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Somerset
and Wessex Eating Disorders Association
"Serving those affected by eating disorders" Strode House, 10 Leigh Road, Street, Somerset, England, UK |
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Preparing for a Transition  Finding
the support you need
Preparation The time before you go to college is a really important time. It is a time when you can get ready for the big transition you will be making.
Some people find it useful to think about what support is available for you when you get to College.
It will be important to say good bye to friends and find out where they will be and to make an ending with your current support network.
It can be useful to begin to build new support systems by checking out what is at College, to ask your therapist or doctor to refer you to an appropriate service in your area.
The 18-25 team are here to help you find out what you need to about the support you will need when you go to College.
Support systems
Budgeting Food Management Travel and locations Grounding tool box Support systems
Some questions that people consider in this preparing stage are:
Who are my main supporters at home?
What do they give me?
What will I miss about them?
What can I take with me to remind me of them? For examples Letter? Objects? Phrases? Tapes?
Where will I find the support they give me?
Why am I going to Uni?
What are my hopes and dreams?
What are my fears and worries about going away?
How do I think I will manage these?
Which of these coping strategies are helpful to my life?
Which of them are hindrances to me?
What are my warning signs that things are not ok?
What is useful for me to do when I notice these warning signs?
What has worked before?
What has not been helpful before?
What are my support contact numbers? Friends, family, useful support systems at home and at uni. Contacts
Add your own helpful numbers SWEDA and 18-25 can offer you email support, telephone helpline , supported self help, letter support, Pen Pals, e-mail discussion group (soon) web site and message boards.
Perhaps you could make a private personal tool box find a shoe box and decorate it
In this you may put in it Things to do: pencils, pens paper, wool threads, beads, pattern design books, sewing needles, plasticine, stress balls, crossword books, word searches, Special and important memories: Important photos, cards and post cards Special messages: letters from friends, family and supporters, your dreams and goals, helpful messages or sayings, numbers, self help strategies. Helpful distractions, Like going for a walk (not a marathon), going for a cycle, drawing, writing, listening to music, going to the cinema , calling a friend, buying a magazine Practical support like mobile top up cards, when friends or family are about for you to speak to Budgeting For any student this is a tricky and anxiety provoking area. Before you go away it is a good idea to take out a student bank account. These have many assets depending on which one you choose. They may well have tips on money management Check out how much money your loan allows you for the year, then divide this up for the term , and even by the week. It is likely that you will need more money at the beginning of the year to join some clubs. It can be a very inviting time for the anorexic voice to begin to scrimp and save. It may tell you not to bother with food. It is really important for your recovery and wellness that this inner voice does not take over. Maybe before you go you will decide to do some practice shopping and cooking and work out how much eating well costs you. You may also want to know how and when you pay for your accommodation and what other bills you have to allow for, including books and field trips. It is a good idea to keep your mobile or personal land line in credit, as that is an immediate private support system. Travel and locations Becoming familiar with a new place can reduce your anxiety. When you look round your college check out how people travel. Check out where you are likely to need to go. Practice using buses, trains, cycle routes, footpaths. Check out where the supermarket is, how to find your lecture theatres, accommodation, where to get bus passes, where the med. Centre is and how to register. If you feel anxious about using public transport start using it when you get home so it becomes a known routine. Food Management Before you go away it may be good to prepare yourself for independence and responsible food management. Exercise What are your fears and worries about managing your food and a safe diet? What will get in the way of this? What helps you do this now? Write a list of the foods you can manage and the amounts that you need to have to keep yourself safe and well. Write a list of ways to prepare your food and how to menu plan. Check it out with a dietician before you go. If you are going into catered halls, maybe you will want to visit the Uni canteen and check out how you will manage this with a friend, maybe you will need to get a desk top fridge and freezer even a microwave so that if things get hard you can still manage independently. It maybe that the doctors at Uni will talk to the catering manager and that they will be able to support you in managing your meals, or allow you to purchase meals or ingredients to eat away with your meal vouchers. If you are going self catered take a look at the kitchen areas before going. What will you need to manage this especially if people are in the kitchen when you need to prepare food and eat. How will you manage with unlocked food cupboards? Your milk being "borrowed and not replaced" Practice eating out with friends before you go. Find out what foods you can let yourself like! At College Counselling service
Your college will probably have a counselling service. You may find that there is a general counsellor you can see and possibly an eating disorder specialist, in the college.
If you decide to go to college counselling check:
What other help and local support groups and organisations are there e.g. SWEDA 18-25, for students with eating disorders, specialist teams, self-help groups, volunteer support.
Student welfare may be able to help you look at practical living and studying needs at college
Also check your rights in the student disability centre – under mental health. There may be a mental health liaison nurse and college too. Med Centre/G.P.
It may be helpful to register with the Uni doctor or local surgery when you get to college and not wait for things to get really hard before someone persuades you to go to the doctor.
You may feel that you don’t want to tell them how things are and have been. It can be very scary to tell someone you don’t know what is going on for you in your life and hard to trust another doctor. However if they do not know, it is hard for them to offer you the best possible support to make your time at uni as good as you would like it to be.
The doctor should be understanding and informed about supporting students with eating disorders and aware of the appropriate treatments.
If he/she is not, refer them to the NICE guidelines 2004 or talk to college counsellor/tutor/SWEDA or a friend for support of how to get them to hear what you need.
There may be a local support network that you will find out about on a local website or Library
Voluntary Organisations there is a register of voluntary organisations/charities and web pages of directories of professional registered and accredited therapists so that you can check out their legitimacy, code of ethics and conduct before using a service as sometimes there are organisations/therapists who do not work within the guidelines of their professional codes of conduct and in your interest so feel able to check them out!  Somerset & Wessex
Eating Disorders Association Strode House 10 Leigh Road STREET Somerset BA16 0HA Telephone 01458 448611 www.swedauk.org Or email lyn@swedauk.org SWEDA is a registered charity (No.1056441) and a company limited by guarantee (No.3208772) | ||||||||||||||||||||
© 2004 ~Somerset and Wessex Eating Disorders Association Date:   
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