My Kid is Back: Empowering Parents to Beat Anorexia Nervosa [Paperback]

"My Kid is Back is packed with practical, helpful and inspiring information. It gives parents a powerful message of hope – that recovery from an eating disorder is possible. Parents can feel overwhelmed when their child develops this most challenging illness. Knowing that there are ways they can help their child, and can play an active part in their recovery is so important." - Susan Ringwood, Beat, UK

"Alexander and Le Grange have combined heart, history and healing in this thoughtful book. My Kid is Back should be required reading for any parent with the slightest suspicion that an eating disorder may be developing in their child. June Alexander's own testimonial should be a warning enough that families need to take action early and head on." - Lynn S. Grefe, National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA), USA

"The Maudsley Model of anorexia nervosa is one of the few evidence-based treatments for anorexia nervosa. In My Kid is Back June Alexander presents the narratives of families who have benefited from this approach when their young children have developed anorexia nervosa. This book will give hope to families who with help can provide the drive and energy to ensure that anorexia nervosa does not become too firmly entangled within the identity of the young person." - Janet Treasure, South London and Maudsley NHS Trust, and Guys, Kings and St Thomas Medical School, London, UK

"After reading My Kid is Back I realised I was wrong to think that this is primarily a book for families trying to deal with anorexia nervosa. It is equally a book for clinicians and researchers who want to understand what it is like for the families. It is a remarkable book because it gives a voice to the families themselves, showing the different journeys they went through regarding both the developing anorexia and in re-establishing themselves and helping their child to recover." - Ivan Eisler, from the foreword

"This is a very useful book for parents who have an adolescent child with anorexia nervosa. However, as Dr. Eisler mentioned in his forward to the book, it is useful not just for families but also for professionals who are working with these families... I think this book is an excellent addition to the literature and it should be read by all professionals who are working with such families. I would have no hesitation in recommending it to parents of children who I am currently working with." - Cathy Feeham, European Eating Disorders Review, Vol. 18, 2010

I, and the families I work with have found My Kid Is Back invaluable. It was particularly helpful recently when I was referred two young boys with the Anorexia Nervosa disorder within a month of each other. Matthew and his family’s story helped the family to deal with it. - Glenn Munt, Thinking Families, Queensland, Australia.

My Kid is Back explains how family-based treatment can greatly reduce the severity of anorexia nervosa in children and adolescents, allowing the sufferer to return to normal eating patterns, and their families to return to normal family life.

In this book, ten families share their experiences of living with anorexia. Parents describe their frustrations in seeking help for their child and dealing with their behaviour and sufferers discuss how the illness gets into their mind and takes over their personality.

By focusing on the Maudsley family approach and expert advice from Professor Daniel Le Grange, and including clear lists of illness symptoms, strategies for parents and carers to follow, and information on getting further treatment and support, this book proves an essential resource for families who want to win the battle with anorexia nervosa.