Month: February 2019

Eating Disorder Awareness Week

Did you know that eating disorders have the highest mortality rate of any mental illness?(1)

At least one person dies as a direct result from an eating disorder every 62 minutes. And the numbers seem to be getting worse, especially among young adults. College students, like me, are the most at risk.

“The rate of eating disorders among college students surveyed from one college increased from 7.9% to 25% for males and 23.4% to 32.6% for females over a 13 year period.” (2)

https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/CollegiateSurveyProject

More and more young people are being exposed to unrealistic body types through various social platforms like Instagram and Snapchat and especially through the media. And more and more are becoming at risk for disordered eating and potential eating disorders. So what is there to do?

Well, the NEDA ( National Eating Disorders Association) has found ,through their collegiate survey, that “access to education, screenings, and mental health resources are critical for early detection and prevention efforts, as well as encouraging affected individuals to seek proper treatment.” (2)

Educating people seems to be the best step to take in the fight against eating disorders. It’s important to start this education early, because college students aren’t the only people at risk. The National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders (ANAD) found an estimated 11% of high school students have officially been diagnosed with an eating disorder, and this doesn’t apply to the young people who are hiding it. (3) The earlier you start a system of detection and prevention the more likely it is to work. Implementing early detection and screening systems in elementary and high schools have the best chance at saving someone’s life.

Some schools are already taking action, like the Brooklyn Lab School in Brooklyn, New York, where their 10th graders participate in the Body Project.(4) “A group-based intervention that provides a forum for women and girls to confront unrealistic beauty ideals and engages them in the development of healthy body image through verbal, written, and behavioral exercises.” (2)

Even though it’s slow going there is a spread of awareness moving through the country. Hopefully sometime soon, we’ll be able to turn the tide of growing numbers and help young people feel comfortable in their own bodies.

Since it’s never too late to learn something new here are the links to the NEDAs pages on the warning signs and symptoms of eating disorders:
https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/warning-signs-and-symptoms

and some preventative actions you can take against eating disorders:
https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/learn/general-information/prevention

Works Cited:

  1. (Smink, F. E., van Hoeken, D., & Hoek, H. W. (2012). Epidemiology of eating disorders: Incidence, prevalence and mortality rates. Current Psychiatry Reports,14(4), 406-414.)
  2. https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/CollegiateSurveyProject
  3. Eating Disorder Statistics. The Alliance for Eating Disorder Awareness. (n.d.). Retrieved from: https://www.ndsu.edu/fileadmin/counseling/Eating_Disorder_Statistics.pdf
  4. https://health.usnews.com/health-news/health-wellness/articles/2015/02/23/tackling-
    eating-disorders-with-school-based-initiatives

The Myth of Multitasking

by Nancy K. Napier Ph.D.
[previously published on Psychology Today]

Think you’re good at doing several things at once?

Reading and listening to music? Driving and talking on the phone (hands free, of course), or texting while sitting in a meeting? 

Think again. 

Much recent neuroscience research tells us that the brain doesn’t really do tasks simultaneously, as we thought (hoped) it might. In fact, we just switch tasks quickly. Each time we move from hearing music to writing a text or talking to someone, there is a stop/start process that goes on in the brain. 

That start/stop/start process is rough on us: rather than saving time, it costs time (even very small micro seconds), it’s less efficient, we make more mistakes, and over time it can be energy sapping. 

Still don’t believe me? 

Take a small test that I learned recently in a workshop about mindfulness, delivered by the Potential Project, a group based out of Denmark. Here’s the test:

  1. Draw two horizontal lines on a piece of paper
  2. Now, have someone time you as you carry out the two tasks that follow:
  • On the first line, write: 
    • I am a great multitasker
  • On the second line: write out the numbers 1-20 sequentially, like those below:
    • 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

How much time did it take to do the two tasks? Usually it’s about 20 seconds.

Now, let’s multitask. 

Draw two more horizontal lines. This time, and again have someone time you, write a letter on one line, and then a number on the line below, then the next letter in the sentence on the upper line, and then the next number in the sequence, changing from line to line. In other words, you write the letter “I” and then the number “1” and then the letter “a” and then the number “2” and so on, until you complete both lines.

I a…..

1 2…..

I’ll bet you your time is double or more what it was on the first round. You also may have made some errors and you were probably frustrated since you had to “rethink” what the next letter would be and then the next number. 

That’s switch-tasking on something very simple, but that’s exactly what happens when we attempt to do many things (often more complex) at the same time. 

So next time you think you’re multi-tasking, stop and be aware that you are really switch-tasking.  Then give yourself a time limit (10 minutes, 45 minutes?) and focus on just one task and see if you can’t complete it better, faster, and with less energy.