Just Tell Her To Stop

I first met the author, Becky Henry, in her home state of Minnesota in 2009. A mutual friend, Kitty Westin, introduced us and it has been a lovely experience to get to know her. I had the honor of reading early drafts of her new book, Just Tell Her To Stop: Family Stories of Eating Disorders and I have seen the manuscript evolve and the community of families that Becky brought together to create it.

I believe in the power of telling stories and hearing stories. Facts can only do so much to help us understand. What I hear from parents so often is that they need to hear about how it has gone for others. Not just so they can glean clues to their own solutions but also to feel heard and feel connected. The experience of an eating disorder in a loved one is so disorienting and isolating that our stories mean so much more. We crave a sense of beginning, middle, and closure. We crave a view from another angle than the one we are so gruelingly faced with every hour, every meal, every appointment, every first moment of the day.

Becky has offered the gift of many families, many views - to the larger world. I had the pleasure of writing the foreword, and said this: "we stand on the shoulders of others before us." Progress is made when we speak up and when we listen.

Thank you, Becky, for giving voice and connection to so many!

Comments

  1. I look forward to getting my copy, and that of June Alexander's new book. It looks as if 2011 is going to start well in terms of reading matter.

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  2. My copy has arrived. Now to STOP myself from reading it until I have done the several other things I MUST do first.

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  3. Hi Laura,
    Thank you for sharing the information about my book here on your great blog! I'm looking forward to hearing from those who are reading it and truly hope that these stories will reduce the isolation and give hope and tools for coping with these deadly illnesses. People can share their comments on my blog Coachbeckyhenry.blogspot.com or my facebook pages (becky henry or HopeNetwork, Inc).
    Becky

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