Money, Power, and Eating Disorder Justice
I’m a bit late in writing this, as it has been an up-and-down sort of week. Better late than never, right? Last Wednesday I had the totally awesome experience of joining members of the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA) for Mental Health Matters Day in Albany. We met with legislators and their staff to advocate on behalf of important eating disorder issues, especially matters of justice and accessing treatment. Specifically, we were asking 1) to help close the gap between so-called mental health parity justice and what insurers REALLY end up covering for mental health (i.e., not...
Read MoreDoes This Mannequin Make Me Look Fat?
In terms of self-serving tactics from the fashion industry, I thought we’d seen it all, what with rampant photoshopping and the culture of eating disorders among its spokeswomen (a.k.a., models). Then, last week, we on the Proud2BMe Media Response Team were alerted by our editor Emma to the latest trend among retailers — visibly underweight mannequins. Really? REALLY? Must we go to such ridiculous lengths to make people feel badly about what real human bodies look like? Apparently, yes. As I researched this bizarre trend for my post for Proud2BMe, I found out that the store that Emma...
Read MorePost-“Denied”: Keep the Pressure on Insurance Companies
Insurance Coverage: Benefit or Barrier? Dear Friends, I’m writing on behalf of the women, men, and children I met this year while in treatment for an eating disorder, and I’m asking for your help. Many of those I met have been suffering from their illnesses for years—but not necessarily because of the illness’s severity. Rather, their eating disorders have been dragged out because their insurance providers consistently cut off treatment prematurely, even against clinician advice. Time and again, these patients leave treatment or (if they’re lucky) are moved to lower...
Read MoreAnthem, Mental Health’s Public Enemy No. 1, Called Out in “Denied”
On Sunday, 60 Minutes ran a segment called “Denied” that investigated the routine practice of insurance companies to deny mentally ill patients the treatment their doctors prescribe. Since the segment premiered, multiple people have alerted me to the video or sent me links directly, as it is no secret by now that I am one of the thousands who have been and continue to be negatively impacted by insurance providers. The clip was hard to watch. It opened with the story of Katherine West, who died at age 15 of bulimia (which caused heart failure) after being cut from her residential...
Read MoreHow Stigma Keeps Us Sick
Stigma. It exists and it impacts all of us who are affected by mental illness. I’m sure this isn’t new information, but a reminder now and then about the dangers of stigma doesn’t hurt. Plus, I’m feeling rather irate after the week I’ve just had. As you might know from reading my last few posts, my battle against Blue Cross Blue Shield, thankfully, ended well. Ultimately, I got (mostly) what I needed: I was granted 10 more days in treatment. But it came at a cost. During my week without treatment, my eating disorder was constantly at my heels. In order to build my case...
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