National Cancer Centre Singapore (NCCS), (is anyone questioning why these statistics are from a cancer centre? Well... me too!) as of January 2020, worldwide studies have revealed the risk of suffering from anorexia nervosa to be between 0.5- 2% and bulimia nervosa between 0.9-3%. While females are more commonly affected, males can represent up to 10% of those affected. A study carried out in Singapore has shown that 7.4% of females between the ages of 12- 26 years old are at risk for developing an eating disorder (Eating Disorders in Children and Adolescents, n.d.). 

 To add on, there are many different types of eating disorders. They are but not limited to; anorexia Nervosa, bulimia Nervosa, binge-eating disorder, Orthorexia Nervosa, pica, rumination disorder as well as avoidant/ restrictive food disorder (Eating Disorders| AWARE Singapore, n.d.). There are many other less common eating disorders such as night eating syndrome, purging disorder, other specified feeding/ eating disorder (OSFED) and many more (Eating Disorders| AWARE Singapore, n.d.).

Points to note 

Eating disorders are indeed more common among females but males are susceptible to such mental illness too and there is nothing to be ashamed about to seek help. Contrary to popular belief that eating disorders are a choice that the person makes and it’s mainly because the person may be vain and want to look a certain way, this is a complete myth!

The causation of eating disorders can be due to many different factors, some reasons not related to food and weight, such as the need for control in life, genetics and certain personality traits. With that said, people diagnosed with eating disorders are not control freaks. It is just one of the many reasons that pile up and lead to such mental illnesses (Learn about 6 Common Types of Eating Disorders and Their Symptoms., 2019). 

Main point to all females and males today 

You are worth more than just numbers and at times we tend to surround ourselves with so many numbers and restrictions that we don’t truly listen to our body and what it wants. You deserve self-love and in case no one has told you today, you are beautiful because you are you and your flaws make you unique. They make you stand out. 🌿💫At the end of the day, people remember us based on our unique features, our values, character, how we treat others and interact with others. Not exactly how many flaws we have and how much we weigh?! If you ever have those people around you, please move away from the toxicity and remember that this only reflects the kind of person they are and NOT who you are. You are worthy of love and care, learn to accept your body and be grateful for all the things it has helped you accomplish. I personally am guilty of this as I have never truly appreciated what my body has enabled me to do until I was injured and could no longer carry our usual tasks or hobbies! 

Today, the diet culture and society as a whole has taught us to be ashamed and deprive ourselves of our basic need- food. Why? To attain an “ideal” size, shape, body type, performance (athletes)? It all doesn’t make sense because your body needs fuel and don’t ever feel guilty for having the need to eat. 

To all the warriors who are recovering and fighting tough battles within: 

You can do this and I believe in you. 🌻💗You’re strong and you are very very brave. 💪🏻On days that are very much tougher than other days, when you feel like going back or you lose hope, know that it’s possible to recover and YOU have the ability to as long as you continue fighting. Keep pushing forward even when the eating disorder voice in your head keeps screaming at you. If it screams, you scream back harder.

Remember: Recovery would inevitably be a series of ups and downs. There is no such thing as perfect and linear life. All of us face challenges but we can always make the decision to turn our setbacks into comebacks and become stronger than before. NEVER let the number on the scale own you. 🙅🏻‍♀️

Today, continue to fight and find reasons to fight. Remind yourself of why you want to get better whenever the eating disorder voice tells you to do otherwise. Keep fighting for a life free from the eating disorder. 💪🏻 

YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL

 YOU ARE LOVED 

YOU ARE ENOUGH

Be sensitive 💖

If any of you know people who may be struggling with an eating disorder or recovering from one, please show sensitivity by: 

 1. Avoiding comments on food and calories around the dinner table and also about weight and dieting

 2. Avoid labelling by calling people with such mental illnesses names such as “anorexic” or “bulimic”

 3. Avoid commenting on what the person has eaten unless it is part of their meal plan 

 4. Avoid comment on how they look physically as it can be triggering (e.g. you look better now, you look healthier now)

 5. Do not try to sneak foods into their diet or be manipulative with the food that they eat

 6.Do not talk about your own diet or skipping meals yourself 

 7. Do not ever give up on them even though sometimes it can seem like the person doesn’t want to recover

 8. Do understand that they may be ambivalent during recovery 

 9. Do understand that the nature of eating disorders are secretive

10. Do listen, provide support by being there for them and help them make appropriate decisions that may be hard as a result of the ambivalent nature of an eating disorder

Summary 

In case you got bored reading all these wordy paragraphs or don’t have the time to read through everything mentioned above, the main points of this blog will be summarised here. 

All in all, eating disorders are very complex and they affect people of all shapes and sizes. People don’t necessarily have to look “sick” or be at a certain weight to have an eating disorder. Remember, it’s a mental and not physical illness. Be kind to those with mental illnesses, show care and try to avoid discussing about weight, calories or comment about their body and foods they eat as this can make people with eating disorders anxious or worried. 

For those in recovery or have yet to seek help, it is important to remember that you are worthy of love, care and your worth is NEVER dependent on the scale or your size and how you look. You are more than that. You are a person with unique values, hobbies, abilities and character.

 

Thank you for reading! I hope blogs like these can help raise awareness on mental illnesses such as eating disorders especially since this week is NEDA Week. 

Nonetheless, the spreading of awareness and public education on such topics is continuous and should not be restricted to this one week. Let us work together to shed light on mental illnesses. 😌✨

Bibliography: 

1. Eating disorders in children and adolescents. (n.d.). Retrieved February 28, 2021, from https://www.nccs.com.sg:443/news/medical-news-singhealth/eating-disorders-children-adolescents 

 2. Eating disorders| AWARE Singapore. (n.d.). AWARE. Retrieved February 28, 2021, from https://www.aware.org.sg/information/eating-disorders/ 

 3. Learn about 6 common types of eating disorders and their symptoms. (2019, October 30). Healthline. https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/common-eating-disorders 

Credits for images: 

1. https://www.sheknows.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/how-to-support-friends-and-loved-ones-in-eating-disorder-recovery.png 

2. https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/sites/all/themes/neda3/images/nedaw_logo.png 

3. https://cdn.quotesgram.com/small/18/2/87329752-a1566450794ab491f588fa9616679fe1.jpg

4.https://64.media.tumblr.com/da754df6ca16b0a58ff37d9d8d4c72d8/tumblr_p7ob95dwJz1x4bfjio1_1280.jpg

5. https://i.pinimg.com/736x/2b/1d/bf/2b1dbfb3d72823bb3f0e11c867bf4fbf--eating-disorders-tattoo-eating-disorder.jpg

6. https://www.deborahhowardpsychotherapy.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/nourish-to-flourish.png

 

7. https://thecounter.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/eating-disorder-illustration-feature-image-july-2020-1410x0-c-default.jpg

8. https://img.buzzfeed.com/buzzfeed-static/static/2021-02/5/22/enhanced/60e8496b198e/longform-original-2130-1612564026-3.jpg