Recovery from eating disorders

I surveyed about 350 people with a new questionnaire, called the Eating Disorders and Weight Self-Regulation Inventory (ED-WSRI). 

Participants were recruited over the internet, some through discussion groups concerned with eating disorders, some through a residential treatment facility in Canada, and some through web searches (e.g. 'eating disorder test'). Participants came from a large number of countries (with the largest groups from Canada, USA, England, Australia, Finland, Germany and Singapore).

We asked, "Do you believe you have an eating disorder at the present time (even though you have not been diagnosed with one)?" Seventy-five % said Yes (n=175) and twenty-five % said No (n=58).

Those who said they had an eating disorder, identified the type of ED as follows:

anorexia nervosa 25.0% (n=44)
bulimia nervosa 14.8% (n=26)
combined anorexia and bulimia 35.8% (n=63)
binge eating disorder 6.8% (n=12)
none of the above 17.6% (n=31)

We began an inquiry about recovery with the question, "What percentage of your day is impacted by your eating disorder?"

0 %     of the day                                      1.1%   (n=2)
25 %   of the day                                      9.8%   (n=17)
50 %   of the day                                    20.1%  (n=35)
75 %   of the day                                    39.7%  (n=69)
100 % of the day                                    29.3%  (n=51)

The next question asked participants to respond true or false to the statement "I consider myself recovered."

Totally false          49.1 %     (n=113)
Somewhat false    28.3 %     (n=65)
Somewhat true     16.5 %     (n=38)
Totally true            6.1 %      (n=14)

Among the 52 who said it was true that they were recovered, 50 answered the next question, on the length of the recovery process:

Less than 6 months       54%    (n=27)   
6 to 12 months             20%    (n=10)
12 to 18 months             4%    (n=2)
More than 18 months    11%   (n=11)

Among the 182 participants who were not recovered, the response to the question, "I am currently in the process of recovery" was:

Totally false                  39.6 %    (n=72)
Somewhat false            19.8 %    (n=36)
Somewhat true             28.0 %    (n=51)
Totally true                   12.6 %    (n=23)

As for "How long ago did this recovery process begin?"

Less than 6 months ago          45.3 %    (n=48)
6 to 12 months ago                17.9 %    (n=19)
12 to 18 months ago                5.7 %    (n=6)
More than 18 months ago       31.1 %   (n=33)

Twenty-seven % of participants were currently receiving treatment for eating disorders. The types of treatment included:

Individual therapy                  96.5 %    (n=55)
Group therapy                       33.3 %    (n=19)
Community support group       5.3 %    (n=3)
Day program                           8.8 %    (n=5)
Residential program                 8.8 %    (n=5) 
In-patient program                 10.5 %    (n=6)

Fifty-nine % had never received treatment for eating disorders.

Overall, the survey results indicate a great diversity in types and severity of eating disorders, and in the process of recovery.  In an upcoming post, I will talk in depth about the cognitive, emotional and behavioural changes that take place during the recovery process.

I am still collecting data for this study, so if you would like to participate, click this link:

Click Here: ED STUDY 

Happy eating!

Stephen Stotland, Ph.D.