Starting February 24th 2022, local mental health charity Dorset Mind will deliver a monthly drop-in service, situated in the Student Wellbeing Area at Talbot Campus. There, they will offer unbiased, non-judgmental support to students affected by eating disorders and other eating related issues. The charity will reinforce the message that recovery is possible from eating disorders – with early intervention and appropriate support.
This service has been set up in response to an increasing recognition and overwhelming need to be provided – and will complement the range of well-being services already offered for BU students.
Dorset Mind currently provides one-to-one mentoring services and a recovery group for people who experience Anorexia, Bulimia, Binge-eating disorder and Other Specified Feeding or any disordered eating, under the name ‘Restored.’ Comprising professionals who have lived experience of eating disorders, this makes support both effective and relatable. Heading up the new programme and hosting the drop-in service is Restored’s Senior Support Worker, Romy Simpkins.
The launch of this new service comes just ahead of Eating Disorder Awareness Week, which runs February 28th – March 6th led by eating disorder specialist charity BEAT. This year’s call to action is that of encouraging the education and training of professionals on eating disorders.
To further support this, Romy is hosting an educational workshop for Bournemouth University staff, ahead of the drop-in launching, so staff have a knowledge of how to recognise and respond appropriately if they suspect a student is unwell. This same workshop is also being hosted internally at Dorset Mind on March 9th, to ensure the charity’s staff, ambassadors and volunteers are also educated about these issues.
Maria East, Student Wellbeing Worker at Bournemouth University says,
“Student Wellbeing are delighted to be working in partnership with Dorset Mind to provide the students at Bournemouth University the opportunity to access a regular Drop-in with a Restored Practitioner. We are very excited to start offering this to students and we are hopeful this will break down some barriers for students who wish to access Restored’s support by having this available on campus.”
Dr Andrew Mayers, Patron at Dorset Mind and Principal Academic at Bournemouth University adds,
“I am so pleased to see this new eating disorder drop-in service at Bournemouth University. There is so much stigma towards disordered eating, which means that people are less likely to seek help for fear of judgement. There is also a great deal of misconception around what an eating disorder is. By providing workshops and education, we have a wonderful opportunity to rectify both issues. Young people are especially vulnerable to eating disorders. In this partnership between Bournemouth University and Dorset Mind, I truly hope that we can reduce distress and help give the students the support they need.”
Linda O’Sullivan, CEO at Dorset Mind comments,
“Early intervention is crucial to successful treatment of eating disorders; however, research findings suggest that many people wait to seek help. It is imperative therefore we can provide a safe place that’s already part of their community, where they can go to seek help as soon as they feel they need it. We’re therefore thrilled to be able to support local students at Bournemouth University in this way.”
Restored is a service for people aged 16 upwards. It relies heavily on donations and external support from organisations and fundraisers. Help the charity fund this vital life-changing service by emailing them at: [email protected].
If you think you might have an eating problem, the first step should be to speak to your doctor to identify or rule out any medical issues. Alternatively, you can call Dorset’s Connection Helpline on 0800 652 0190.
You can also visit Dorset Mind’s website to see what support they offer adults and young people across Dorset at: https://bit.ly/DMrestoredeating
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