National Eating Disorder Awareness Week

This week is National Eating Disorders Awareness (NEDA) Week. During this week, we want to bring awareness to eating disorders and the mental health disorders typically associated with them. There is much more to an eating disorder than just the introductory information about E.D.’s.

Eating Disorders and mental health disorders tend to associate with one another. When an individual struggles with one, it can lead to the other disorder becoming more prominent.

Here are some statistics:

• Two-thirds of people who suffer from anorexia showed signs/ suffered from anxiety years before the start of their eating disorder.
• One in four people who have an eating disorder have symptoms of PTSD.
• One in five women seeking treatment for an eating disorder had signs of ADHD.
• A study of 2,400 participants hospitalized for an eating disorder found that 97% had one or more co-occurring mental health disorders while battling an eating disorder.

National Eating Disorders is celebrating 20 years of #NEDAwareness Week. This year, they want everyone to use the #SeeTheChange by identifying the change in the ever-evolving eating disorders field, #BeTheChange by being an advocate, bringing more awareness to eating disorders, and continuing to be a part of community building.

We want to remind everyone that you are more than the number on a scale. You are more than the unrealistic beauty standards on social media. You are a beautiful, strong, and a perfect person just the way you are.

*Graphic courtesy of National Eating Disorders Association