Hi, I'm Rachel. Many of you know December 13 is my birthday. What many of you do not know is that in November, I was hospitalized in Denver, Colorado for a severe eating disorder... a disease that I've battled since I was fifteen - over twenty years ago. Today, on my birthday, I'm reaching out  from my hospital room to raise money for my completion of critical eating disorder recovery treatment.

This disease quietly crept up on me when I was a sophomore in high school, and even landed me an emergency weekend stay in West Florida Regional Hospital when it nearly claimed my life one Friday night in 1998. After a year-and-a-half, I reached what I thought was recovery, not knowing that life had other plans.


Fast forward 21 years to November 2019; my 37-year-old body started giving up. It was crying for help and screaming out to me that it wasn't strong enough to survive this horrible disease anymore. After much guilt and shame for failing to overcome this mental illness on my own and not wanting to leave my family behind, I reluctantly found one of very few severe eating disorder recovery centers in the U.S. and asked them to help me.

I arrived at Eating Recovery Center in Denver, Colorado, on November 11th, was immediately admitted to the Intensive Treatment Unit, and was continuously monitored until my vitals stabilized... which took a over 10 days. Last week I was given an opportunity to go home and see my family for a few days, and had to return to the hospital in Denver on Monday, December 9th.

My intensive treatment will last until early February. I will miss spending Christmas with my husband and children, the New Year, and work. Staying in treatment is one of the hardest decisions I'm forcing myself into, and I'm trying to convince myself that these few weeks are only a drop in the bucket of the many years I want left to be living, breathing, and experiencing life with my family.


Most of my treatment is not covered by insurance, and there is no way my family can afford my recovery treatment on our own. So, I'm humbly asking for financial help from those of you who care about me, feel lead to, and are able to do so. All donations will go directly to paying for my medical and recovery care at Eating Recovery Center in Denver, and - when I graduate to a lower level of care - Eating Recovery Center in Fort Worth.

I realize this outreach will cause some chatter among readers, and that's ok. I also realize that I am finally opening up and being honest about a disorder I've struggled with for over half of my life, and I am taking the steps needed to save my life from it. I'm proud of that. And I want this recovery care to be possible - for myself, and for my family. They deserve me to be around for along time. If you are inclined and able to help my family support my recovery, we would be forever grateful. Please share this with others, too.

If you are struggling with a mental illness, know that it's okay not to be okay. And, it's even more okay to ask for help. Here are some facts about eating disorders you may not know:

*** Eating disorders have the highest mortality rate of any mental illness
*** An estimated 8 million Americans have an eating disorder; 7 million of them are women, 1 million of them are men.
*** Nearly half of all Americans personally know someone with an eating disorder
*** The mortality rate of anorexia nervosa is 12 times higher than the death rate of ALL causes of death for females ages 15 - 24
*** Only 1 in 10 people with eating disorders receive treatment
*** About 80% of the girls/women who have accessed care for their eating disorders do not get the intensity of treatment they need to stay in recovery – they are often sent home weeks earlier than the recommended stay
*** Treatment of an eating disorder in the US ranges from $500 per day to $2,000 per day. The average cost for a month of inpatient treatment is $30,000. It is estimated that individuals with eating disorders need anywhere from 3 – 6 months of inpatient care. Health insurance companies for several reasons do not typically cover the cost of treating eating disorders 
*** Most people do not understand the true mental illness behind eating disorders

Thank you for taking the time to read this outreach. Love, Rachel.