Anger and a pressing need for change means book #3 is germinating inside my head.

And this time I may write it in collaboration with the UK eating disorders charity ABC (Anorexia & Bulimia Care) with whom I am having a series of very nice, friendly and fruitful conversations. This is part of an email I sent to ABC's Director, Jane Smith, today:

The angle I want to take on the over 18s is the way that things can go haywire at that age if they’re still undergoing treatment, yet no longer qualify for CAMHS. As well as knowing a few families that have gone and are going through a post-18 nightmare, not to mention the fairly recent publicity in the media about post-18 deaths due to patients being able to make their own decisions as to whether or not they have treatment, I was particularly worried by some forum threads I read on the BEAT website where 18 year olds were clearly terrified at the prospect of having to move into adult services when they knew and trusted their existing treatment team, and were working very well with them.

It seems absolutely crazy to insist on a complete change purely and simply because of their age and nothing else. And many of these young people find change so difficult to deal with. Worse, in a world where excellent treatment teams seem to be… er… not as widespread as they could be, shall we say… if you have a great team that’s working wonders for your child then you should darn well stay with them!!!!

If the above hits a nerve with any family or young person who's reading this and they'd like to talk to me over the summer at some point, please contact me at anorexia@anorexiaboy.co.uk