SHE TREATED ME LIKE A WHOLE PERSON

SHE TREATED ME LIKE A WHOLE

PERSON

Aimee loves meeting friends, listening to music and walking her dog. She’s enjoying college and dreams of becoming a doctor. Yet two years ago, the 16 year old was hospitalised by an eating disorder.

She’d struggled with eating, but her problems worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. “I became obsessed with exercise”, she said. “I’d spend hours walking and doing high impact workouts.”

She recalls mealtimes, where she’d go to great lengths to hide her behaviour from mum, Suzanne. “We’d eat together,” recalls Aimee “but I’d wrap mine in a dog bag and put it in the bin.” Alarm bells rang for Suzanne when her daughter’s periods stopped and she began losing her hair. Blood tests were clear, but Aimee’s GP notes included the words ‘possible ED’ (eating disorder). When Suzanne researched she was horrified. “All of the symptoms were happening to Aimee. I felt like I’d been hit by a bus.”

When Aimee was referred to the children and young people’s eating disorder team, she was hiding food, secretly exercising and purging. She also began to self harm and in September 2020, as she should have been starting her GCSE studies, Aimee was being admitted to hospital. Suzanne was distraught: “She had reached a point where she couldn’t eat at all. We were watching her 24/7.” The situation was hard for Aimee too. “I wanted to get better, but my eating disorder didn’t want me to get better.” She responded well to the support she was receiving, including a structured eating regime, but when tragedy struck and her uncle died unexpectedly, Aimee once more stopped eating. The next step was an inpatient eating disorder unit, but thanks to the team’s innovative approach Aimee was able to stay home with expert support. She is full of praise for her nurse Margie Pardoe. “She would phone every day, but she didn’t focus on the eating disorder. She would ask me how I felt about my uncle – she treated me like a whole person.” With Margie’s help Aimee responded to treatment, but her method of having some control shifted from food to self harming. Margie supported her through anxiety and depression. Aimee’s weight increased and with individual and family therapy, her mental state has steadily improved. Suzanne rewarded her daughter’s efforts with a puppy - Jim the dachshund is now a key part of the team. Aimee describes her mum as ‘my rock’ and praised her grandad Roy for his constant positivity. She shares information about her recovery journey on Instagram and has received many positive messages, including from a young girl who had been inspired to seek help. Aimee’s advice to others in her position? “When you have no hope and you think this is your life forever, remember – you will never, ever be ill enough for the eating disorder.“ Aimee blogs on @aimsrecovery

NEED

SUPPORT?

EATING DISORDERS

Support for you

• Help yourself – our self help guide on eating disorders can be read online, downloaded or watched as a video.

visit: merseycare.nhs.uk

MORE HELP

BEAT – Eating Disorder Support Online 9am-midnight during the week, 4pm-midnight on weekends and bank holidays. Telephone: 0808 801 0677 Email: help@beateatingdisorders.org.uk PAPYRUS (prevention of young suicide): 0800 0684 141 CHILDLINE: 0800 1111 CALM Helpline (males only): 0800 585 858

KOOTH.com

Lyndsey Lawrence, Operations Manager with Mersey Care’s children and young people’s eating disorder service.

SEE THE SIGNS

It’s easy to miss signs – children go to great lengths to hide the fact that they aren’t eating, says eating disorders service Operations Manager Lyndsey Lawrence.

Seeing your child visibly looking thinner in a short space of time should be a cause for concern. Other signs include exercising for more than two hours a day, reducing food intake to less than 500 calories in 24 hours, or noticeable dizziness when standing from a sitting down position.

The child may begin to avoid eating with the family or going out to restaurants together. Wearing thick jumpers might be an attempt to mask body changes.

Everything the team does goes back to their core approach – get in early and treat mind as well as body. Says Lindsey: “The benefits of treating someone early are that you’re able to treat the psychological and the physical elements at the same time.“

You can self refer to the service – see page 12 or go to merseycare.nhs.uk

CHARLOTTE’S A FIGHTER

Charlotte is 19 and has ambitions of becoming a firefighter. Four years ago, she was battling an eating disorder.

She now shares her experience on Instagram in the hope of helping others. One of her main messages is about exercising to stay healthy rather than lose weight. “There are people out there struggling. I say ‘Be open about it. Don’t be too hard on yourself. If something does set you back just say, yeah it was a bad day but I can start again tomorrow’. “Speak to people about what’s bothering you, be wise about who you follow on social media, look for people whose content aligns with what you feel you need.”

Charlotte can now reflect on a time where she was scared to put weight on and had cut out major food groups. “I was dropping a dress size week by week. I’d do a gym session in the garden, go for a bike ride, then a walk. I wonder now how I did it all.”

Her recovery took two years. During that time she found a personal trainer who encouraged eating more to build up strength. “I noticed myself getting better, I still had setbacks, but I’d keep on trying.”

She’s concerned at damage caused by gyms providing six week transformation programmes, putting people on very low calorie diets that encourage unhealthy habits. Her best piece of advice? “You may have setbacks but keep moving forward.”

@charlottemoorefitnessxx