Background: Age does not immunize women from eating disorders. More women at midlife and beyond are seeking treatment and it’s time we talk about it. Ibbits Newhall assumes the role of talk-show host, interviewing leading voices in the field to bring these invisible women out of the shadows.
In an engaging talk show format, questions will be posed about the following topics and the speakers will provide information as well as clinical examples and vignettes to illustrate the points.
Overview of recent research documenting the increased incidence of eating disorders in adult women and its global presence
Examine the complex biopsychosocial contributions to body image, identity and self-regulation that contribute to the development or continuation of eating disorders in adulthood
Demonstrate the impact of the “war on obesity,” the $60 billion diet industry and the advances in body technology (e.g., cosmetic plastic surgery) on women as they age
Describe the common threads and experiences in women’s eating disorders across the lifespan
Describe the aspects of eating disorders unique to adult women
Discuss the motivations that bring adult women to treatment- especially for mothers who do not want to pass their eating disorders on to their children
Describe patterns in the progression of symptoms.
Explore how biological changes, especially related to reproductive life, menopause, and aging affect the risk for eating disorders at and beyond midlife. Pregnancy, fertility issues and the natural aging process cause discomfort for most women today due to the cultural expectations about beauty and appearance.
Discuss the complexity of psychosocial developmental stressors throughout adult female development and how these introduce risk for eating disorders.
Summarize the medical issues adult women with eating disorders encounter and the increased risk that dieting or weight loss introduce for older patients
Explain the framework of Relational Cultural Theory and how this best meets the needs of patients at midlife.
Discuss the unique treatment needs of adult women and the many obstacles to getting help, due to their multiple roles, especially in the family.
Demonstrate the benefit of group therapy, involvement of partners, spouses, and family members and the need for comprehensive outpatient modalities for this patient population
Discuss the rich therapeutic experience of working with adult women, who, despite deep shame and fear that they cannot recover, benefit from treatment and often achieve significant improvement if not full recovery despite many years of symptoms.
Age does not immunize women from eating disorders. In the past, body satisfaction increased over a woman’s life, but today 65% of midlife women express significant body distress and weight preoccupation. Despite the belief that eating disorders and body image issues belong to adolescents and young women, recent research reports that 13% of adult women struggle with eating disorder symptoms. Breast cancer affects 12 % but gets far more attention from the medical community, media, and general public. Many adult women hide their disorder effectively; others may be triggered into relapse when facing midlife stressors. Ashamed and ambivalent about seeking help, midlife women have more obstacles to treatment, but also bring maturity and motivation. .As more women seek treatment at midlife and beyond, it’s about time to talk about it.
Ibbits Newhall assumes the role of a talk show host, interviewing three guests – Margo Maine, Karen Samuels, and Mary Tantillo, authors of the article,“Eating Disorders in Adult Women: Bio-psychosocial, Developmental, and Clinical Considerations” (Advances in Eating Disorders: Theory, Research & Practice, 2015)
Ibbits is livelier than most talk show hosts, asking critical questions about the experience of contemporary women as they navigate a toxic consumer culture, multiple demands and relentless pressures in all areas of life, including appearance and body image. Her guests are the leading voices for bringing the invisible women- those with eating disorders at midlife and beyond- out of the shadows and into the light. These three impassioned clinicians will talk about what ignited their work with adult women and what the field needs to do, to better meet the needs of this important patient population. As globalization proceeds, eating disorders are now found in diverse cultures and countries, creating a critical but unrecognized public health problem. Medical and mental health providers across the world must learn sensitivity to this issue and the skills to identify, treat and support women of any age through recovery.
Through the lens of female adult development and the model of Relational Cultural Theory, they describe the unique needs and satisfaction working with this population.
Karen Samuels, Ph.D, psychologist, Ormond Beach, FL., Founder/Director of COPE: Community Outreach to Prevent Eating Disorders. She serves as behavioral consultant, Family Residency Program, Halifax Medical Center, & affiliate, Jean Baker Miller Training Institute, Wellesley Centers for Women. She developed middle school outreach programs, trains physicians in interprofessional teams and conducts group therapy with midlife women. She received the 2014 NEDA Westin Family Award for Activism and Advocacy.
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Mary Tantillo, PhD, PMHCNS-BC, FAED
Dr. Mary Tantillo is a Professor of Clinical Nursing at the University of Rochester School of Nursing and a Clinical Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry. Dr. Tantillo has devoted over 30 years to working with adolescents and adults with eating disorders and their families in a variety of clinical and community settings. On the national level Dr. Tantillo is a fellow of the Academy for Eating Disorders, having served as a previous AED board member and chairperson for the AED Credentialing Task Force for 9 years.
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Ibbits Newhall, BA
After 25+ years in theatre and television and almost as many years volunteering with a variety of organizations, Ibbits Newhall began her career in eating disorder outreach in 2006. Ibbits joined Oliver-Pyatt Centers in 2011 as Director of Outreach and has been a proud and integral part of their expansion. She has always been dedicated to helping women achieve greatness. She thanks the many teachers and guides in the eating disorder field who have generously shared their knowledge, expertise and passion with her. The esteemed women on the panel are some of those very teachers.
Co-founder of Maine & Weinstein Specialty Group and an expert in eating disorders, Dr. Maine is author of: Treatment of Eating Disorders: Bridging the Research- Practice Gap with McGilley & Bunnell; Effective Clinical Practice in the Treatment of Eating Disorders, with Davis & Shure; The Body Myth with Kelly; Father Hunger; and Body Wars. She is: senior editor of Eating Disorders: The Journal of Treatment and Prevention; vice president of the Eating Disorders Coalition for Research, Policy, and Action; Founding Member and Fellow of the Academy for Eating Disorders; and a Founder of the National Eating Disorders Association.
