“I thought if my parents got involved, then they'd make me get better”: emerging adults’ experiences of support from family and friends during anorexia nervosa
Abstract Background Around half of all eating disorder cases start during emerging adulthood (i.e., 18–25 years of age). This is an important time of change in interpersonal relationships, marked by individuation from the family of origin. Interpersonal relationships have long featured in theories o...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2025-05-01
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| Series: | Journal of Eating Disorders |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s40337-025-01260-8 |
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| author | Rachel Potterton Gary Brown Ulrike Schmidt |
| author_facet | Rachel Potterton Gary Brown Ulrike Schmidt |
| author_sort | Rachel Potterton |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Around half of all eating disorder cases start during emerging adulthood (i.e., 18–25 years of age). This is an important time of change in interpersonal relationships, marked by individuation from the family of origin. Interpersonal relationships have long featured in theories of eating disorder maintenance and recovery. Increased understanding of the interplay between eating disorders and changes in the interpersonal domain may be key to improving the efficacy of existing treatments and developing novel interventions for this population group. Objective This study aimed to explore experiences of support from family and friends amongst emerging adults with anorexia nervosa. Methods A convenience sample of emerging adults who had received specialist treatment for anorexia nervosa in the United Kingdom (N = 10) was recruited via advertisements on social media. Semi-structured interviews were conducted focusing on experiences of support from family and friends during their eating disorder. Data were analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. Results Five key themes in participants’ experiences were identified: (i) feeling isolated and lacking close friends; (ii) resisting involvement of family due to perceiving them as part of the problem; (iii) feeling family and friends’ feelings; (iv) desiring flexible boundaries, and (v) feeling ambivalent towards family and friends’ lived experience. Conclusions Findings suggest a complex entanglement of development of and recovery from AN with the process of individuating from parents during emerging adulthood. Clinicians may find benefit in helping emerging adults to develop their independence and supporting parents to adopt helpful emotional and behavioural postures that tackle the AN maintenance cycle, for example developing parental emotion regulation skills and supporting parents to facilitate age-appropriate levels of independence and responsibility. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-e3c4846c935b4175b4247a00941ce506 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2050-2974 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Eating Disorders |
| spelling | doaj-art-e3c4846c935b4175b4247a00941ce5062025-08-20T03:48:03ZengBMCJournal of Eating Disorders2050-29742025-05-0113111310.1186/s40337-025-01260-8“I thought if my parents got involved, then they'd make me get better”: emerging adults’ experiences of support from family and friends during anorexia nervosaRachel Potterton0Gary Brown1Ulrike Schmidt2Department of Psychology, Royal Holloway, University of LondonDepartment of Psychology, Royal Holloway, University of LondonCentre for Research in Eating and Weight Disorders, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King’s College LondonAbstract Background Around half of all eating disorder cases start during emerging adulthood (i.e., 18–25 years of age). This is an important time of change in interpersonal relationships, marked by individuation from the family of origin. Interpersonal relationships have long featured in theories of eating disorder maintenance and recovery. Increased understanding of the interplay between eating disorders and changes in the interpersonal domain may be key to improving the efficacy of existing treatments and developing novel interventions for this population group. Objective This study aimed to explore experiences of support from family and friends amongst emerging adults with anorexia nervosa. Methods A convenience sample of emerging adults who had received specialist treatment for anorexia nervosa in the United Kingdom (N = 10) was recruited via advertisements on social media. Semi-structured interviews were conducted focusing on experiences of support from family and friends during their eating disorder. Data were analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. Results Five key themes in participants’ experiences were identified: (i) feeling isolated and lacking close friends; (ii) resisting involvement of family due to perceiving them as part of the problem; (iii) feeling family and friends’ feelings; (iv) desiring flexible boundaries, and (v) feeling ambivalent towards family and friends’ lived experience. Conclusions Findings suggest a complex entanglement of development of and recovery from AN with the process of individuating from parents during emerging adulthood. Clinicians may find benefit in helping emerging adults to develop their independence and supporting parents to adopt helpful emotional and behavioural postures that tackle the AN maintenance cycle, for example developing parental emotion regulation skills and supporting parents to facilitate age-appropriate levels of independence and responsibility.https://doi.org/10.1186/s40337-025-01260-8Emerging adulthood; IPA; eating disordersAnorexia nervosaFamily involvementParents |
| spellingShingle | Rachel Potterton Gary Brown Ulrike Schmidt “I thought if my parents got involved, then they'd make me get better”: emerging adults’ experiences of support from family and friends during anorexia nervosa Journal of Eating Disorders Emerging adulthood; IPA; eating disorders Anorexia nervosa Family involvement Parents |
| title | “I thought if my parents got involved, then they'd make me get better”: emerging adults’ experiences of support from family and friends during anorexia nervosa |
| title_full | “I thought if my parents got involved, then they'd make me get better”: emerging adults’ experiences of support from family and friends during anorexia nervosa |
| title_fullStr | “I thought if my parents got involved, then they'd make me get better”: emerging adults’ experiences of support from family and friends during anorexia nervosa |
| title_full_unstemmed | “I thought if my parents got involved, then they'd make me get better”: emerging adults’ experiences of support from family and friends during anorexia nervosa |
| title_short | “I thought if my parents got involved, then they'd make me get better”: emerging adults’ experiences of support from family and friends during anorexia nervosa |
| title_sort | i thought if my parents got involved then they d make me get better emerging adults experiences of support from family and friends during anorexia nervosa |
| topic | Emerging adulthood; IPA; eating disorders Anorexia nervosa Family involvement Parents |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s40337-025-01260-8 |
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