Biting the Hand That Starves You: Inspiring Resistance to Anorexia/Bulimia (Hardcover)

by Richard Maisel (Author), David Epston (Author), Ali Borden (Author) "You will see them as you wander through a city park on a pleasant sunny afternoon..." (more)
Key Phrases: perfect anorexic, constructive therapies, narrative therapy, New Zealand

Editorial Reviews

Review
A powerful book, written in extremely strong language...[A]n absolute must-have for anyone working to help sufferers from these killing disorders. -- Human Givens Journal, Denise Winn, April 2005

Allows therapist, client, and loved ones to maintain positivity and hope during those periods that seem the bleakest. -- PsycCritiques, Christy Barongan

Inspiring…suitable for anyone touched by an eating disorder, whether they are professionals, carers or sufferers…Could not recommend this book more. -- Psychology and Psychotherapy: Theory, Research, and Practice, Madeline Rolfe

Presents a persuasive and inspiring way to think about eating disorders and their treatment. -- Gastronomica, Maria Frisch, University of Minnesota

The words of the insiders allow the reader to understand how to undermine and eradicate a/b successfully. -- Journal of Constructivist Psychology, Katherine Veazey Morris

This is the book we have been waiting for…[A] welcome paradigm shift…compassionate, respectful, and effective treatment. -- SuEllen Hamkins, Psychiatric Services

Undoubtedly compelling food for thought…absolutely essential reading for academic researchers as well as therapists, 'insiders' and carers. -- Women and Psychology, Helen Malson

[A]fter over 20 years of battling with anorexia/bulimia, I have found something that speaks my language. -- Archives of Resistance

[I]mpressive and useful…[E]xcellent book for medical students, residents, senior faculty, and, in part or whole, our patients and their families. -- Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry

Product Description
A journey within the hearts and bodies of those fighting anorexia/bulimia.

This book takes readers inside the minds, bodies, and feelings of anorexic patients and tells the stories of those who have successfully fought back from this disease. Through first-person narratives, readers get a rarely seen look inside this disease. Anyone who has suffered from anorexia/bulimia, or who has had a loved one struggle with it, will benefit from the insights in this book.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 314 pages
• Publisher: W.W. Norton & Co. (October 18, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0393703371
• ISBN-13: 978-0393703375
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #426,713 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Waiting for this Great Book!, September 19, 2005

By	Jenni Schaefer "Author of Life Without Ed: Ho... (Nashville, TN) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I only wish that Rick, David, and Ali had written this book years ago! Because Biting the Hand that Starves You would have been an incredible source of information, motivation, and hope when I was desperately struggling in the depths of my eating disorder.

I was thrilled to see that the book vividly illustrates the vicious dialogue that occurs between the eating disorder and the individual who suffers with it. Throughout my recovery, psychotherapist and author Thom Rutledge encouraged me to practice this very dialogue between my true self (Jenni) and my eating disorder (`Ed') over and over again, which was crucial to my finding the amazing freedom I experience today.

Biting the Hand that Starves You includes many uplifting, inspirational personal accounts that reveal people can and do beat anorexia/bulimia! Within the book, the authors compassionately share how you can really make practical steps to join the ranks of those who already walk that path of independence.

Unlike many other books, Biting the Hand that Starves You goes a step beyond just focusing on how to recover from specific eating disordered behaviors. It also talks about moving on and reclaiming your life --- providing great insight on overcoming perfectionism, taking risks, and even pursuing dreams and passions.

This is one book that I am glad I came across on the shelves of eating disorder literature. I just wish it would have appeared a little bit sooner!

Jenni Schaefer, author of Life Without Ed: How One Woman Declared Independence from her Eating Disorder and How You Can Too (McGraw-Hill)

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Highly recommended, November 5, 2005

By	Reader (Australia) - See all my reviews

As someone who has struggled with anorexia for over half my life, I have often found myself reading anything on anorexia I could lay my hands on; desperately searching for the reassurance that comes from knowing one is not alone in one's experiences, as well as for some elusive insight that might assist me in resisting anorexia's stranglehold over my life. Yet frequently I have come away from such reading feeling dissatisfied and disheartened. Not so with 'Biting the Hand that Starves You'; in this book I found so much of what I had been searching for and a whole lot more.

While the authors are not the first professionals to draw on `insider knowledges' (the knowledges of people with first-hand experiences of anorexia/bulimia), the prominence and the respect accorded to such knowledges is unprecedented. The result is a book that speaks compellingly of anorexia/bulimia, and crucially, does so in a manner that is never patronising, pathologising or didactical.

Providing exciting new ways of thinking and speaking about anorexia/bulimia, the book engenders a sense of hope - a 'commodity' that is often desperately lacking, yet so vital when it comes to resisting anorexia/bulimia.

I highly recommend the book to all readers, from those struggling with anorexia/bulimia, to their family and friends, and health professionals.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book got me eating meals, April 12, 2005

By	Timothy Patry - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I liked that the book doesn't discriminate against eating disorder patients. It doesn't blame the patient for the problem.

This book scared me and exposed anorexia as something outside myself and as an out of body voice that has influenced my thoughts since childhood.