Another thing the autism community has to teach us
It is my fantasy for the future that eating disorder diagnosis would be when they first appear (usually puberty and early adolescence). People would be wise and on the alert, and act quickly.
I dream of a time when after diagnosis a patient would immediately be referred to a team of experienced and well-trained clinicians who offer a range of effective treatments at one location, with a seamless connection between levels of care, and full integration of the family and community.
In my hopes for the future, patients would be treated on an outpatient basis from home to full remission in the first 6-12 months, and a plan in place to both strengthen the patient against relapse and for lifelong monitoring for nutritional and emotional health.
But even in my most optimistic fantasies, I know that some patients will need a higher level of care from the beginning. I know that some patients will relapse, and some patients will need different levels of care at different ages. So now I have a fantasy for that, too: that places like the Mifne Center in Israel would be created for anorexia, bulimia, EDNOS, and BED.
The ED world has much to learn from the autism community.
If the inpatient and residential treatment community would welcome the whole family into residence, offer us tools and education, and continue to support us as a unit when we go home... we could do wonders.
I dream of a time when after diagnosis a patient would immediately be referred to a team of experienced and well-trained clinicians who offer a range of effective treatments at one location, with a seamless connection between levels of care, and full integration of the family and community.
In my hopes for the future, patients would be treated on an outpatient basis from home to full remission in the first 6-12 months, and a plan in place to both strengthen the patient against relapse and for lifelong monitoring for nutritional and emotional health.
But even in my most optimistic fantasies, I know that some patients will need a higher level of care from the beginning. I know that some patients will relapse, and some patients will need different levels of care at different ages. So now I have a fantasy for that, too: that places like the Mifne Center in Israel would be created for anorexia, bulimia, EDNOS, and BED.
The ED world has much to learn from the autism community.
If the inpatient and residential treatment community would welcome the whole family into residence, offer us tools and education, and continue to support us as a unit when we go home... we could do wonders.
the ED world (and the world in general) has a lot to learn from the palliative care world - http://www.helenanddouglas.org.uk/
ReplyDeleteThen again, there's a lot of anti-scientific stuff going on in the autism world. One of my relatives was put on a gluten- and casein-free diet, is looking at taking chelation agents to get the mercury out of his body from vaccines (even though mercury hasn't been in childhood vaccines for about 5 years, and he's not that old), etc.
ReplyDeleteSorry- just being my usual cynical self. :)