Eating Disorders Argumentative Essay

I was 18 when I stopped eating—when I purged my first meal and food became my worst nightmare, consumed 95% of all my thoughts, 365 days a year, 7 days a week, 24 hours a day, 60 minutes to the hour, and 60 seconds to the minute. I was 19 when my 5’6 inch frame fell to a mere 85 lbs and my body went limp. I was 20 when I was submitted to an in-patient treatment center in an effort to save my life. A life that was abruptly taken over by an illness that consumed me; an addiction that was out of my control. To fully recover, I was advised that I would need a minimum of three months of in-patient treatment care. I spent three weeks at the facility before my insurance kicked me out. My parents were unable to afford residential treatment without

Those with eating disorders are fighting for their lives by battling insurers with claims and court cases to pay for residential treatment. Still, because of the expensive costs of in-patient treatment, insurance companies continue to re-emphasize that they do not want to cover in-patient treatment. It is vital that our government interject so that insurers and the public can better recognize this illness as a serious one that affect nearly 30 million people in the United States alone (www.nationaleatingdisorders.org). The path to recovery is different and unique to each individual’s personal experience with his or her eating disorder. It is impacted by their identities, including age, race, gender, and sexuality—it is all encompassing and nondiscriminatory. However, recovery is possible, but it begins with change; change that acknowledges the importance of recovery through treatment that necessitates adequate insurance coverage and the cooperation of our federal, state and local governments in the implementation of a federal program that supports eating disorder in-patient