"Navigating the treacherous ground of a child's eating disorder can be a remarkable challenge. Written by two trusted figures in the eating disorders field, this book offers parents a clear and comprehensive roadmap for helping a child overcome this serious threat to health and well-being."--Kelly D. Brownell, PhD, Yale Center for Eating and Weight Disorders; author of Food Fight
"Parents receive lots of advice about how to help their children recover from eating disorders--but often it's the wrong advice. This book helps parents understand what is going on with their child and how they can take an active role in making treatment more successful. I highly recommend it."--W. Stewart Agras, MD, coauthor of Overcoming Eating Disorders
"If you are the parent of a teenager who is struggling with an eating disorder, you probably feel confused, anxious, and filled with questions. What should you do? Is it your fault? Can you help? This book, written by two eating disorder experts, will help you find some answers. It clearly explains what eating disorders are about and which treatments work best, and gives practical suggestions and encouragement. Recommended for any concerned parent."--Rachel Bryant-Waugh, PhD, University of Southampton, UK; author of Eating Disorders: A Parents' Guide
"The authors, both experienced in the field of psychiatric treatment of teens with eating disorders, make a cogent and compelling argument for greater involvement of parents in their children's care. In so doing, they serve to empower parents, marking a welcome departure from previous practice."--Iris F. Litt, MD, Adolescent Medicine Clinic, Department of Pediatrics, Stanford University School of Medicine
"Truly excellent. An invaluable resource for parents. It provides sound, commonsense answers to all the most important questions. Written by experts--and it shows."--Christopher G Fairburn, DM, FRCPsych, author of Overcoming Binge Eating
"Finding appropriate treatment for our 15-year-old daughter has involved plenty of heartache, but this book provides information and empowerment that is helping us persevere. It offers a comprehensive account of the challenges of dealing with an adolescent's eating disorder--and what you can do to restore your child to a normal, healthy life. A 'must read' for parents!"--Mr. and Mrs. V., Naperville, Illinois
"With this groundbreaking book, parents can set aside guilt and helplessness and get on with the difficult but rewarding work of supporting their child toward healthy recovery."--Laura Collins, author of Eating With Your Anorexic
"There are many red flags that parents should recognize when it comes to their adolescent daughter or son's eating habits, and this intelligent book points them out clearly and concisely."--Publishers Weekly
"The book is of high quality and would be of help to any family facing this difficult situation."--Doody's Review
"I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. I think it would be a useful resource for any parent who is caring for a teenager with an eating disorder, as it is filled with loads of useful information....The book is very good at illuminating how families can band together to help fight eating disorders, in a safe and supportive way so that they do not feel completely powerless. All round I feel that this book is a very useful resource for parents, and I highly recommend it."--Signpost
To say that this book is revolutionary would not be an exaggeration. For decades, Anorexia and Bulimia in their many forms were viewed as the result of a combination of family dysfunction and social pressures. Though the scientific evidence to support this was pretty weak tea, that was and still is the dominant view of experts who treat this illness. (See Hilde Bruch's "The Golden Cage". It perfectly captures this view.)
In practice, this translated into therapies for anorexics in which families were told "not to make food an issue" and that their adolescent son or daughter was really expressing a need to "control" their environment. Any effort to actually feed the starving child was discouraged. Instead, parents were and are told that their child had to "choose" to get better first.
Lock and LeGrange are both research scientists and psychiatric practitioners who stumbled upon the research done at the Maudsley Hospital in London on eating disorders. The researchers at Maudsley did three novel things. First, they decided to be agnostic on the causes of anorexia. This freed them up to do a second thing; feed the starving child. In order to accomplish this, they had to do the third and final revolutionary thing which was to enlist the parents as part of the re-feeding process. In other words, the parents were now part of the cure, rather than part of the problem.
This stood current treatment for anorexics on its head. Amazingly, the researchers documented the most successful "cure" rate for any scientifically conducted study on anorexia treatment. "Help Your Teenager Beat an Eating Disorder" introduces parents to and guides them through the Maudsley approach.
This book was not written as a self-help manual, but it was written for parents and contains loads of practical advice garnered from years of working directly with sufferers and their parents. For example, they address common questions such as: should my child weigh himself; do I take her grocery shopping with me;establish a regular pattern of eating; what to do about binging and purging; how should one deal with friends; what to do about new clothes;and, naturally, how to help your child eat more.
What you won't find is endless but unprovable psycho-babble that makes you sick with guilt over why your child won't eat. L and L address the significant emotional issues attendant with the disease, but they don't blame the parents for them; they blame the illness. I cannot begin to tell you how refreshing that is.
This is a book that demands a place in the home of every parent trying to help their son or daughter caught in the misery of an ED. It offers not just hope, but solutions.
Excellent advice by leading researchers at Stanford and U of Chicago in eating disorders. The authors offer practical advice on helping your child recover from this strange disease.
The commonsense approach of "supported nutrition" also known as the "Maudsley method" has been clinically proven more effective than the tradition therapy approaches.
There is much "psycho-babble" about the causes of this disease which can lead to many deadend approaches to treatment.
You cannot afford to wait. Get your child treatment today and read this book. Another highly recommended is "Eating with your Anorexic" by Laura Collins which is more of a journal of her families odessy with ED treatment. Check out her site (...)
I bought this book last summer (July 2005) just before my daughter was hospitilized with an (ED)eating disorder. I tried outpatient counseling, visiting a dietician,(begging too)and encouragement. I was depressed, frustrated, sad, and angry that my daughter was not improving despite my efforts to help her--and I realized she had an ED early. I
This book gave me insight and understanding to circumstances that may cause an ED and anecdotes that may relate to your child or family. It does not parent-bash, blaming failure on the parent. I shared this book with other parents with kids in ED treatment--and many bought it after looking at the content. I am grateful for the book and the treatment she received. The treatment was family-centered (mentioned in book) and involved the entire family. Treatment was difficult and necessary to save my child's life.
Parents, watch out for the internet: xanga, my space, House_of_sins.com--and other sites. There are communities of so- called "Ana and mia's",giving advice, and thinspirations to help your child continue their sickness.
This book is the best book on the market. It is not a manual for treatment alone, but an aide to understand and get help.
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