A blog from Rachel, who facilitates ‘Seen But Not Heard’, CAPS’ Experiences of Eating Disorders Collective Advocacy group.
The theme for Eating Disorder Awareness Week this year is that eating disorders can affect anyone. When people talk about eating disorders, the image that often comes to mind is a thin, white, young woman. However, eating disorders can affect all genders, sizes, ethnicities, ages, sexualities and socioeconomic statuses.
I have been the collective advocacy worker for the Seen But Not Heard collective advocacy group at CAPS for four months now. I wanted to take this opportunity to highlight some of the work that the group has been doing to spread awareness and challenge the stigma that those with eating disorders often experience. We often have conversations about how the stereotypes around eating disorders can mean that those who do not fit this stereotype may experience stigma or feel unworthy and embarrassed to seek help. The group have also shared their experiences that professionals can be less likely to recognise eating disorder symptoms in those who do not fit the stereotypical image of someone with an eating disorder. As a group, we are continually striving to challenge the stereotypes and stigma attached to eating disorders. We do this by sharing lived experience and educating people to help them understand the complexity of eating disorders.
Stigma can prevent people seeking help
Stigma can be defined as “the experience of shame, discriminations, or social isolation of a person due to a particular characteristic, condition, or attribute”. Experiencing stigma can be harmful as it may stop people from seeking help. Research has found that eating disorders may attract more stigma than other mental health issues because of the harmful stereotypes that are linked with an eating disorder diagnosis. Mental health related stigma can lead to a reluctance to seek treatment. This may worsen mental health symptoms, feelings of isolation and shame, and a lack of understanding from friends and family.
Those who are from minoritised identities, such as the LGBTQIA+ and minority ethnic communities, may experience even more stigma as they belong to multiple stigmatised identities. I am the collective advocacy worker for both the LGBTQIA+ and Experiences of eating disorders groups and both groups have collaborated previously to deliver a workshop that specifically highlights the high prevalence of eating disorders in the LGBTQIA+ community. With our experience led workshops, we strive to shed light on how eating disorders can affect different identities. And how stigma can prevent people from seeking the help they need or feeling heard.
How can Collective Advocacy help?
The Seen But Not Heard Collective Advocacy group have created many resources to address stigma. This has included producing booklets for GPs, delivering experience-led workshops, and conducting research into men’s experiences of eating disorders. With these projects, we hope to help people to understand that eating disorders are very complex and can affect anyone. Recently, we submitted an article for publication in the Critical Eating Dis/Order Studies Special issue of the International Mad Studies Journal. The article was a transcribed conversation between group members regarding what recovery means to them and the misconceptions often associated with eating disorder recovery. Again, this is another example of how the group is continually challenging stereotypes and stigma attached to eating disorders. They highlight the importance of listening to lived experience voices to truly understand what recovery looks like.
Why do stereotypes around eating disorders exist?
Stereotypes around eating disorders exist because of many reasons. The media often portrays the stereotypical young, white women as the only person who may experience an eating disorder. Another reason that this stereotype exists is that young, white women often make up most of the people that are studied in eating disorder research. At CAPS, we have been conducting our own research into men’s experiences of eating disorders. This research topic was chosen by the group as they noticed a lack of research into men’s and transmen’s experiences of eating disorders, and how their gender impacted them getting help and their recovery. We are currently in the analysis stage and are looking forward to finishing this research to help understand how someone’s gender can impact their experiences of having an eating disorder.
What next?
More eating disorder research into men’s, LGBTQIA+, and minority ethnic experiences of eating disorders is desperately needed. It’s important to continue challenging the stereotypical image of eating disorders and shed light on how not fitting the stereotype can affect people’s individual experiences of eating disorders and recovery. As a group, we are looking forward to continuing to share our work and experiences through research and workshops. We challenge the stigma and stereotypes attached to eating disorders and highlight that eating disorders really can affect anyone.
References
Foran A-M, O’Donnell AT, Muldoon OT. Stigma of eating disorders and recovery-related outcomes: A systematic review. European Eating Disorders Review. 2020; 28: 385–397.
National Eating Disorders Collaboration