Characterising Illness Stages, Progression and Recovery Trajectories of Eating Disorders in Young People (STORY)
Participant type
Overview
This study is no longer looking for new participants but is still ongoing.
STORY is a research study focused on how we understand eating disorders in young people. It will explore the diverse experiences of people with eating disorders, mapping the different diverse routes into and out of the illness, as well as its distinct stages – we want to hear your story! Using this knowledge, we aim to develop a new model of eating disorder illness stages and recovery journeys to challenge stereotypes. This information will also help to provide a ‘map’ for clinicians to predict possible outcomes and develop treatment plans that are suited to the individual patient.
Summary
What is the study about?
Eating disorders are serious mental illnesses that involve intense concern about eating, weight or shape and disordered eating behaviours. Eating disorders can occur in individuals across gender identities, ethnicities, sexualities, and life circumstances and can have devastating impacts on these people’s lives.
There is more and more evidence suggesting that eating disorders are progressive disorders. For some people, symptoms may become more severe over time. For others, the symptoms may stay the same over time, or they may decrease. If someone has been unwell for some years, there may be long-lasting consequences. The sooner someone with an eating disorder gets help, the easier it is to recover quickly and fully. This is why it is important to understand the factors that drive change between different illness stages in eating disorders.
In addition, recovery from an eating disorder can be a long journey with twists and turns in the road. Recovery is also multifaceted and involves both the body and the mind. However, at the moment we don’t know what helps and hinders recovery – what can make the recovery journey quicker or slower, and what causes relapses? Discovering the details of the recovery process, including different stages and trajectories, and what may help or hinder recovery, is an important first step in developing effective interventions tailored to someone’s recovery journey.
What are you trying to find out?
This research study is focused on how we understand eating disorders in young people. It explores the diverse experiences of people with eating disorders, mapping the different diverse routes into and out of the illness, as well as its distinct stages. Using this knowledge, we aim to develop a new model of eating disorder illness stages and recovery journeys to challenge stereotypes. This information will also help to provide a ‘map’ for clinicians to predict possible outcomes and develop treatment plans that are suited to the individual patient.
Who is it for?
This study is no longer looking for new participants but is still ongoing.
We were looking for participants who are aged between 16 and 25 and either:
- have been diagnosed with an eating disorder or think they may have an eating disorder
- OR have no history of an eating disorder or any other current or past mental health diagnosis, to take part as a healthy control
What does taking part involve?
This study is no longer looking for new participants but is still ongoing.
Participants are involved in our study for 12 months. This is an overview of STORY and all its study parts – or its chapters!
- Online study screening and providing consent (15 mins)
- Online baseline assessment session (1 hour — 1 hour 30 mins)
- In-person testing (1 hour, optional)
- Neuroimaging session (1-2 hours, optional)
- Remote measurement period: A smartphone and a wearable smart ring (12 months)
- Follow-up online assessment and interview in month 6 (1 hour — 1 hour 15 mins)
- Final assessments and end-of study
If you have any questions or concerns which you would like to discuss with the research team before signing the consent form, you can always contact us – we are happy to help!
Why is it important?
The STORY study aims to explore the diverse experiences of young people with eating disorders and how they recover from them. How do symptoms progress over time and what characterises earlier and later stages of eating disorders? What factors help or hinder recovery? All this information will allow us to deliver more personalised and effective interventions for young people with eating disorders in the future.
How can I find out more?
This study is no longer looking for new participants but is still ongoing. However, you can find out more information by visiting the study's project website here.
If you have questions for the research team, click the button below to email the research team:
Collaborators
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