National Eating Disorders Association

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How to Help a Loved One Struggling with an Eating Disorder

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Learn More About Eating Disorders

Warning Signs & Symptoms

Eating disorders, such as bulimia, binge eating disorder, and anorexia, are serious illnesses that involve extreme emotions, attitudes, and behaviors surrounding food, exercise, and body image. Though not diagnostic, this video outlines the basic warning signs and symptoms and will give you an idea of what to look out for.

Eating Disorders Screening Tool

Eating disorders often hide in plain sight, so whether you have serious concerns or just an inkling about yourself or a loved one, take the screening. Eating disorders have the highest mortality rate of any mental disorder but recovery is absolutely possible and early intervention greatly improves the chances of success. It’s no exaggeration when we say three minutes can save a life.

How to Help a Loved One

Loved ones play an important role in eating disorders recovery, and navigating the process can sometimes be a challenge. But you are not alone and NEDA has a multitude of resources tailored to the unique needs of those in support roles. This video contains easy tips on how help a loved one who is struggling with an eating disorder.

Latest Blog Posts

Thank You For Everything, Mom.
By Emily Locke

I feel extremely lucky to have a mother that is also my best friend. She has and always will be a source of comfort for me. When I was in elementary school and would come home from ballet class in tears because the teacher made me feel badly about my body my mom would hug me, hold me, and make sure that I felt loved and appreciated for exactly the way that I was. As I got older, coming home from school or ballet in tears because of body-shaming comments became a more regular occurrence, and every time my mom was there for me.

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Purpose for the Pain: Fusing My Story with My Passion for Music
By Stephanie Owens

“I’m tired of trying so hard to be what everybody else wants me to be, so now I’m fighting for the girl…little girl in the mirror.”  Penning these lyrics was one of the most freeing and rewarding feelings in the world.  If someone had told me when I was a teenager that struggling with and recovering from an eating disorder was going to help me realize my biggest passion in life, I would have rolled my eyes and laughed.

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How My Mom Helped Save My Life
By Savannah A. Ryder

I can vividly recall my first day at the UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital clinic. I had already been sick for 3 years, in which time I had seen more treatment providers than I can count on two hands. I was beginning to lose hope that I would ever get better. My EKG showed my heart beating at a measly pace, just 1 beat above the cardiac hospitalization threshold.

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When You Feel Like Giving Up in Recovery, Pause
By Heather Hower, MSW, LICSW, QCSW, ACSW

When I began my recovery from my Eating Disorder (ED), Anorexia Nervosa (AN), I had a lot of momentum. I was sprinting towards a “recovery finish line” that I had imagined for myself within a self-imposed timeframe of a few months. This was in stark contrast to my 23 years of living with AN. At the 6 month recovery mark, I hit what I thought was a huge roadblock. For the first time in years, my weight had been restored to a point where my periods returned. I had a lot of mixed emotions surrounding this; happiness and excitement, but also distress and fear.

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