moms who have recovered from eating disorders

[LucyG]

I'm looking for resources (books, websites, support groups, anything) for women who have battled eating disorders and are now mothers. I was anorexic for most of high school and part of college, and, after a lot of therapy, I now consider myself fully recovered. Still, I know that my history will always be there, as will the tendency to use food to deal with stress. Now that I'm a mom, I worry a lot about passing my food and body image issues on to my child, particularly since she's a girl. Does anyone know of resources for addressing this particular issue? Thanks so much!

[stillplayswithbarbies]

A book that might be useful to you is Ellyn Satter's "How to Get Your Child to Eat But Not Too Much". It is not about eating disorders per se, but it does mention them.

For someone like me who was raised in a "clean your plate or no dessert" environment, it helped me to see healthier ways about food.

...Karen
Jacob Nathaniel Feb 91
Logan Elizabeth Mar 03

[egoldber]

I would also recommend Satter's other book: Child of Mine: Feeding with Love and Good Sense. It talks about feeding your child, and how a parent's attitude about feeding can shape their child's responses to food. I grew up in a family similar to Karen's and can also say that I know that Satter's book completely changed how I approach feeding my DD.

HTH,

[stillplayswithbarbies]

Yes, I read both books, and while there is a good bit of overlap, the "How to Get Your Kid to Eat . . ." book has more about what is "normal" eating. (of course I read that chapter while eating pizza in bed at 11:30 PM one night LOL.) It really seemed geared towards people who may have a skewed perception of their own eating, but want their children to have healthy eating habits. It goes all the way through the teen years.

It would be good to read them both. One thing that I realized is that people really should read these types of books before the baby is born. I think most people look for help with solid foods, but by then a feeding relationship is already established. Ellyn Satter starts with the very first nipple feeding and builds from there.

...Karen
Jacob Nathaniel Feb 91
Logan Elizabeth Mar 03

[ddmarsh]

I hear you on the daughter issue, as someone with a history similar to yours it is always in the back of my mind. I guess I look at it like maintaining your own mental and physical health where food is concerned coupled with maintaining a conscious awareness of the issues will contribute enormously to creating healthy eating.

I really only have to look at how my mother dealt with food in our house to know what not to do. She will occasionally adopt a similar attitude with my sons and I very quickly put a stop to it (very rigid, very controlled portions, etc. - did I say VERY?). I wasn't as concerned with this issue when I had sons, although I still always maintain quite a vigilence about it in terms of my awareness.

Good luck and good for you for wanting to deal so well with it.