Find a Mental Health Professional for Disordered Eating & Body Image

About Disordered Eating & Body Image support

Disordered eating refers to a range of problematic eating behaviours and attitudes that do not meet the full criteria for a specific eating disorder but still significantly affect quality of life. This may include chronic dieting, skipping meals, rigid food rules, using food to manage emotions, preoccupation with food and weight, or persistent body dissatisfaction. These patterns exist on a continuum and can escalate over time into a more serious condition. Body image difficulties involve a negative, distressing, or preoccupying relationship with how one looks or perceives one's own body. This is common in Australian culture, where thinness is often associated with health and worth. Therapy can help people explore the origins of body image concerns, develop a more flexible and compassionate relationship with their body, and reduce the impact of food and weight concerns on daily life. In Australia, the Butterfly Foundation offers resources and support for people at all stages of eating and body image concerns, not only those with a formal diagnosis. Dietitians with non-diet or intuitive eating training are valuable collaborators. Medicare's Eating Disorder Plan applies when clinical criteria are met, and GP Mental Health Treatment Plans can support related psychological concerns.