Youth Philanthropy Initiative in Secondary Schools

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We continue to be involved in YPI projects throughout the north east of Scotland. Schools involved lately have been Mackie Academy, once again, Portlethen Academy, Ellon Academy, Lathallan School, Westhill Academy and two teams from Banchory Academy. We are immensely appreciative of the opportunity this awards us to raise awareness of eating disorders, and also the potential of being awarded £3000 should those presenting on our behalf be the winning group. To date, we at NEEDS(Scotland) have been very impressed with the enthusiasm and maturity shown by all these groups.

September/October events

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The end of September heralds the start of the new university term, and a new stage in life for first year students. Freshers’ Fairs provide a hub from which they can explore what’s available and what they could possibly help with. Having stands at these events raises awareness of eating disorders, and also allows staff and students to see what support is available locally. The stands have also brought us volunteers, and encouraged people to come along to meetings. Networking with other stallholders also gets NEEDS(Scotland) known in the wider community. We attended the Fairs at both The Robert Gordon and Aberdeen Universities.

NEEDS(Scotland) also took a stand this year at The Big Aberdeen Event held at Pittodrie Stadium on the September Holiday Monday. This was the first time we had done this, raising awareness of our group in a much wider audience. From this we were able to make contact with community radio stations, other welfare agencies in the community, and also possible sources of funding. We are delighted to say that our charity has been chosen to be one of the recipients of the Aberdeen Student Charities Campaign in 2015, so do please support them by attending one of their events and giving generously.

The presentation entitled”What is Recovery?” took place on the October Group Night. It highlighted the views of both the professional and the patient. The road to recovery can be challenging at times and hearing about someone’s personal journey was quite harrowing to hear. However, presentations like this do show that recovery IS possible and give real hope to those currently on their own journey, their friends and families. We would like to say a huge thank you to both Dr Jane Morris for introducing and talking us through the DVD featuring her conversation with our own Lori Noble.

What is Recovery? Presentation on 6th October

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At our next group meeting on 6th October we are having a presentation called “What is Recovery?” by Dr Jane Morris, Consultant Psychiatrist at the Eden Unit, here in Aberdeen, and our very own Lori Noble. Should you wish to attend, please email Irene via our contact form, so that we can have an idea of numbers. Group sharing time will follow the presentation at the usual time.

More online support from Beat

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We wish to inform you of new upcoming online support services Beat will be providing in the coming weeks, which may be of interest to our group members, and any other service users and their family/carers looking at our website.

Young Carers Club: Support for young people with a sibling, friend, parent or relative affected by an eating disorder [for under 18’s].

Our Young Carer’s Club online support is for under 18’s with a sibling, friend or other relative who has an eating disorder or is experiencing eating difficulties. This is a four week closed group that provides a space for young people to talk about how they feel and get ideas of how to cope, who can support them and what they can do to help. Each session has an individual theme which the facilitator will help guide through.

These themes will involve: Feelings: Come and introduce yourself and tell us what you would like to get from the Young Carer’s Club; Coping: How to look after yourself when someone you know has an eating disorder; Helping: How to support someone with an eating disorder; Hoping: Looking beyond the eating disorder

· The Young Carers Club starts: October 8th 2014.

· Time: 7pm-8.30pm

· To register: Registration is now open. To register, fill in the registration form found here: http://www.b-eat.co.uk/get-help/get-support/online-services/young-carer-s-club/

· More info: http://www.b-eat.co.uk/get-help/get-support/online-services/young-carer-s-club/

Adult Online Support Groups: Separate support groups for individuals affected and for carers [for over 18’s]:

Online support groups are an accessible alternative to compliment the Beat Network of face to face self help and support groups, they offer a comfortable and supportive environment for discussion between those with an eating disorder, or between carers, families and friends.

We are pleased to announce that we are launching an autumn series of national online support groups for over 18’s alternating between carers and recoverers sessions.

· The next online groups are: October 7th, October 14th and October 21st 2014, between 15.00-16.30.

· To register: If interested in registering email your name and date of birth to onlinegroups@b-eat.co.uk to receive more information.

· More info: http://www.b-eat.co.uk/get-help/get-support/online-services/online-support-groups/

All Beat’s online services are hosted on a secure platform, in a safe, confidential and supportive environment, and delivered and moderated by Beat staff.

For any questions or queries regarding the online support groups – please contact: onlinegroups@b-eat.co.uk

Research

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An organisation called Charlotte’s Helix has a goal of collecting at least 1,000 DNA samples to add to the AN25K initiative. This initiative has the ambitious goal of collecting 25,000 DNA samples world wide, to try and “crack the code” that makes some people pre-disposed to an eating disorder. This research could open the door to new insights and more effective treatments. If you have ever had a diagnosis of anorexia nervosa, you may be able to help. You can read more about the project at www.charlotteshelix.net

Beat

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Sara Preston, Beat’s Scottish Young Peoples’ Participation Officer has informed us of two new online support services which Beat will be providing in the coming weeks. Here are the details below.

Recovery Club:
Firstly we have our Recovery Club which is a 4 week online programme for young people under 18 throughout England, Scotland and Wales to explore with others, what recovery means to them and to start to identify some steps they would like to take in their recovery. Starting on Monday 1st September and Wednesday 3rd September, more information can be found here: http://www.b-eat.co.uk/get-help/get-support/online-services/recovery-club

We realise that this Recovery Club is for under 18s, but perhaps some of our members who care for someone in this group, might be able to pass this information on to them.

