03/01/2026
As We Come to the End of Eating Disorder Awareness Week
As we close this week, here is what we hope you understand:
Eating disorders (EDs) are serious mental health conditions, not choices, phases, or about vanity. They involve complex relationships between thoughts, emotions, behaviors, and physical health. EDs can affect brain functioning, heart health, hormones, mood regulation, concentration, and relationships.
They often develop from a combination of genetic vulnerability, anxiety, trauma, perfectionism, cultural pressure, and a need for control during overwhelming times.
Eating disorders do not have a “look.”
They affect children, teens, adults, men, women, athletes, parents, people in larger bodies, and high-achieving professionals. You cannot determine if someone is struggling based on weight or appearance alone.
What eating disorders can look like:
• Skipping meals or eating very little
• Rigid food rules
• Labeling foods as “good” or “bad”
• Avoiding eating in front of others
• Excessive or compulsive exercise
• Frequent body checking
• Wearing baggy clothing
• Mood shifts tied to food
• Irritability, isolation, or secrecy
• Intense fear of weight gain
Eating disorders are often coping mechanisms rooted in emotional distress or nervous system dysregulation. What may begin as a way to feel safe or in control can become harmful over time.
How to support someone:
• Approach with compassion, not confrontation
• Avoid commenting on weight or appearance
• Do not praise restriction or extreme discipline
• Ask open-ended questions
• Listen without trying to immediately fix
• Encourage professional support early
Instead of saying, “Just eat,” try, “I’ve noticed food seems stressful lately. I care about you.”
Getting help can include individual therapy, trauma-informed care, family support, and learning healthy coping and regulation skills. Recovery is possible, and early intervention improves outcomes.
At Intuitive Healing Therapy, we are here to support individuals and families navigating eating disorders and disordered eating. Healing begins when shame is replaced with understanding.
You are not alone.
