Eating Disorder Counsellors With Eating Disorder Histories: A Story of Being "Normal"

Debate exists in the eating disorders field about the fitness to practise of counsellors with eating disorder histories ( Johnston, Smethurst & Gowers, 2005 ). Yet despite widespread acknowledgement of the demanding nature of eating disorder counselling in general ( Zerbe, 2008 ), almost no rese...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Eating disorders 2010-10, Vol.18 (5), p.377-392
Main Authors: Rance, Nicola M., Moller, Naomi P., Douglas, Barbara A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Body Image
Body Weight
Counseling
Counsellors
Eating disorders
Feeding and Eating Disorders - psychology
Female
Health Personnel - psychology
Humans
Middle Aged
Professional Competence
Recovered
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Summary:Debate exists in the eating disorders field about the fitness to practise of counsellors with eating disorder histories ( Johnston, Smethurst & Gowers, 2005 ). Yet despite widespread acknowledgement of the demanding nature of eating disorder counselling in general ( Zerbe, 2008 ), almost no research exists about the actual experiences of recovered eating disorder counsellors in particular. Using semi-structured interviews this study aimed to address the research gap by investigating the experiences of 7 counsellors with eating disorder histories. Particular emphasis was given to their beliefs about the impact of their work on their own body image, weight and relationship with food. Results derived from an Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis suggested that the counsellors' experienced their eating disorder history as a double-edged sword that led them to engage in a number of self-presentational activities. Implications of these findings for the eating disorders field are discussed.
ISSN:1064-0266
1532-530X
DOI:10.1080/10640266.2010.511901