Skiing star Jessie Diggins partners with The Emily Program on eating disorder education

NINA MOINI: Almost 30 million Americans will have an eating disorder in their lifetime. Researchers have found that education is the first step to reducing stigma around disordered eating and getting people life-saving treatment. That's why the Minnesota-based treatment center, called The Emily Program, is launching an extensive webinar series on all aspects of eating disorders for people struggling, their loved ones, and care providers.

They're kicking off their first webinar program for Eating Disorder Awareness Week, which starts Monday, and the first speaker is Minnesota's own Jessie Diggins, Olympian and World Cup Champion cross-country skier. She's on the line now. Thank you so much for taking the time, Jessie.

JESSIE DIGGINS: Thank you for talking with me.

NINA MOINI: Absolutely. And we're also thrilled to have Jillian Lampert, an expert in the eating disorder field and an executive at The Emily Program. Jillian, thank you, and welcome to Minnesota Now.

JILLIAN LAMPERT: Thanks. Happy to be here. Hi, Jessie.

NINA MOINI: [CHUCKLES]

JESSIE DIGGINS: Hey, Jillian.

NINA MOINI: Aw, it's so great to have you both. Thank you for these different perspectives. Jillian, I want to start with you. So I mentioned that education and destigmatizing eating disorders is really important, right? And they are actually the third most common psychiatric disorder, I understand.

So we all know someone who has struggled, or we've struggled, but we don't talk about it a lot. So can you tell me a little bit more about this idea of stigma and education, and just why raising awareness is so important?

JILLIAN LAMPERT: Absolutely. When we talk to people about eating disorders, lots of people say, oh, I know somebody who had an eating disorder, or I've heard about it a little bit, or they've heard about Jessie's story, which is amazing, but they don't quite know very much about it. To your point, they don't know how common it is. They also don't realize another really shocking statistic, that eating disorders have the second highest mortality rate of any mental health diagnosis.

So really speaking to we need to get the word out to people, because these are treatable illnesses from which you can recover with enough treatment and support. And so it's really driving our need and our desire to educate the public and health care providers and anybody else who wants to know about eating disorders through our new Learn with Emily webinar series.

NINA MOINI: Yeah. And Jessie, thank you for sharing your journey as well. You've been a real champion for recovery for people. And you've been so open about your own struggles with bulimia as an athlete. And so you're going to be speaking next Monday about getting help for that. Can you talk a little bit about how stigma might have held you back for a while from getting the medical care that you needed?

JESSIE DIGGINS: Oh, absolutely. When I was 18 years old and starting to struggle with my eating disorder, I felt super isolated and alone. I thought, I must be the only person in the world struggling with this. Why can't I get it together? And I didn't have the education to know that this wasn't my fault, that this was actually my mental health. It wasn't just a behavioral choice.

And so I felt so much shame and guilt that I felt like, oh, I can't talk to anyone about this. And now I've learned so much more. And I know that, wow, I'm far from the only person who's ever struggled with this. And I'm not the only person who's ever come out the other side and recovered and gotten their life back and been super happy and healthy afterwards.

So I think the more people who can hear that, "Wow, I'm not the only one. I'm not alone in this," that's a very empowering feeling. Like, OK, I don't have to be alone in this. I can ask for help. I can have a care team by my side to walk me through this, so this doesn't have to be so scary and so isolating.

NINA MOINI: Yeah, thank you for sharing that. And Jillian, can you just kind of drive that home for us about how this isn't a choice or a diet, or this is a psychiatric condition? Can you talk a little bit more about that and why people don't understand that always?

JILLIAN LAMPERT: Sure, absolutely. You're right. People think that-- maybe because they don't know very much about it and what they read, they might think somebody is choosing to have an eating disorder. Or it's just an issue of willpower. Or maybe they just aren't doing the right thing.

But these are real psychiatric illnesses that actually have a genetic predisposition. We know that people who end up getting an eating disorder have a genetic predisposition that makes them at higher risk for all of the pressures that we experience in society around appearance and our weight and our eating, and really just simply being good enough and being accepted.

We all experience those pressures, and we all see those messages. But some of us are more susceptible to those messages, we now know, because of a genetic susceptibility. So when somebody hears those messages, and they decide to start changing the way they eat or the way they're moving or do something different with their eating or their food, for some people, that is just a slippery slide down a very, very dangerous slope.

And those are folks that are going to develop an eating disorder, and not just dabble in a diet or try a few things with their eating. And then it just kind of goes away, and they don't really stick with whatever the change was. People with eating disorders, the eating disorder really takes over and starts to really dictate how everything will go for that person.

