Getting Help Once on Campus

Getting Help On Campus If you are concerned about how you will be able to manage your ED once on campus it may be helpful for you to contact your college/university's counseling center.  Some college/university counseling centers have staff or teams devoted to helping students with their eating concerns.  Some campuses, however, may not have services available for students struggling with EDs.  If that is the case they should have identified providers in the area to whom they can refer you.  Finding out who is available to help you on or near your campus may help to alleviate your (and your parents) stress.  Sometimes just making a connection with a provider and knowing that they are available can be a comfort. If your institution is unable to provide you services and/or does not have a referral network in place, there are a number of on-line sites designed to help indivdiuals locate treatment providers in their area such as: EDReferral.com National Eating Disorders Association National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Eating Disorders

Student Athletes

Female Athletes Female athletes who are involved in sports/activities that emphasize thinness (e.g., distance running, gymnastics), aesthetics (e.g., dancing, equitation), have revealing uniforms (e.g., swimming, track & field, volley ball) or that have a judging component to them (e.g., diving, gymnastics) may be at greater risk for developing an eating disorder or related concern.  Regardless of the sport/activity in which you compete, in order to remain healthy as your participate it will be important for you to ensure that you are taking in enough fuel so that you can perform at your best.  It is a myth that "thinner is better" when it comes to improving performance.  While it is true that for some sports/activities a higher weight may decrease performance it is not the case that if losing weight will increase performance to a point, then losing even more weight will improve your performance even more.  At a certain point your body will be unable to function as it needs to due to lack of energy and necessary nutrients.  And your performance will begin to decline.  I routinely hear from competitive and non-competitive athletes who have lost an excess amount of weight that they miss their sport.  They tell me they can no longer do their sport because they literally do not have the energy it takes.  Some have said that they believe (or have been told) that season-ending injuries were a result of consequences of their eating disordered behavior (e.g., fractures due to loss of bone density).  I have yet to hear from an athlete who can no longer participate in their sport that they are glad they can't.  Thus far, all have said that they want it back.  Most recognize that they can't get it back until they are healthy again. Female Athlete Triad The Female Athlete Triad was proposed to help athletes, coaches, physicians, parents recognize when a female athletes may be at risk for serious psychological and/or medical problems.  The Triad consists of: Menstrual Irregularity Primary Amenorrhea - has not begun menstruating by the age of 16 Secondary Amenorrhea - stops menstruating for a minimum of 3 consecutive months Oligomenorrhea - infrequent menstruation Problematic Eating Behaviors Clinical Eating Disorder (i.e., Anorexia Nervosa or Bulimia Nervosa) Sub-Clinical Eating Disorder - this can be just as medically and psychologically serious as the above Loss of Bone Density Osteoporosis - severe loss of bone density; bones will easily fracture Osteopenia - mild thinning of bone mass It is important to realize that the presence of even one of the elements of the Triad means that the athlete should be assessed for the other two.  For example, if an athlete has stopped menstruating regularly or at all then she should be assessed for the other two elements of the Triad.  Male Athletes The incidence of eating disorders among males (regardless of whether or not they are an athlete) has been increasing.  One of the proposed reasons for this is that as women and girls have been increasingly exposed to the "thin ideal" men and boys have been increasingly exposed to the "muscular ideal."  Both of these "ideals" are impossible standards for 99% of the population.  For some male athletes this pressure to be muscular without body fat can translate into an Eating Disorder.  They may enter into an uncontrollable cycle of binging and purging or an uncontrollable effort at restricting intake.  Another way that males may try to attain this impossible standard is by engaging in excessive use of weights (which may or may not be accompanied by the "traditional" eating disorder behaviors).  This obsession with the development of muscle has been labeled "bigorexia."  This is not something that an individual can be diagnosed with; however, it is a term used to describe the uncontrollable determination to build muscle mass - often at any cost.  This obsession can lead to myriad serious psychological as well as medical consequences and should be taken seriously.  Getting Help It is inappropriate for anyone other than a licensed medical or mental health professional to diagnose an Eating Disorder or related condition.  If you suspect that an athlete is experiencing any of the above, they should be evaluated ideally by both a  medical and mental health professional.  Ideally, these professionals should not only be competent to work with Eating Disorders and related concerns, but they should also be familiar with working with athletes and their myriad supports (e.g., parents, coaches, trainers, etc.).