Many recovery stories talk about choosing to recover.

I agree that in some ways this is a really significant part of the process. Unless in the minority of people legally required to have treatment via the Mental Health Act or similar measures, reaching out to services is a decision that we make because we want things to be different in some way.

However, this is where the ‘choice’ element starts to become more complicated. Yes, asking to be referred into services is one matter. Being able to to access them following that is another. Many, many eating disorder services are stretched to their absolute limits, meaning there are huge swathes of people who will end up on very long waiting lists, or won’t be eligible for treatment at all.

For those of us who do meet the right criteria, treatment itself comes with a cost. This is especially true if…