And the Super Challenge of the Day is...

... For Ben to successfully manage working in the local deli / cafe over the Friday lunchtime shift today, to still get the right number of calories into him today and to go to Phab this evening. Why do all three things add up to Super Challenge of the Day at this stage in Ben's recovery from anorexia? Here's why...

Is this the most irresponsible book title in ages?

Sorry, but I'm not going to name it because I don't want to give the author any more publicity than he's already had - or to makes the title searchable by search engines and therefore possibly acting as a trigger for people disposed towards an eating disorder (which is why I haven't typed in complete words below)... but... I believe this is the most irresponsible book title I have seen in a long while. And the concept of the d*et plan inside isn't brilliant, either.

Coming very soon, in January... my new book!

At last I'm going through the final draft of the book that's taken MONTHS to write! It's based on this blog, and my experience of helping my son recover from anorexia, and I hope to have it published in January (see black & white image of it on the left). Me, being me, I'm micro-proof-reading it, which is why it's taking so long. But I expect there will still be some mistakes or typos - they always say a book isn't a book without at least one mistake that's been overlooked!

How shall I begin to describe the FEAST(UK) conference?

I've just returned from two amazing days surrounded by caring parents, professionals and the Great and the Good (and the Positively Awesome) of the UK Eating Disorders world. I can't even begin to describe what we learned and discussed, it would take far, far too long and you can see a series of free-to-view videos of the event here (see all the various videos from the weekend on the right of the page - ignore the ads, that's why it's free, and we had no control over them). Here are some bullet points of what shone out of this conference for me - not just via the talks, presentations and workshops, and the panel questions-and-answer sessions that followed, but by me going around and talking to other parents about their individual stories:

Looking for something to do next weekend, UK people?

As you may know I'm helping to organise a two-day FEAST UK conference in Nottingham next weekend - Friday 23rd and Saturday 24th November. It's going to be a fabulous event with the Great and the Good of the UK eating disorders world speaking - including Professor Janet Treasure - along with workshops, etc - and the venue is an amazing Victorian gothic hotel! But we urgently need more bums / butts on seats. Read on...

I'm keeping quiet and quietly observing...

Remember I said Ben was finding it hard to come to terms with weight increase? I haven't said anything to him since we last spoke about it... and he "effed" and "blinded" about it... I'm just observing. Ever since he weighed himself and discovered that his weight had maintained for three weeks rather than increasing further, his mood has been much, much better. In fact his mood has been pretty darn good, really.

Church meeting went well

I wasn't asking for anything. I wasn't expecting anything. I just explained that I felt I owed it to the pastor to explain why we suddenly disappeared from the church and why we haven't been back since. And he seemed to appreciate my honesty.

Am I still angry with the church?

Am I still angry with the church about the way they failed to embrace Ben when he was crying out for friendship and support last year? Do I still feel the bitterness I felt in March when I wrote this blog entry explaining why I felt the church had let him down?

Excellent suggestions from the other ED mums

I knew I could depend on 'my mums' on the Around The Diner Table Forum to rally round with advice. It's months since I posted anything - I haven't needed to - but it's the good old mums who 'know me' who responded, the mums who were immensely helpful when I first joined.So, coupled with my own gut instinct, this is what I plan to do...

What "they" don't tell you about Weight Restoration. Or maybe I missed it?

Getting your child through an eating disorder is damn tough, we all know that. But what happens when they reach their set weight / Weight Restored? What no-one told me is how they come to terms with something that is very difficult for them to come to terms with. Their weight is okay, but obviously it's been going up for some time. What if it continues to go up? What if it never stops?