This is the Weight and Healthcare newsletter! If you like what you are reading, please consider subscribing and/or sharing! Recently I was made aware of something that was happening with the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA) helpline. For the past twenty years, NEDA has run a helpline providing support to tens of thousands of people a year via text, chat, and phone. That helpline was recently replaced with an AI-driven chatbot.
This also speaks to the amount of fat phobic stuff online, including pro-ana (pro-anorexia) groups, dieting support, fat hatred etc., such that a chatbot cannot distinguish what an eating disorder even is and what would help!
The eating disorder support organization that I have found most helpful has been FEAST. It's aimed at parents/families of kids/teens/young adults (I found it as a parent of a kid with an eating disorder) but it's also been helpful to me as a person with a history of an eating disorder. It's where I have found lots of parents who want a full recovery for their kids and are willing to question weight bias, diet culture and non-evidence based eating disorders treatment to get there.
Thank you for sharing this. It’s appalling. Is there anything others are doing to raise awareness of this? I’ve been on the periphery of this community for 8 years and I had no idea how terrible NEDAs track record was, so much so that at one point I considered applying for a job there. As someone in recovery from BED, I can only imagine how harmful this messaging is for anyone with an eating disorder but especially those of us in fat bodies.
Not at all surprised by this given NEDA's fatphobic history. Thanks for writing this awesome piece, Ragen. I would also add Withall https://withall.org/who-we-are/ to the list- they provide financial assistance to those in all levels of eating disorders care, and The Eating Disorders Foundation https://eatingdisorderfoundation.org/get-help/support-groups/support-group-schedule/ which has various free support groups virtually and in person. I recommend both to my clients often.
This also speaks to the amount of fat phobic stuff online, including pro-ana (pro-anorexia) groups, dieting support, fat hatred etc., such that a chatbot cannot distinguish what an eating disorder even is and what would help!
The eating disorder support organization that I have found most helpful has been FEAST. It's aimed at parents/families of kids/teens/young adults (I found it as a parent of a kid with an eating disorder) but it's also been helpful to me as a person with a history of an eating disorder. It's where I have found lots of parents who want a full recovery for their kids and are willing to question weight bias, diet culture and non-evidence based eating disorders treatment to get there.
I, too, have found FEAST to be a solid resource for parents of children with eating disorders.
Thank you for sharing this. It’s appalling. Is there anything others are doing to raise awareness of this? I’ve been on the periphery of this community for 8 years and I had no idea how terrible NEDAs track record was, so much so that at one point I considered applying for a job there. As someone in recovery from BED, I can only imagine how harmful this messaging is for anyone with an eating disorder but especially those of us in fat bodies.
Not at all surprised by this given NEDA's fatphobic history. Thanks for writing this awesome piece, Ragen. I would also add Withall https://withall.org/who-we-are/ to the list- they provide financial assistance to those in all levels of eating disorders care, and The Eating Disorders Foundation https://eatingdisorderfoundation.org/get-help/support-groups/support-group-schedule/ which has various free support groups virtually and in person. I recommend both to my clients often.
I use EDF’s healthcare provider recovery meeting. They’re very welcoming and kind.
Just wow.