Accessing Eating Disorder Services in the UK

Sadly, the quality and experience of ED services across the UK depend entirely on which area you live in. I'm in the process of writing up more detailed information on things like NHS trusts and CCGs, but for now you'll unfortunately have to do that investigation yourself.

A large percentage of people who access ED services will do so via their GP, be it of their own volition or dragged along by a concerned parent. The GP will do a brief assessment and likely refer you to a specialist eating disorder service. If you are a minor, you will likely be referred to CAMHS - this is the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services.

At your first appointment, there will be more assessments. Again, this is very  dependent on the process that your trust follow. The likely assessments you'll have to complete are (some, or all of):

Lily's Eating Disorder History

I'm going to tell my eating disorder story. Unabridged. In order to do that, though, I have to go back over a decade.

The first memory I have of disordered eating was when I was about 12. My mum had cooked dinner, and we planned to eat it on trays in front of the TV. It was chicken. I cannot remember exactly how I achieved this, but I managed to hide some of my food in the bathroom. After the meal, I disposed of it. That is the first real event I can recall.