DENVER — Nearly 29 million Americans will have an eating disorder in their lifetime, according to the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders. It also reports that more than 10,000 deaths a year are caused by eating disorders.
That is why advocates are working to spread the word during Eating Disorder Awareness Week, which runs from Feb. 24 through March 2.
Erin O'Connell struggled to recognize the eating disorder that was plaguing her. She told Denver7 she would tell herself, "I don't have an eating disorder, I'm just getting my body the way I want it. People are allowed to do that, right?"
After some time, O'Connell's friends encouraged her to get help.
"I had collapsed at work a couple times, like fainted, passed out," she said. "It wasn't even until the tail end of the four months and my first time in treatment where I was like, 'Oh, I have an eating disorder.'"
- Below are 10 actions for individuals with disordered eating, curated by the Academy for Eating Disorders
O'Connell said part of the problem was the societal influence from when she was growing up.
"I was a child of the 90s. In the early 2000s, at that time, a lot of people that the media would talk about having an eating disorder would be these thin model-like women," she said. "When I was 18 or so, I was coming to terms with being trans and what that meant for how I wanted to present myself. For me, I definitely thought that being skinnier made me more feminine."
At the Eating Recovery Center, O'Connell was able to talk about the struggles that were triggering her disorder.
"There are so many different treatment options. Whether it's outpatient, intensive outpatient, day treatment options, there's virtual programming," said Jeana Cost, the regional vice president of the Eating Recovery Center.
- Experts are particularly concerned about eating disorders in children. Joe Oria, a behavioral health clinical supervisor for AdventHealth Porter, sat down with Denver7 to share tips for how parents can talk to their children about eating disorders.
The number of people needing assistance with their eating disorders has steadily grown. According to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE), an estimated 9% of Coloradans will have an eating disorder in their lifetime.
"We started in 2008 with one facility, and now we have upwards of 40. That's indicative of the growth that we've seen and the demand for these types of services," said Cost.
That's why advocates say it is so important to raise awareness that an eating disorder could happen to anyone, but there is always help.
"Treatment definitely was very hard. It wasn't an easy process, but it was definitely a necessary one," said O'Connell. "I may have gone up and then gone down, but I was never back at the lowest point."
Some signs to look out for when identifying an eating disorder in a loved one are:
- Becoming very restrictive about what they eat
- Impacts on mood
- Pulling away from things that used to be important to them
For a free assessment with the Eating Recovery Center, call 866-316-6653.
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