Advocacy through storytelling: challenging eating disorders and eating disorders stigma

Abstract

Background

Although eating disorders (EDs) are among the most stigmatised mental illnesses, a number of individuals break past this stigma and engage in ED advocacy by sharing their recovery stories. Little is known, however, about the role of such advocacy in their healing journeys.

Methods

To bridge this gap, the authors examined the role of autobiographical oral storytelling in the ED recovery of adult advocates. Autobiographical oral history interviews were carried out with adult advocates ( n = 16) recovering from EDs. The data were analysed using a mixture of actantial and thematic analyses. Authors also used activity theory to categorise how storytelling was translated into concrete social actions. Results were then interpreted through frameworks of embodiment and the intersectionality of identity.

Results

Advocates chose to share their ED stories as a way to embody resilience and make meaning from their ED experiences. Beyond personal gains, the social benefits of sharing their stories included raising hope and openness to converse further with audiences, advocating for greater ED resources (e.g., ED literacy among school staff), and offering new training initiatives for healthcare professionals. The ties between storytelling and the unique aspects of one’s identity are also discussed.

Conclusions

Engaging in advocacy through storytelling can positively affect both the advocates and the audiences with whom they connect. Future studies, informed by feminist biopsychosocial frameworks, can examine storytelling as a therapeutic intervention. Such frameworks serve as alternatives to biomedical models of EDs and mental illnesses. They also emphasise the need for broader changes that destabilise oppressive body cultures and display how storytelling can help mobilise change.

Abstract

Eating disorders (EDs) have been identified as one of the most stigmatised mental illnesses, making it difficult for individuals to seek professional help or disclose their mental health situation. Nevertheless, a handful of individuals become advocates who combat this stigma by sharing their personal struggles and ongoing healing journeys. The researchers of this study used a narrative-based approach to analyse the experiences of such advocates while identifying the personal and social benefits of their storytelling advocacy. The outcomes of this study suggested that advocates found these storytelling initiatives to be deeply meaningful because they were able to reflect on how far they have come while increasing hope among audiences that recovery is possible. The findings from this research support the ongoing need for novel interventions against ED stigma, including the potential to incorporate storytelling as a way to normalise conversations on EDs while enhancing the resilience of individuals undergoing recovery.