NEDA Navigator Guidebook
Not for public distribution. For exclusive use by official NEDA Navigators
Guidelines for NEDA Navigators
When you initially meet with a contact, state up front that you are a support person and not
a professional or an expert. You can tell contacts that you are a recovered individual, or a
parent, relative, friend or sibling, etc., of someone who has experienced an eating disorder
and also member of the NEDA Navigators who is volunteering to offer support,
encouragement, resources and a listening ear. Please also share what your role does and
does not include below:
Your role INCLUDES:
• Serving as a volunteer support person providing encouragement and hope
• Providing access to additional resources/referrals (see NN Guidebook)
Your role EXCLUDES:
• Offering medical or diagnostic advice
• Serving as a replacement for professional support
• Recommending a specific treatment provider or modality
1. Ask what the person is looking for in contacting a member of the NEDA
Navigators. Take note of any goals they might have.
2. Have your materials handy to reference. This way you will be able to connect them
to resources which will further their efforts in supporting their loved one.
3. Try to avoid too many specific details regarding your own experience. It is best to
keep discussion of your personal story fairly general. Remember that you are there to
offer support in respect to their needs. Thus, continue to refer back to their
experience and needs. Also keep in mind that numbers can be triggering and
upsetting (e.g. how much weight your child lost, lowest weights, frequency of purging
or hours exercised, etc.). Focus on sharing more about what helped, where you found
sources of support and hope, what you did, what they can do, etc.
4. Do not promote one treatment program or philosophy over another. Your job is to
offer insight into how to get access to care, how to look up treatment programs, what
to ask for when looking into a program, others to talk to when looking for a program,
how you helped your loved one get the care needed, etc. Always remember to guide
them to the NEDA Helpline for treatment referrals when needed or get the requested
referrals from the Helpline, on the contact’s behalf.
5. Please refrain from censuring specific treatment programs or treatment
philosophies. This is not your job. It might be hard for you to refrain, especially if you
have had a bad experience, but this is important. Each person has individual
requirements that may be served well by a treatment program that did not work well
for you. We cannot be the judge of what programs/philosophies will best meet the
unique needs of their loved one. Please encourage your contacts to ask questions
and gather as much information as possible so that they can make informed
decisions that empower them to help their loved one.
Guidelines for Navigators ▪ Page 1
©2012 National Eating Disorders Association. All Rights Reserved.
Reproduction or other use of this outline without the express written consent of the National Eating Disorders
Association is prohibited.
7