Sykes, Lawrence, Einstein’s, Food Trucks, and The Diner; students have so many different places to eat on campus. Unfortunately, for many people eating is a very difficult task. According to the South Carolina Department of Mental health there are about eight million Americans that have an eating disorder. About seven million of these people are women and about one million are men.
Feb. 16-25 is National Eating Disorders Week and it is important to recognize how serious this mental illness really is. Eating disorders have the highest mortality rate of any medical illness there is. Getting treated for this disease is very difficult and only one out of 10 people with an eating disorder receive treatment.
The average cost for inpatient treatment for one month is $30,000. People with an eating disorder typically need three to six months of inpatient care. Outpatient treatments can extend to $100,000 or more. Insurance companies for several reasons do not typically cover the cost of treating eating disorders.
The average age of someone with an eating disorder ranges from 12 to 25 years old. About 50 percent of girls between the ages of 11 and 13 view themselves as overweight. By the age of 13, 80 percent of girls have attempted to lose weight. These numbers seem outrageous, but are accurate. Many people blame the media for this, but there are several other reasons why young girls have these thoughts.
There are some misconceptions about people who have eating disorders. Some people think that eating disorders occur merely because people find themselves fat. This is not true. Eating disorders are a mental illness that usually occurs after a stressful episode someone has endured in their life.
Jessica Sobel was diagnosed with Anorexia Nervosa with Bulimia Nervosa symptoms in 2006 at the age of 17. She was technically anorexic because her body mass index was in the anorexic zone.
Sobel said, “If you notice someone is looking too skinny you should confront them first. Talk to them and ask if they are okay. Let them know that you value their life. If this does not work then seek help from an authority. But you absolutely must talk to the person first.”
Sobel worked at Staples at one of her lowest weight points. Her co-workers and even managers would make hurtful comments to her. They would ask her what her weight was and tell her she needs to eat something. She believes people would just say those things to her just to get a reaction. She said this was frustrating for her and did not help her situation at all.
After a long and tough battle with her eating disorder, Sobel is doing much better now. Although she does not think she will ever fully recover, she is in a much better state of mind right now. She appreciates people and life more than ever before.
Though caring for eating disorders has improved over the years, it is still not where it needs to be. Too many people are still suffering and dying from this disease.
To help, donate money for research treatment at www.something-fishy.org. This Web site is also useful to get help and what to do if someone you know has an eating disorder.
Elyssa Sobel is a fourth-year student majoring in communication studies. She can be reached at ES608235@wcupa.edu.