NINA MOINI: Yeah, and Jessie, the images that many people have around eating disorders don't include amazing athletes like yourself, right? Because you're reliant on your body, and you appear so strong. But I understand that there is a connection, sometimes, right, before just really intense athleticism and eating disorders kind of going hand in hand. How do you reflect on that?

JESSIE DIGGINS: I think it's fascinating because when I was younger, I had this stereotypical idea of eating disorders only affect young, white, skinny women and that those are the only people who ever get eating disorders. And that's just not true.

And through The Emily Program, I've learned so much more. Eating disorders don't discriminate. And there isn't one look for an eating disorder. Someone who, to the outside eye, someone might think, oh, they look so strong and healthy, and, oh, my gosh, they're so good at sports, or they're succeeding in school-- they're performing well at their job-- but that can sometimes mask a struggle happening underneath.

And so how someone looks on the outside doesn't necessarily reflect their health on the inside, especially how their health is on the inside of their brain. So I think it was definitely confusing for people when they heard that someone like myself, who is doing endurance sports with a power and speed component, how could this person be succeeding with an eating disorder?

But we know that, sometimes, you can succeed for a little while, and then things start to really fall apart. So eating disorders can sometimes mask what's really going on underneath the surface.

NINA MOINI: Absolutely. Such important points. And Jillian, I'm sure the webinar will speak to topics like this, but would you mind sharing just a brief overview about what people should do if they're concerned about somebody in their life, how they should approach that if they think someone they know may be suffering with disordered eating?

JILLIAN LAMPERT: Absolutely. And you're absolutely right. Jessie and I will be talking on Monday, particularly about athletes and what it's like for athletes to ask for help, and how coaches and friends and clinicians can support athletes, and really important ways to hopefully prevent the development of eating disorders among athletes.

But really, I always tell people, come from a place of concern and compassion, that if you're worried about something you see in somebody, tell them, bring it up. And you can bring it up from your perspective-- "I'm worried about what I see that makes me worried about your health." It's a lot about you, and it's not as much about them directly.

Because we know that when people are approached about people's concerns about potentially having an eating disorder, sometimes people can be really defensive, confused-- to Jessie's point-- not quite understanding what's happening and wondering if it's their fault and feeling like they're doing something wrong, and when, in reality, they have an illness.

And so we should approach them like other illnesses that we might be concerned about and say, here's what I see, and I'm really worried. How can I help you? Let's do this together. Because that way, the person is not alone. Most people with an eating disorder feel like they are the only one that is suffering with this, and nobody will understand.

And once they find out that other people understand and that there's help out there, it can really help to shift their perspective and really get them the help they need. So come at it from that compassionate, really loving perspective of, here's what I'm worried about. Can we talk about this?

And most importantly, if they say, I don't want to talk about that, or the infamous "I'm fine"-- which probably means they're not fine-- but if you get that response, try again. Don't give up-- that your conversation with them might actually be life-saving. So keep trying because they'll know that you care, and they'll see you as somebody that they can open up to.

NINA MOINI: OK. So don't be afraid to try more than once. And then, Jessie--

JILLIAN LAMPERT: Don't be afraid.

NINA MOINI: --from the perspective of someone who believes they themselves may be suffering, what would you share with them?

JESSIE DIGGINS: Yeah, I mean, from my own experience, I definitely, the first time around, when I started to suffer from my eating disorder, I didn't want to tell anyone, and I did not want to accept help. And as Jillian said, I was, "Oh, I'm fine. I'm fine," because I didn't understand that this wasn't really my fault and that it was an illness.

And so it took a couple tries for my parents to really convince me, like, hey, we love you. We're concerned. Even if it's just for us, can you go in and see someone and get the help that we think you deserve? Because we love you. And so as an athlete and as someone struggling, it does definitely help so much to hear, hey, I love you. No one's mad at you. We just want the best for you. And we just care about you, and that's it.

And on the other side, if you feel like you're struggling and you need to tell someone, and you're ready to take that step, I think finding someone who you know loves you unconditionally-- just say, hey, I think I'm struggling with an eating disorder. Would you be willing to help me make an appointment with a mental health professional? And would you be willing to be my support team on this? I know that you can't help me fix it, but you can just be there to hold my hand, and be my support person through this process.

NINA MOINI: Absolutely. Thank you both so much for sharing and for the work around this webinar. It sounds really exciting. Thank you.

JILLIAN LAMPERT: You're welcome.

NINA MOINI: Well, thank you both. That was World Cup champion and three-time Olympian Jessie Diggins and The Emily Program Vice President of Communications Jillian Lampert. If you or someone you know is struggling with an eating disorder, we'll have information with resources from The Emily Program on this story at mprnews.org.