University Support Chat:
We also have an online Live Chat session relating to University on the 12th of September. This is open to young people of all ages throughout the UK, whether going to University for the first time or returning to University.
More info can be found here: http://www.b-eat.co.uk/get-help/get-support/online-services/
To register, individuals can email onlineservices@b-eat.co.uk to sign up.

All Beat’s online services are hosted on a secure platform, in a safe, confidential and supportive environment, and delivered and moderated by Beat staff.

Fundraiser at Mackie Academy

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At the end of June we were privileged to be the recipients of £900 from a group of pupils at Mackie Academy in Stonehaven. This very generous donation came from sales held by the school pupils’ Fairtrade group. The donation was made in memory of a former pupil, who sadly lost her life to an eating disorder in 2011. A big thank you to all concerned in raising this money.

HEaDSUP launches, a new carers support group for the Highland region

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We feel very privileged to have been involved in the set up and launch of this group, HEaDSUP, Highland Eating Disorder Support Group. The launch took place on Thursday 1st May, 2014 at the group’s superb venue, Smithton Free Church in Inverness. 16 people attended this inaugural meeting which featured a presentation by Dr Jane Morris, Consultant Psychiatrist at The Eden Unit, Aberdeen, and Lori Noble, volunteer facilitator at NEEDS(Scotland) on the topic of recovery. It was a very insightful presentation, with contributions from both the professional and the recovered sufferer.

The church generously provided the group with refreshments and also two rooms to use for smaller sharing groups. The evening was very successful, with several carers commenting on how delighted they were, that such a group had been launched. There were some who had travelled long distances just for the evening.

We must acknowledge all those involved in the set up and support of this group, especially Lee Cruickshank and her family, who tragically lost her 19 year old son to an eating disorder. She has taken the  courageous step to go forward with this group, with the support of friends, family and professionals. Her strength in the face of such a huge loss is inspirational, and we wish everyone at HEaDSUP all the best with this much needed new venture.

At present, HEaDSUP is a self help group for carers, run and facilitated by volunteers. Any inquiries should be made via their Contact Page. The next meeting will be held from 7pm-9pm  on Thursday 5th June 2014 at Smithton Free Church, Murray Road, Smithton, Inverness IV2 7YU.

Annual General Meeting of NEEDS(Scotland) 28.04.14.

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The Annual General Meeting of NEEDS(Scotland) was held at the Macrobin centre on Monday 28th April at 6.30pm. The meeting was attended by several committee members and several new volunteers. We lost three members from the committee this year. Laura Hastings relocated to the West of Scotland to continue her studies at university. Stephanie Murray will be graduating and embarking on a new career, and Jacqueline Fulton is moving on with recovery and life free from an eating disorder. We thank all three ladies for their time, dedication and skills, facilitating and mammoth efforts fundraising, and wish them well for the future. Our office bearers remain in post for another year. We welcome six new volunteers, who we know will provide support, inspiration and, above all hope to those affected in any way by an eating disorder. One of our new volunteers is also Chairperson of MBEEDS(Men and Boys Eating and Exercise Disorder Support(Scotland). We hope that having a male volunteer with experience as a sufferer will encourage any males affected to come along to our monthly support evenings. I also hope that my IT skills will allow me to post the Chairperson’s report, so that all visitors to our website will be able to get an overview of our activities over the past year, but please don’t hold your breath!

Carers’ Forum March 1st 2014

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On Saturday 1st March, following a very successful Eating Disorders Awareness Week at the Scottish Parliament, the Carers’ Forum, a branch of SEDIG, (Scottish Eating Disorders Awareness Group) held a conference at The Edinburgh Training  & Conference Venue. Dennis Robertson, MSP opened the conference, and urged everyone to lobby their MSPs to keep the profile of eating disorders high on the agenda at the Scottish Parliament. This was followed by speakers on a wide variety of topics concerning carers, starting with Mrs Susan Ringwood, the Chief Executive of Beat the national eating disorders charity. She spoke about Beat’s philosophy and their 25th anniversary manifesto, in which they make five commitments to people affected by eating disorders. You will find more information about this on Beat’s website, www.b-eat.co.uk. She also spoke about the work of Young Ambassadors encouraging others towards recovery. We are very fortunate to have a Young Ambassador working with us at NEEDS(Scotland).
There were over 50 people attending the conference which also featured a talk by Veronica Kammerling, an experienced Carer and Trainer, on the importance of change. She highlighted many issues which carers face, and also how her family adapted to deal with the diverse needs of two sufferers.
Karen McMahon, a specialist in family based treatment in the treatment of children and adolescents, spoke about working together to tackle Anorexia. She highlighted the importance of the role of families and professionals working together and gave several positive examples of how this can work well. I also spoke about how NEEDS(Scotland) works, its history, and positives and negatives of trying to run such a group. Carers really value such a facility, but it is not always easy to find people who are willing to re-visit the difficult world of eating disorders in order to become facilitators, and we must respect that.
Finally, on a very hopeful and forward thinking note, the launch of a new Carers’ Group in Inverness was announced. A very courageous lady, along with some professionals, family and another carer, have come together to form HeadsUP, which will meet in Smithton Free Church, Inverness on the first Thursday of every month at 7pm. This lady, tragically lost her 19 year old son to an eating disorder, and is launching this group in his memory. Her family felt there was a lack of support for carers in the area. The stresses of living with an eating disorder in your family are magnified so much more if you feel lonely and unsupported. NEEDS(Scotland) wish them well for the Launch Night on May 1st, and will have two volunteers present on the night to support this much needed new venture.