June Alexander

AUSTRALIAN
Author and journalist
Speaker

Welcome! Here you will find answers, encouragement and support in understanding and recovering from Anorexia Nervosa. Research is ongoing to learn more about the genetic and environmental causes of this mental illness and to improve treatment. Until recently, parents were considered part of the cause, but evidence-based research has revealed they are a vital part of the solution. Research outcomes suggest that early intervention with family-based treatment offers the best hope of recovery for children and adolescents who develop Anorexia Nervosa.

I wish family-based treatment had been around when I was young! I developed Anorexia Nervosa at the age of 11, in the early 1960s, in a rural area of Australia where no help was available. I went on to develop Bulimia Nervosa, chronic anxiety and depression. I was in my 30s when I began a recovery journey of more than 20 years. Now, I am at peace and life is beautiful! My message is: Never give up hope, and seek assistance quickly! I invite you to use this site as a beacon on your recovery path.

This is explained in my book My Kid Is Back – Empowering Parents To Beat Anorexia Nervosa. Written in collaboration with Professor Daniel le Grange, director of the Eating Disorders Program at the University of Chicago, and voicing the experiences of ten families, this book offers valuable insight and inspiration for parents.

You can order "My kid is back" from the following online book stores

In Australia, My Kid Is Back is stocked by most major bookshops and book chains – including Readings, Gleebooks, Dymocks, Borders – who also have online sales facilities, and on eating disorder specialist sites including The Butterfly Foundation www.thebutterflyfoundation.org.au and The Oak House www.theoakhouse.com.au

My Kid is Back launch in London

My Kid is Back goes global

March 2010 will be exciting, with Routledge (UK) set to launch My Kid is Back in London at the inaugural Eating Disorders International Conference (EDIC 2010), March 11-13.

This follows Routledge's acquisition of exclusive UK/US /Europe distribution rights for My Kid is Back*.

I will be in London from March 8 to March 13 to take part in events surrounding the book's UK release and look forward to this new chapter in raising awareness of Family-based Treatment for Anorexia.

The EDIC <http://www.edic2010.ukevents.org/> will take place at Kensington. The conference is being organised by beat, the leading UK charity for people with eating disorders and their families (www.b-eat.co.uk), in association with Wiley-Blackwell – publishers of the European Eating Disorders Review.

As part of the conference, organisers are planning to hold beat’s first National Family Network Day on Saturday, March 13, providing carers with a valuable opportunity to interact with healthcare professionals working in the field.

Chief executive of Beat, Susan Ringwood, has invited me to participate as a table host at the National Family Network Day and I'm excited about this.

The conference will offer a precious opportunity to catch up with many people - families, carers, health practitioners and researchers - working tirelessly to raise awareness of eating disorders and evidence-based treatments.

Let me know if you will be there!

* (MUP retains rights for Australia and New Zealand)