Eating Disorders, Disordered Eating & Body Image Support
Support for eating disorders, disordered eating, emotional eating, binge eating, food restriction, body image difficulties, and difficult relationships with food.
Eating Disorders and Disordered Eating
Eating disorders are often seen as a continuous shift and disruption in eating patterns and eating-related behaviours, leading to an altered intake of food. Someone struggling with an eating disorder often engages in disordered eating behaviours. These are behaviours that are noticeable on the surface, like the tip of an iceberg. Disordered eating behaviours differ from person to person but commonly impact food intake, create negative attitudes towards eating, and lead to various methods of weight control. While food and weight are often the tip of the iceberg, those struggling with an eating disorder often also face difficulties with their physical and mental health.
Disordered eating can be understood as on the spectrum between normal eating and a clinically diagnosed eating disorder. While a person may not 'meet' the criteria for a clinically diagnosed eating disorder, they may engage in eating disorder symptoms and behaviour; however, it may not be as frequent or severe and therefore may not yet meet the diagnostic criteria of an eating disorder.
It is so important to acknowledge the full spectrum of food- and eating-related challenges, as well as body image concerns. Disordered eating is within the spectrum of eating disorders, and therefore it can move along this continuum at any stage.
Body Image
Body image isn't just about how our bodies look. Body image refers to the way we perceive, think about, feel towards, and experience our bodies.
Body image concerns exist on a spectrum and can affect people regardless of age, gender, body size, or appearance. While body image difficulties are often associated with eating disorders, many people experience body dissatisfaction, self-criticism, or distress related to their appearance.
Personal experiences, relationships, cultural messages, social media, life transitions, and broader beliefs about self-worth and identity can influence body image. For some people, body image concerns may centre on weight, shape, appearance, fitness, ageing, or comparison with others. For others, body image difficulties may reflect deeper struggles relating to self-esteem, perfectionism, acceptance, belonging, or feeling "good enough".
Understanding body image involves looking beyond appearance alone and exploring our relationship with ourselves.
The Gap Between Who I Am and Who I Feel I Should Be:
You don't have to fit a diagnosis to deserve support
Many people struggle with food, eating, exercise, or body image concerns without identifying with a specific eating disorder or receiving a formal diagnosis.
You may find yourself constantly thinking about food, feeling guilty after eating, avoiding social situations involving food, or feeling that your self-worth is tied to your weight, shape or appearance.
Therapy can provide a space to understand what is happening beneath these struggles and begin building a safer, more compassionate relationship with food and yourself.
Types of eating disorders
Some of the types of eating disorders include:
Anorexia Nervosa
Severe underweight is often a result of food restriction, but this should be considered in light of a person’s age, sex, developmental stage and physical health. A person’s sense of self is closely linked to their body image, size, and weight, so a lack of recognition of the seriousness and danger of low weight is common. They may also experience intense fear of gaining weight, leading to constant behaviours to maintain their low weight.
Bulimia Nervosa
A person might experience repeated binge eating episodes accompanied by a feeling of lack of control. To prevent weight gain, they often resort to compensatory behaviours like laxative use, self-induced vomiting and excessive exercise. Their self-esteem is frequently tied to their body shape and weight. Maintaining a healthy weight within the normal range (considering age, sex and height) is possible. However, these factors can often lead to the illness being overlooked.
Binge Eating Disorder
During binge eating episodes, a person might experience repeated episodes of uncontrolled food intake. These episodes could involve rapid eating, uncomfortable fullness and consuming large amounts even when not hungry. Body dissatisfaction and frequent dieting might occur, but no compensatory behaviours are present. Secrecy, shame and guilt often follow, leading to restriction and further binges. This cycle can feel inescapable.
Other Specified Feeding or Eating Disorder (OSFED)
- Atypical Anorexia Nervosa (The symptoms are the same as anorexia, but the weight is different.)
- Bulimia Nervosa (Low frequency or duration)
- Binge Eating Disorder (Low frequency or duration)
- Purging Disorder
- Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (AFRID)
Recognising Common Signs of Eating Disorders
While eating disorders vary in disordered eating behaviours and weight, they often share similarities in psychological symptoms, thinking patterns, self-perception and how a person perceives and experiences the world around them.
Eating disorders rarely begin with dramatic changes overnight. Often, the signs appear gradually and can be easy to overlook or explain away. Recognising concerns early can help someone access support sooner and reduce the impact on their physical and emotional wellbeing.