Help my friend Kathleen -
My friend, Kathleen, sends this query for the parents here. Kathleen is a wonderful activist and tireless volunteer for eating disorders awareness!
"My name is Kathleen MacDonald and I am a survivor of a 16 year battle with various eating disorders, all along the continuum. In 2002 I had a major turning point in my life and I (finally) realized that I was going to die from my eating disorders if I didn't take my recovery seriously. I spent from 2002-2004 working on nothing but recovery, putting into practice all the things my doctor and therapists told me throughout the years, and I challenged every trigger --and then some. After a year of working my recovery, I began to take recovery further than I had ever imagined possible. I began to believe that there was life beyond being in recovery. I dreamed it, and then I began to live in the possibility that complete recovery was possible. I now live beyond recovered. I live beyond all of the years with my disorders, all the years prior to my eating disorders, and I live my Life not as a survivor, or someone recovered, I simply (and gratefully) Live, Always Becoming. ~
I am now in the process of finishing a book detailing how I finally recovered. The book does not focus on how sick I was, rather the focus is on HOW I overcame the complexity and hell of ED. I know that when I was sick with ED, and during my recovery, I alienated my family and friends for many reasons, but especially because that was easier than trying to teach them how to deal with me and my eating disorder. I know it left my family (especially my parents) feeling helpless, angry, and afraid...and it left our family full of tension, and me feeling more of a burden.
Therefore, part of my book is dedicated to the carers of those with ED --and I need your input to make that part of my book a success. I am dedicating the focus of a chapter to answering questions from you, the carers.
This is your turn to ask and have answered questions about ED, how to help, the mindset of someone suffering...anything you wish to better understand, support your loved one/yourself, and to help you get through the insidious battle of eating disorders. (I am also dedicating the focus of a chapter to the sufferers of ED...they have provided insight such as answering the following (and more) :
I need you to understand _________, I wish you understood ________, I am trying to recover, but __________, This is so hard because ______________, It is helpful when you ___________, It is not helpful when you ______________) ~
Thank you, Laura, for sharing this with FEAST members...I know their questions will provide great insight to others via the book. I can be reached at: kathleen@freedfoundation.org "
"My name is Kathleen MacDonald and I am a survivor of a 16 year battle with various eating disorders, all along the continuum. In 2002 I had a major turning point in my life and I (finally) realized that I was going to die from my eating disorders if I didn't take my recovery seriously. I spent from 2002-2004 working on nothing but recovery, putting into practice all the things my doctor and therapists told me throughout the years, and I challenged every trigger --and then some. After a year of working my recovery, I began to take recovery further than I had ever imagined possible. I began to believe that there was life beyond being in recovery. I dreamed it, and then I began to live in the possibility that complete recovery was possible. I now live beyond recovered. I live beyond all of the years with my disorders, all the years prior to my eating disorders, and I live my Life not as a survivor, or someone recovered, I simply (and gratefully) Live, Always Becoming. ~
I am now in the process of finishing a book detailing how I finally recovered. The book does not focus on how sick I was, rather the focus is on HOW I overcame the complexity and hell of ED. I know that when I was sick with ED, and during my recovery, I alienated my family and friends for many reasons, but especially because that was easier than trying to teach them how to deal with me and my eating disorder. I know it left my family (especially my parents) feeling helpless, angry, and afraid...and it left our family full of tension, and me feeling more of a burden.
Therefore, part of my book is dedicated to the carers of those with ED --and I need your input to make that part of my book a success. I am dedicating the focus of a chapter to answering questions from you, the carers.
This is your turn to ask and have answered questions about ED, how to help, the mindset of someone suffering...anything you wish to better understand, support your loved one/yourself, and to help you get through the insidious battle of eating disorders. (I am also dedicating the focus of a chapter to the sufferers of ED...they have provided insight such as answering the following (and more) :
I need you to understand _________, I wish you understood ________, I am trying to recover, but __________, This is so hard because ______________, It is helpful when you ___________, It is not helpful when you ______________) ~
Thank you, Laura, for sharing this with FEAST members...I know their questions will provide great insight to others via the book. I can be reached at: kathleen@freedfoundation.org "
Hello Kathleen
ReplyDeleteIt looks as if I've answered the wrong questions or asked the wrong questions so I'll contact you again, but I just wanted to say a public "hello" and to wish you well. I'm off to e-mail you with some questions rather than just give answers as if I know anything!