Eating Disorders Awareness Week: 2024 Guide
Eating Disorders Awareness Week is an annual event dedicated to raising awareness about eating disorders, promoting understanding, and providing support to individuals affected by these conditions.
It typically happens in the last week of February and many organizations, like Project HEAL, dedicate this week to educating, providing resources, and fundraising so they can continue supporting those in need.
If you’d like to learn more about Eating Disorders Awareness Week (EDAW), take part, or simply better understand the many nuances of eating disorders and disordered eating, this guide was made for you.
the Importance of Awareness Week
Eating Disorders Awareness Week (EDAW) began in Columbus, Ohio in 1984 by the National Anorexic Aid Society. It was meant to coincide with the 3rd National Eating Disorder Conference held by the National Eating Disorder Association (NEDA).
NEDA explains that their first theme was “Be the person you are; It’s what’s inside that counts.” Their goal was to educate health and mental health professionals, schools, and the general public and also provide treatment resources. The next two years were focused on expanding EDAW to the entire state of Ohio.
Fast-forward to 2024 and EDAW is celebrated around the globe with a theme each year that various organizations use to create their own unique focus for the week.
The 2024 Eating Disorders Awareness Week Theme
The global 2024 theme is Healing in Community and Project HEAL’s theme is Let Community Be Your Compass. Community can be a powerful tool in healing from eating disorders and disordered eating. It’s become even more important as access to formal healing and treatment has become impossible for many.
This is especially true for BIPOC and marginalized groups and those who don’t identify with having an eating disorder or can’t get a formal diagnosis.
This year, Project HEAL will be sharing resources and building awareness around how to leverage your community to heal. We’ll be covering topics like how to find your community when you need it most and how to provide that support for other people.
Understanding Eating Disorders and Disordered Eating
An eating disorder is a mental health condition characterized by disturbances in eating behaviors, thoughts, and emotions related to food, body weight, and body image. This can lead to severe physical, psychological, and social consequences if left untreated.
In addition to eating disorders, we want to recognize those struggling with disordered eating which is becoming a larger group of people every year. While eating disorders are seen as a health issue that must be addressed, disordered eating is often praised because diet culture and wellness culture tell us this is “healthy eating.”
Here are some resources to better understand the many nuances of this disorder and the impact it has on those who struggle:
Navigating the Healing process
If you want to learn more about Eating Disorders Awareness Week because you’re currently struggling with an eating disorder or disordered eating yourself, please know that support is available to you. There are many ways to get the help you need, from free groups to treatment and much more. Check out some of our preferred resources below that make accessing this support easier.
Free Clinical Assessment
Get a free, impartial, culturally competent, and compassionate 1-hour phone assessment, followed by a comprehensive 10+ page document with diagnosis, clinical recommendation, and referrals. Our clinical team can also offer enrollment in one of our other programs if applicable.
Treatment Placement
Project HEAL helps those struggling to access free, extended, and/or steeply discounted treatment through our HEALers Circle partners. We have the largest network of treatment centers and providers at every level of care—and we are the only major nonprofit in the U.S. that is able to provide access to free or reduced-cost eating disorder care to individuals who are uninsured or underinsured.
Cash Assistance Program
This program offers one-time cash assistance grants to those who can demonstrate financial need to be able to access the care they need and deserve. This assistance can help individuals unlock insurance benefits and access treatment through their existing coverage.
In other cases, this can help folks bypass insurance barriers by paying certain providers directly. This grant can also help cover travel costs and other tertiary expenses associated with going to treatment.
Insurance Navigation
The healthcare system in the United States frequently denies fair coverage for treatment for those struggling with eating disorders, ultimately hindering their path to recovery. Through the expertise of Project HEAL’s insurance navigation specialists, individuals can better comprehend their complex insurance benefits and advocate effectively for coverage of their treatment.
We also have an Insurance Resource Hub that can help you learn more about insurance for eating disorders on your own.
Meal Support
We partner with Clinicians Incubator to provide free, weekly, virtual, meal support. These sessions are live, creating a safe space for those at the outpatient stage of eating disorder recovery and who desire or need to consume nutrition with extra support.
All of these sessions are facilitated by nutrition practitioners in the process of obtaining their CNS within the Clinician’s Incubator training program.
Free Eating Disorder Support Groups
A free eating disorder support group is a great way to get help, education, empathy and understanding in a less formal setting that might feel more comfortable. Luckily, there are many groups to choose from, including those specific to certain races, genders, and eating disorders.
20+ Free Resources for Eating Disorder Healing
Beyond support groups, there are also books, podcasts, and online resources that can help you better understand what you or someone you know is going through and start healing. We believe that eating disorder healing should be inclusive and accessible, so we chose resources that meet this criteria. We want you to get the support you need without stigma, anxiety, shame, or cost barriers.
How to Participate in Eating Disorders Awareness Week
There are many ways to participate in Eating Disorders Awareness Week. Here are some ideas if you want to get involved.
Follow Nonprofits on Instagram
Most nonprofits and organizations participating are on Instagram, Following us here can give you quick and easy access to daily content on healing, programs, live conversations, and more.
Give Financial Support
Organizations like Project HEAL can only do the work we do with the financial contributions of our community. In 2023 Project HEAL reached more than 4 million people and directly served more than 5,000 people healing from disordered eating—the majority of this wouldn’t have been possible with financial contributions.
Eating Disorders Awareness Week is a great time to support a nonprofit that aligns with your values. If you want to support Project HEAL, you can donate at TheProjectHEAL.org/donate.
Project HEAL’s mission aligns with many other organizations doing work within specific marginalized communities. Check out the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance, BIPOC Eating Disorder Conference, and FEDUP all year round!
Join the Conversation
One of the best ways to participate in Eating Disorders Awareness Week is to get involved in the conversation. This could be commenting on content that speaks to you, re-sharing social media posts or blog posts like this, and spreading the message to the people in your community.
When sharing content during this week, you can use the hashtag #EDAW or #EDAW2024 to make sure even more people see it.
Share Your Story
Storytelling is both healing for the storyteller and for the person listening. If you’re willing to share, Eating Disorders Awareness Week is a great time to tell others, in-person or on social media, about your struggle with eating disorders or disordered eating. So many people suffer in silence, feeling isolated and alone in their struggle when that couldn’t be further from the truth.
Read the Stories of Others
We share stories of those who are or have struggled with an eating disorder on the Project HEAL blog regularly. Here are a few of those stories. You can find new stories each month on our blog.
Show Your Support—or Get Support—During Eating Disorders Awareness Week
This is a great time of year to seek support for yourself or support others who might be struggling with eating disorders or disordered eating. We hope you join us in highlighting the power of community this year for Eating Disorders Awareness Week 2024!
