Frequently Asked Questions

1. I (or a loved one) am struggling with an eating disorder.  What is the first step I should take to get help?
If you or a loved one is struggling with disordered thoughts or behaviors, it is important to seek help sooner rather than later.  Research suggests that the earlier one receives treatment, the better the prognosis.  To receive guidance and information on treatment options available for you or a loved one, contact the Nutrition Clinic at (877) 765-7866.

2. I (or my family member/friend) am not at a dangerously low weight but am struggling with disordered thoughts and behaviors.  Should I still be concerned?
Many individuals struggling with eating disorders of all types are not extremely thin.  It is not possible to identify whether or not a person is engaging in eating disordered behavior by his/her weight.  Therefore, if you or a loved one is struggling with disordered thoughts or behavior, it is important to seek help. 

3. Can my family member or friend accompany me to the Moving Forward Support Group?  Is the Family & Friends Support Group appropriate for individuals struggling with an eating disorder? 
We have found that it is most beneficial to those participating in our groups to not allow crossover in attendance.  Therefore, we welcome women struggling with eating disorders, disordered eating or body dissatisfaction to attend only the Moving Forward Support Group while family members and friends of those struggling may attend the Family & Friends Support Group. 

4. I’m concerned about my child’s weight.  How can I help him/her without doing harm?
Rather than measuring your child’s health or worth based on his/her weight, focus instead on health-improving behaviors and activities and model these things yourself.  Healthy bodies come in all shapes and sizes.  To learn more about this, we encourage you to visit the “Real Children Come in All Shapes and Sizes” and “Health At Every Size” sections of our website.

5.   I am a school administrator and would like to make sure that students struggling with body dissatisfaction, disordered eating, or eating disorders know where to turn for help.  What can I do? 
Ophelia’s Place offers periodic educator’s workshops to provide information and tools to those working with students.  We strongly encourage you to send one or more representatives to this event.  Upon completion, participants will be able to serve as a point-person in your school on issues related to eating disorders.  To find out when we offer our next workshop, please click here to sign-up for our newsletter.

6.   I am in charge of coordinating a health fair or other event.  How do I go about getting resources from Ophelia’s Place?
We are in the process of developing an on-line toolkit with resources on body dissatisfaction, disordered eating, eating disorders, and Health At Every Size to provide resources for use with classrooms, teacher in-services, health fairs, employee meetings, and other events.  Until this resource is available, please visit our resources section of the website to find useful information.