Amy Young, 28, has fundraised over £3,500 for the Regional Eating Disorder Unit (REDU) at St John’s Hospital after a seven-year battle with an eating disorder.
When Amy was first admitted to the Regional Eating Disorder Unit in 2021 as a voluntary patient, she had to be confined to a wheelchair for the first month to prevent her from over exercising and losing any more weight.
Now two years on, Amy’s life has been turned around and to thank the REDU team, she took on a fundraising challenge to walk from her family home to her local cafe to eat a slice of cake – something she would never have thought possible.
Amy, from Fife, said: “I had originally set myself a fundraising target of £1,500 and I am delighted to say that we totally smashed that. I hope that, through my challenge, others will seek the help they need, and the ward will be able to continue to go that extra mile for their patients.”
The Regional Eating Disorder Unit (REDU) is a 12 bedded specialist inpatient unit for people with a severe eating disorder who are 18 years or older. The unit offers a multi-disciplinary approach incorporating Nurses, Dietitians, Occupational Therapists and Psychologists.
Amy was diagnosed with bulimia seven years ago soon after she completed a master’s degree in Computational Fluid Dynamics. Throughout her degree, she became more and more restrictive with food eating disorder quickly developed into a vicious cycle of anorexia and over-exercising when she entered full-time work.
She said: “I was so terrified of binging that I would walk endlessly to avoid going home where I knew I wouldn’t be able to stop myself eating”. She initially received mental health treatment, but when the pandemic started, her eating disorder started to spiral out of control.
“During the lockdown, my health started going downhill and I had to move back in with my parents. At this point, I felt like an utter failure. So, I gave up fighting the eating disorder – I didn’t want to be in control of my own life, I wanted to hand over the reins to it.”
After a referral from her GP back home in Fife, Amy agreed to go for inpatient treatment at REDU as she could not stop herself from exercising and her weight continued to decline.
She said: “On my first day in the REDU, I wrote in my journal that I would rather just walk forever and stare at the pavement, I had totally given up hope. I was initially consigned to a wheelchair for a month to stop me from walking and to keep my weight stable.”
Amy spent almost four months in the REDU unit where the team supported her to regain control of her eating disorder and to feel confident enough to manage her own food day to day.
“The REDU team were honestly incredible. Not only did they restore me to physical health, they showed me that life could be worth living again when I was in a place of utter despair.
“I didn’t believe that I could get better, but recovery is possible, and you are not defined by your eating disorder. The idea of eating a slice of cake may still scare me, but that won’t stop me going for it. And more importantly, it won’t stop me enjoying the hell out of life.”
Since leaving the unit, Amy is about the accept her first full time job since leaving the REDU unit in events and is considering moving out of the family home.
“I’m really excited at the prospect of returning to a full-time job and I have rediscovered old things that I used to love like brunches with friends and nights out.
“If you’re considering becoming an inpatient, try to listen to that part of you that’s asking for help rather than the eating disorder part of your brain that’s telling you not to. I’m so thankful I went into the unit as it’s changed my life for the better.”
Laura Cumming, Senior Charge Nurse at the Regional Eating Disorder Unit at St John’s, said: “A big thank you to Amy, she’s come so far, and we are all proud of her.
“We don’t often get to hear how someone is after they have left the unit, so it is wonderful to see how well Amy is doing and that she has also taken on this challenge to raise money for the unit. It’s amazing.”
NHS Lothian Charity said: “We are so grateful to fundraisers like Amy who give their time and money to make a difference for other patients and families and give something back to those who provided exceptional care.”
For details about REDU, please visit the website here.
