Biting The Hand That Starves You

Inspiring Resistance to Anorexia/Bulimia

Richard Maisel, David Epston, Ali Borden

Praise for Biting the Hand That Starves You:

"Since the book is intended for a broad audience--including mental health professionals, parents, friends, partners, individuals having anorexia or bulimia, and occupational therapy practitioners--all of them can benefit from reading this 'insider' presentation of information. . . . [W]ell-organized and clearly presented . . . .By listening to the 'insider's' voice in this novel narrative method, one may attain a greater understadning of individuals with anorexia/builimia and be able to affect a change in their ability to reclaim life."

—Occupational Therapy in Mental Health: A Journal of Psychosocial Practice and Research

"With unfailing respect for those suffering from anorexia, Maisel, Epston, and Borden offer a fresh analysis of the etiology of anorexia and bulimia and give us effective new therapeutic tools….[G]ives psychiatrists and clinicians in every therapeutic setting the theoretical framework and practice options needed to treat anorexia and bulimia. This is the book we have been waiting for... A welcome paradigm shift in the treatment of anorexia and bulimia... Patients and their families will find this book invaluable; the last section is specifically addressed to parents. If you are interested in compassionate, respectful and effective treatment of anorexia, bulimia, get this landmark book."

—Psychiatric Services

"[A]n impressive and useful book…Like all truly useful innovation, the ideas in this book quickly become part of one's therapeutic arsenal. This is an excellent book for medical students, residents, senior faculty, and, in part or whole, our patients and their families."

—Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry

"Biting the Hand That Starves You is an inspiring book suitable for anyone touched by an eating disorder, whether they are professionals, carers or sufferers. Using techniques grounded in narrative therapy, the authors offer a fresh and empowering way of approaching anorexia/bulimia (a/b) from an anti-anorexic standpoint.... As a professional who works with eating disorders, I was left feeling highly motivated to employ techniques outlined in the text and share the ideas with colleagues. I could not recommend this book more."

—Psychology and Psychotherapy: Theory and Practice

"[U]ndoubtedly compelling food for thought,and, in my view, absolutely essential reading for academic researchers as well as therapists, 'insiders' and carers."

—Women and Psychology

"A very hopeful and inspiring text that will be of interest and value to all those whose lives and work are affected by anorexia and bulimia." —British Journal of Guidance and Counseling

"[O]ffers a promising way of conceptualizing eating disorders that allows therapist, client, and loved ones to maintain positivity and hope during those periods that seem the bleakest." —PsycCritiques

"This is a powerful book, written in extremely strong language reflecting the strong feelings of its authors… [A]n absolute must-have for anyone working to help sufferers from these killing disorders."

—Human Givens Journal

"[A]fter over 20 years of battling with anorexia/bulimia, I have found something that speaks my language… I have been asked over the years (and have often asked myself) what is it going to take to get out of this torture. I never really attempted answering this question until we finally got the book."

—Archives of Resistance: Anti-Anorexia/Anti-Bulimia at www.narrativeapproaches.com

"Anorexia and bulimia are more than just eating disorders, say the authors, practicing psychotherapists. Promoting a radical new therapy, they liken the diseases to the torture endured by prison camp inmates and encourage victims, with the aid of first-person narratives, to resist the voice of their inner dictator."
—Discover

"[P]resents a persuasive and inspiring way to think about eating disorders and their treatment."
—Gastronomica

"[T]he words of the insiders allow the reader to understand how to undermine and eradicate a/b successfully."

—Journal of Constructivist Psychology

And more praise... Advance Acclaim

Overview – Table of Contents – Introduction

 

This important book immediately draws the reader into the world of those struggling with anorexia/bulimia (a/b), whose stories, poems, and first-person accounts expose the 'voice' of these deadly problems. The authors' decade-and-a-half collaboration with 'insiders' has yielded fresh answers to these life and death questions: How does a/b seduce and terrorize girls and women? Why is a/b successful in encouraging girls and women to unwittingly embrace their would-be murderer? How can such a murderer be exposed and thwarted?

Biting the Hand that Starves You details a unique way of thinking and speaking about anorexia/bulimia. By having conversations with insiders in which the problem is viewed as an external influence rather than a part of the person, these therapists show how to bring the tactics of a/b into the open, expose its deceptions, break its spell, and encourage defiance of its tyrannical rule.

These innovations enable insiders, professionals, and loved ones to unite against anorexia/bulimia rather than allowing a/b to pit a professional or loved one against an insider, and the insider against herself. Coercion is sidestepped in favor of practices that are collaborative, accountable and spirit-nurturing. The groundbreaking discoveries outlined in this book will provide new options, inspiration and hope, not only for those who suffer at anorexia's hands, but also for their loved ones and healthcare professionals.

The first section of the book illuminates the means by which anorexia/bulimia insinuates itself into the lives of women and confines them to its prison. The second section focuses on how therapists and other helpers assist them to break the spell of a/b, creating possibilities for resisting and defying it. The third section of the book details a two-pronged strategy for reclaiming one's life from a/b. One method involves unmasking a/b by directly engaging with it through critique. The other method involves disengaging from anorexia in order fashion an 'anti-a/b' lifestyle guided by their own values and passions, even while they fear forsaking the promises of anorexia. Finally, the last section of the book addresses ways in which parents and other loved ones can 'team up' with insiders to fight against these lethal problems. This section includes a first-person account of a mother and father's harrowing but ultimately triumphant effort to free their daughter from anorexia's prison.

Biting the Hand that Starves You draws to an unprecedented degree on the anti-anorexic/bulimic knowledge of 'insider' clients/collaborators to provide fresh insights into the workings of a/b and the means to overcome it. The knowledge of these authors and their insider collaborators, who speak poignantly and passionately on their own behalf, is sure to benefit all those affected by a/b.

About the Authors

Richard Maisel, Ph.D. is an adjunct professor at Alliant International University in San Francisco and maintains a private practice in Berkeley and Walnut Creek, California. He has published and presented extensively on narrative therapy and anorexia/bulimia.

David Epston, M.A., C.Q.S.W. is coauthor of Narrative Means to Therapeutic Ends (1990) and Playful Approaches to Serious Problems (1997). He is a visiting professor at the School of Community Studies, UNITEC Institute of Technology in Auckland, and is the codirector of the Family Therapy Centre in Auckland.

Ali Borden, M.A., M.F.T. is the Assistant Clinical Director at the Monte Nido Treatment Center, a residential facility in Los Angeles for women fighting Anorexia and Bulimia. Ali has successfully battled with anorexia/bulimia in her own life.

ISBN: 0-393-70337-1
Fall 2004
Cloth; 320 pages