advertisement

Eating Disorders Affect the Entire Family

HealthyPlace Mental Health Newsletter

Here's what's happening on the HealthyPlace site this week:

Eating Disorders Affect the Entire Family

Eating Disorders Affect the Entire FamilyFor someone struggling with an eating disorder, their world is focused primarily on them and their personal battle with food. However, it is important to recognize the anxiety and worry connected to the family members of the one struggling.

Eating disorders have an impact on the entire family. For instance, when a sibling sees their brother or sister harming their body by not eating, they can become nervous and/or angry. When those emotions come to the surface, it does not help the sibling or the individual with the eating disorder overcome the obstacles.

When a family member is anorexic or bulimic, the entire family dynamic changes. (Family Members of the Eating Disordered Patient) Meals become more difficult to plan and you can't typically go out to dinner at the spur of the moment. Usual routines may change, which can sometimes cause other emotions to rise. It is important to recognize if a sibling is feeling anxious or frustrated with the situation. Usually it is because they do not fully understand the mental illness and should become more knowledgeable about the disorder.

By coming together as a family to discuss the situation, with or without the family member struggling with the eating disorder, you can decide on ways to attack the situation in a positive way. You can work as a team to help one another and find ways to steer clear of depression or anxiety. It is not an easy journey for any family member when someone they love has an eating disorder, but by becoming a united front – progress is possible.

Related Articles Dealing with Eating Disorders and the Family:

Your Thoughts

Today's Question: Do you have a family member with an eating disorder? How does that affect other members of the family? We invite you to participate by commenting and sharing your feelings, experiences and knowledge on the HealthyPlace Facebook page.

------------------------------------------------------------------

Share our Stories

At the top and bottom of all our stories, you'll find social share buttons for Facebook, Google+, Twitter, Pinterest and other social sites. If you find a particular story, video, psychological test or other HealthyPlace feature helpful, there's a good chance others in need will too. Please share.

We also get many inquiries about our linking policy. If you have a website or blog, you can link to any page on the HealthyPlace website without asking us beforehand.


continue story below


Most Popular HealthyPlace Articles Shared by Facebook Fans

Here are the top 3 mental health articles HealthyPlace Facebook fans are recommending you read:

  1. Did You Know That Having ADHD is Like Having Super Powers?
  2. Emotional Abuse Test: Am I Emotionally Abused?
  3. What To Do When You Are Lonely

If you're not already, I hope you'll join us/like us on Facebook too. There are a lot of wonderful, supportive people there.

------------------------------------------------------------------

Mental Health Experiences

Share your thoughts/experiences with any mental health subject, or respond to other people's audio posts, by calling our toll-free number (1-888-883-8045).

You can listen to what other people are saying by clicking on the gray title bars inside the widgets located on the "Sharing Your Mental Health Experiences" homepage, the HealthyPlace homepage, and the HealthyPlace Support Network homepage.

If you have any questions, write us at: info AT healthyplace.com

------------------------------------------------------------------

From the HealthyPlace Mental Health Blogs

On all our blogs, your comments and observations are welcomed.

Feel free to share your thoughts and comments at the bottom of any blog post. And visit the mental health blogs homepage for the latest posts.

------------------------------------------------------------------

Stand Up for Mental Health

Thousands Have Joined the Stand Up for Mental Health Campaign

But we still need you. Let others know there's no shame in having depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, trichotillomania, OCD, ADHD, schizophrenia or any other mental illness.

Join the Stand Up for Mental Health campaign. Put a button on your website or blog (buttons for family members, parents, mental health professionals and organizations too). We also have covers for Facebook, Twitter and Google+.

------------------------------------------------------------------

Latest Mental Health News

These stories and more are featured on our mental health news page:

  • Autism Risk Is 'Mostly Genetic,' According To Statistical Analysis
  • Homeless And Unstably Housed Women In San Francisco Suffer High Rates Of Violence
  • The Higher The Cigarette Taxes, The Lower The Suicide Rates
  • Risk Of Personal And Appearance-Based Rejection Sensitivity Higher In Body Dysmorphic Disorder Patients
  • Seizure Risk Increased Before And After Psychiatric Hospitalization
  • Deficit Schizophrenia Patients Show Reduced FA In The Left Uncinate Fasciculus
  • Beyond The Damaged Brain. Neuroscientists Can Learn From The Humanities
  • Our Desire For Payback Exemplifies Our Capacity For Abstract Thought
  • Friends Can Be Dangerous. Even Teenage Mice Binge-Drink With Peers

That's it for now. If you know of anyone who can benefit from this newsletter or the HealthyPlace.com site, I hope you'll pass this onto them. You can also share the newsletter on any social network (like facebook, stumbleupon, or digg) you belong to by clicking the links below. For updates throughout the week:

back to: HealthyPlace.com Mental-Health Newsletter Index

APA Reference
Staff, H. (2014, September 9). Eating Disorders Affect the Entire Family, HealthyPlace. Retrieved on 2024, March 18 from https://www.healthyplace.com/other-info/mental-health-newsletter/eating-disorders-affect-the-entire-family

Last Updated: September 9, 2014
advertisement

Medically reviewed by Harry Croft, MD

More Info