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Grateful to be part of this year’s gathering…
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‘When the sun has set, and the moon has set, and the fire has gone out, and speech has stopped, what light does a person here have?’
‘The soul, indeed, is his light,’ said he, ‘for with the soul, indeed, as the light, one sits, moves about, does one’s work, and returns.’
BRHADARANYAKA UPANISAD, IV. 3.6.
As many of you may already be aware of, on February 25, 2009 the Eating Disorders Coalition along with the FREED Foundation and others advocating the FREED Act – The Federal Response to Eliminate Eating Disorders – H.R. 1193, successfully were able to get the bill to the House floor.
The next important step towards getting the bill passed will be taking place on April 1-2, 2009 when EDC holds their annual Lobby Day gathering.
If you are not able to attend this event and/or additionally would like to add your voice towards enacting this important and comprehensive legislation for eating disorders that promotes research, treatment, education and prevention programs please write to your state representatives urging them to learn more and help support the passing of the FREED Act.
Below is a sample letter that can be modified and added with your personal message:
Your Name
Street Address
City
March –, 2009
The Honorable First Name Last Name
United States House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515
Dear Congressman(woman) –,
As a member of the Eating Disorders Coalition and someone who has personally suffered the impact of living with an eating disorder, I am writing you today to ask your support for the Federal Response to Eliminate Eating
Disorders Act (H.R. 1193).
This is the first comprehensive eating
disorders bill in the history of Congress. By focusing on research, education, prevention and treatment this bill is a beacon of hope for the millions of people currently suffering from an eating disorder.
It is estimated that 9 million Americans suffer from anorexia, bulimia, binge eating and other eating disorders. Eating disorders are associated with a host of medical complications including cardiac arrhythmia, cognitive impairment, osteoporosis, infertility, heart failure and most seriously death. In fact, anorexia nervosa has the highest death rate of all mental disorders, upwards of 20%.
Research shows that eating disorders can be successfully overcome with early detection and adequate and appropriate treatment. Unfortunately eating disorders are often undiagnosed by health professionals and/or access to treatment is limited. Less than half of all people with eating disorders receive the treatment needed.
The Federal Response to Eliminate Eating Disorders (the FREED Act) can change these state of affairs. H.R. 1193 will save lives by providing more funds for research so that we can better understand, prevent and treat eating disorders, grant programs that provide training for health professionals, and steps toward better access to treatment coverage.
We urge you to sign on as a cosponsor of the FREED Act. I look forward to
hearing from you. Thank you again for your consideration.
Warm regards,
*You can make a difference! Merci!*
There’s a dear little plant that grows in our isle,
‘Twas St. Patrick himself sure that set it;
And the sun on his labour with pleasure did smile,
And with dew from his eye often wet it.
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It thrives through the bog,
through the brake,through the mireland;
And he called it the dear little shamrock of Ireland—
The sweet little shamrock,the dear little shamrock,
The sweet little, green little,shamrock of Ireland!
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Andrew Cherry-Irish Playwright (1762-1812)
The National Eating Disorders Association-NEDA has issued a Call for Proposals for the September ’09 Conference sagaciously titled: Reshaping Our Future: A Vision for Recovery, Research, Attitudes and Action!
The goals of this conference are:
- Help family members, treatment professionals, health educators and activists to connect and share useful and supportive information that can be transformed into action.
- Familiarize attendees with the latest developments in the field of eating disorders and the implications of this new knowledge for prevention and treatment.
- Reduce the associated stigma of eating disorders and generate awareness about the realities of the illnesses by educating conference attendees, the media and, in turn, the general public, policymakers and opinion leaders.
- Provide a national convening to promote inclusiveness, enthusiasm, energy, optimism and a vision of hope for all conference attendees.
Workshop presenters can have a focus within the areas of family, treatment, special issues, outreach and education. The conference will be held in Minneapolis, Minnesota September 10-12th, and the deadline for conference committee consideration on submissions is Wednesday, March 25th.
For further information contact Director of Programs-Laurie Vanderbloom info@nationaleatingdisorders.org – (206)382.3587.
If you haven’t read Hinshaw’s The Triple Bind you need to…
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“Impossible expectations — Blue jeans and “blue” genes *(love this analogy)* : depression and the triple bind — Life in the pressure cooker : impossible expectations and the culture of busy-ness — No place to run, no place to hide : the popular culture of “self-erasing identities” — When virtue is its own punishment : how empathy and verbal skills may put our girls at higher risk — Bratz dolls and pussycat dolls : teaching our girls to become sexual objects — The wired child : how cyberculture interferes with girls’ identities — See Jane hit : the new culture of violence among teenage girls — Is there a triple bind solution? — Conclusion: coming to terms with the triple bind.”
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