Life is a journey not a destination so .....my story isn't over yet;...me

 This week is eating disorders awareness week, this year the theme is about ARFID (Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder) but there needs to be more understanding, awareness and support for all eating disorders. I'm open about my history of eating disorders and to be honest thinking back I think it actually started with a form of ARFID. I can remember having food issues from starting school, I would be sent into the packed lunch room first sitting whatever year group was going in first, I would sit on my own and spend the whole lunch hour eating 2 small sandwiches, a yogert and packet of crisps I would have offered around the table. I didn't like many foods and would often get told off for not eating my dinners at home as I was so fussy. I think I had anxiety in general about everything and was ridiculously quiet and shy, at school I was known for not talking and not eating and maybe it became my identity and bullying made my anxiety worse. When I was about 11 my mum won sl...

 I've worked in care for approximately 20 years on and off including in mental health and learning disabilities, as a carer your always taught about person centred holistic care and to promote independence as much as possible but then in the majority of care environments  and services, service users/ patients/ clients are told when to get up and washed and dressed and when to eat, drink etc. and therapies are similar, I know alot of it due to funding and lack of services but the majority of therapies are group or short term individual therapies and if you don't recover during that time or relapse even if your problem is long term, your classed as not engaging. Also the promoting independence isn't looked at individually either often people told to do things themselves despite struggling too much to do it. If someone is self isolating at home, too depressed or anxious to go out, they're classed as not causing a problem to anyone else so get no help, then if take an overd...