Driving and Recovery from Eating Disorder

Driving and Recovery from Eating Disorder

In Ireland there is a lot of emphasis placed on the dangers of driving under the influence of drink, prescription and non-prescription drugs and especially tiredness, which results in the lack of concentration. I think we need much more awareness, and information about the dangers connected with eating disorders and driving.

When a person suffers from ED, they do not feel tiredness, they do not feel malnourishment, they think they are “fine”. They do not realize how dangerous this is for themselves and other road users.

All clients in our centre are medically checked on a regular basis. Most suffer from some form of medical complication. In many cases these people are not safe to drive. When we make this clear in the relevant cases, and strongly advise against driving, we do not always get a co-operative   feed back. Most sufferers and their families do not realize how dangerous it is to drive when you suffer from this condition. It is not only a danger to themselves. Those experiencing an ED need to realize that they are putting many other people at risk also – this cannot help them in their recovery.

Many sufferers and their family members are unaware of these dangers until is too late. I feel we need to learn to say “NO” more when we come across this situation. Would you sit in the car with some one who was drinking? Believe it or not – we have here a very similar situation when a person is suffering with an eating disorder, especially in the early stages of recovery.

I would appreciate to hear some suggestions on dealing more effectively with this issue.

Thank you

Marie Campion

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Marie Soskova-Campion
Marino Therapy Centre
42 Malahide Road
Clontarf
Dublin 3
Tel: +353 1 8333126
www.marinotherapycentre.com
ICEBERG www.eatingdisorderselfhelp.com

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