I've written a memoir about the ongoingness of recovery ("Slip," to be published August 5), and I've given a lot of thought to this topic. I always appreciate whenever people write about eating disorders in a thoughtful way; the more we can talk about them, the more we can help to reduce the stigma and shame that so often surrounds them. Thank you for your work!
Thanks for your comment, Mallary. How exciting -- your book looks amazing. I'm adding to my TBR list on Goodreads :) I've not seen many books on EDs recently and I think this is really important.
Thank you, Ericka! I'm so glad you're interested in "Slip." It's now available for pre-order, and it's exciting to see it start to make its appearance in the world. I've been writing different iterations of this book for more than half my life, so it feels like a real gift to see it come to fruition. I hope it helps people feel seen and heard.
Thanks, Ericka. I'm praying for a time I can share this information with my 25-year-old daughter. She knows she's addicted to weed, but doesn't yet see her disordered eating. My husband and I stopped drinking recently, and have seen God moving many people around us in the same direction.
Thanks for writing this! Our poor girls. Do you think there is a book from you in the works on this topic? I find memoir to be so helpful to many readers. It's encouraging to hear people's stories.
I'm not sure if I'll have a book -- and I honestly don't have a good suggestion though Mallary, in the comment above, said she has one coming out this year!
As someone that suffered from an ED in my teens/early twenties, and also depression, I wanted to ask a genuine question. Do you really believe that it is a chemical altering in the brain? We were led to believe that about depression, and serotonin levels, and much of it has been proven not to be true. Not to say it isn't a mental illness. I felt hopeless for so long thinking my brain was altered and sick and I couldn't overcome depression, especially since my dad also had depression and had a nervous breakdown, I felt that I was destined for that. It was literally like something broke in me (in a good way) when I learned that wasn't true. It set me on the road to finding healing without medication. (I think there is a time and place for meds, I took them, and they helped!, but this culture of leaving people on SSRI for life is not good for anybody). I had to learn new thinking patterns, including that I COULD get well! I talked to people, professional and not, I got outside, I read, I prayed, I ate well, and the most important, I learned to sleep well, which I believe was the number one contributing factor to my depression and mental health struggles. I had been an insomniac since high school. Why in all my doctor visits was this not addressed? I know this isn't what the article is necessarily about, but I think we so often treat symptoms without treating the true root of the problems. Young people, all people, (me included) need to know, and be reminded, their worth is not wrapped up in their physical body. We need to focus our lives more on other people instead of being such a self absorbed society. I'm not proposing it is easy, or that there is one simple solution. I also have raised a daughter and I also didn't make food and issue, we didn't say fat, or talk about peoples bodies. My daughter is almost 19 and recently told me of some of her struggles with body image. Makes me sad that I wasn't aware of some of them when they were happening. I am glad that we are talking about them now and working toward balance and health. I love your writing, it always brings up good questions and food for thought!
I think the reasons are layered and nuanced for sure. I don't think it's "wholly" a brain issue. And certainly, traditional doctors do not dig into root causes enough! It should be a mind-body-spirit analysis because just putting someone on an anti-depressent certainly won't solve the issue!
Thank you so much for writing this piece, Erika. It's such an important and under-discussed topic. Reading the part about your daughter made me think of a related piece that I wrote last week about how I'm helping my children navigate body image as a mother in recovery from anorexia. You might find it helpful: https://www.tampabay.com/opinion/2025/02/13/im-recovery-anorexia-heres-how-im-helping-my-daughter-navigate-body-image/
I've written a memoir about the ongoingness of recovery ("Slip," to be published August 5), and I've given a lot of thought to this topic. I always appreciate whenever people write about eating disorders in a thoughtful way; the more we can talk about them, the more we can help to reduce the stigma and shame that so often surrounds them. Thank you for your work!
Thanks for your comment, Mallary. How exciting -- your book looks amazing. I'm adding to my TBR list on Goodreads :) I've not seen many books on EDs recently and I think this is really important.
Thank you, Ericka! I'm so glad you're interested in "Slip." It's now available for pre-order, and it's exciting to see it start to make its appearance in the world. I've been writing different iterations of this book for more than half my life, so it feels like a real gift to see it come to fruition. I hope it helps people feel seen and heard.
Thanks, Ericka. I'm praying for a time I can share this information with my 25-year-old daughter. She knows she's addicted to weed, but doesn't yet see her disordered eating. My husband and I stopped drinking recently, and have seen God moving many people around us in the same direction.
So many things but all rooted in similar areas. I hope you can speak with her soon and help her see the light <3
Thanks for writing this! Our poor girls. Do you think there is a book from you in the works on this topic? I find memoir to be so helpful to many readers. It's encouraging to hear people's stories.
I'm not sure if I'll have a book -- and I honestly don't have a good suggestion though Mallary, in the comment above, said she has one coming out this year!
As someone that suffered from an ED in my teens/early twenties, and also depression, I wanted to ask a genuine question. Do you really believe that it is a chemical altering in the brain? We were led to believe that about depression, and serotonin levels, and much of it has been proven not to be true. Not to say it isn't a mental illness. I felt hopeless for so long thinking my brain was altered and sick and I couldn't overcome depression, especially since my dad also had depression and had a nervous breakdown, I felt that I was destined for that. It was literally like something broke in me (in a good way) when I learned that wasn't true. It set me on the road to finding healing without medication. (I think there is a time and place for meds, I took them, and they helped!, but this culture of leaving people on SSRI for life is not good for anybody). I had to learn new thinking patterns, including that I COULD get well! I talked to people, professional and not, I got outside, I read, I prayed, I ate well, and the most important, I learned to sleep well, which I believe was the number one contributing factor to my depression and mental health struggles. I had been an insomniac since high school. Why in all my doctor visits was this not addressed? I know this isn't what the article is necessarily about, but I think we so often treat symptoms without treating the true root of the problems. Young people, all people, (me included) need to know, and be reminded, their worth is not wrapped up in their physical body. We need to focus our lives more on other people instead of being such a self absorbed society. I'm not proposing it is easy, or that there is one simple solution. I also have raised a daughter and I also didn't make food and issue, we didn't say fat, or talk about peoples bodies. My daughter is almost 19 and recently told me of some of her struggles with body image. Makes me sad that I wasn't aware of some of them when they were happening. I am glad that we are talking about them now and working toward balance and health. I love your writing, it always brings up good questions and food for thought!
I think the reasons are layered and nuanced for sure. I don't think it's "wholly" a brain issue. And certainly, traditional doctors do not dig into root causes enough! It should be a mind-body-spirit analysis because just putting someone on an anti-depressent certainly won't solve the issue!