Eating Disorders seem to target certain minority populations and personality disorder groups - and for good reason.
Often, these groups face discrimination, intenalized negative beliefs, and higher likelihoods of trauma.
Below, I break down each group and how eating disorders affect them uniquely.
Autism and Eating Disorders
Many humans on the spectrum also struggle with eating disorders for a variety of reasons.
Eating is a sensory experience, from the textures and tastes to its social aspects, which many autistic individuals may struggle with. ASD also affects a person's interoception, which is your body’s internal sensory system that allows you to feel, understand, and react to internal signals like hunger, bladder fullness, fatigue, discomfort, and even emotions.
Much of traditional eating disorder treatment doesn't take this into account, making many intuitive aspects of recovery out of reach and at odds with executive functioning limitations. We also get to consider that 76% of people who identify as autistic are also gender expansive, making the body dysmorphia associated with their ED less about “being fat” and more about gender dysphoria.
Explore Autism Support from Wildflower Fields →
LGBTQIA+ Individuals and Eating Disorders
Eating disorders disproportionately affect LGBTQIA+ individuals. Specific potential risk factors in this population are discrimination and rejection due to their orientation or gender identity, internalized negative beliefs, higher likelihood of experiences of violence and trauma, rigid community body standards or body image ideals, and other intersectional identities like gender roles and heteronormative expectations.
Larger Bodies and How Eating Disorders Affect Them
Larger bodies: Our culture doesn't like fat people.
Thin privilege is a thing, and finding a therapist who can understand and deconstruct systems and cultural ideals is so important in recovery if you are in a larger body. I run an ED recovery support group specifically for humans in larger bodies! Check out my groups page for more information.
Therapy for those already in active recovery from their eating disorders
Since Wildflower Fields is an outpatient practice, I cannot work with individuals with acute medical needs. If you require daily support or are in need of a higher level of care, I can refer you somewhere that is better able to support your needs.
Your eating disorder voice has an idea of who you are supposed to be.
You get to decide who you want to be and how you want to live your life.
