The Lone Bench Initiative

Join us on Saturday, August 26 at 12 pm CST/6 pm BST for an engaging conversation on eating disorders in the Muslim world and the Muslim community with Nadia Shabir () and The Lone Bench Initiative ().

Eating disorders are a problem outside of the West and it’s important to recognize this and begin to provide support in these nations as well.

Islam and Eating disorders is a blog that spreads awareness about eating disorders in Muslims and The Lone Bench Initiative is the only 501(c)3 nonprofit in the United States that focuses on eating disorders in the Muslim community.

We are currently recruiting! If any of these positions interest you click the link in our bio to apply and learn more. Don’t forget to share with anyone who you think may be interested!

Repost from . Join Nadia Shabir and .ua_de to learn more about the affects of war and conflict on mental health and eating disorders. Daria fled war in Ukraine and is currently residing in Western Europe.

Traumatic life events are important risk factors for eating disorders (ED). War has been associated, in military populations, with an increased post-service incidence of ED. Additionally, a modification of eating behavior (EB) related to stress during wartime may increase the risk of developing an ED later on among civilians and those exposed to war stress during adulthood.

Please note this Live will be talking about the personal experiences of Daria and Nadia living in times where the conflicts and atrocities have escalated in many parts of the world. We are not a political forum and we are not here to promote or support any party. Please take into consideration that people suffering from eating disorders do hail from and do have connections to these war zone areas. All these events have a profound impact on mental health and trigger the vicious cycle of many mental health problems from eating disorders to anxiety to fear.

Ramadan is set to begin tomorrow at sundown. Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar. During this month, Muslims fast from dawn to dusk.

However, this can be a difficult time for many individuals struggling with an eating disorder. According to the Quran, you do not have to fast if you are struggling with an illness. Unfortunately, culturally many refer to “illness” as physical diseases and disregard mental illnesses. These ideas lead to feelings of shame and guilt and cause many families to oppose skipping fasting for an eating disorder.

Fasting can also be triggering. A person with a past eating disorder may slip into disordered eating behaviors while fasting. Additionally, fasting may mask an eating disorder. Not eating is normal during Ramadan, and this can be used to hide harmful eating behaviors.

It's okay to feel left out when your entire family may be fasting. But, remember, Ramadan is about so much more than just fasting. Its about connection: you can join your family when they break their fast. Its also about remembering God: you can read Quran or pray additional prayers. You can also find something else to "fast" from, such as social media or music.

For eating disorder clincians: It's important to broach the topic of fasting during Ramadan to your Muslim clients with an understanding of what it is and its importance. Try to involve a local imam well versed in mental health if an individual or their parents are worried about foregoing fasting. You can even reach out to a Muslim eating disorder dietitian or therapist for advice.

For more information and Ramadan resources visit www.lonebenchinitiative.org/Ramadan-2023

Here’s a reminder this eating disorder awareness and love your body week that the solution to negative body image is not changing your body. It was never the problem.

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For Day 3 of Eating Disorder Awareness Week and Love Your Body Week, we want to highlight how it’s essential to for eating disorder prevention that healthcare professionals begin embracing the principles of Health at Every Size. With the them , this is one of the things that need to change.

This Eating Disorder Awareness Week and Love Your Body Week, we’re collaborating with Body Positive Alliance to talk about the intersection between the body positive movement and eating disorder prevention.

To the individuals whose eating disorders tell them that changing their body is the path to acceptance, to the adolescents that can now be “ethically” discriminated against by their physicians for their size, to the countless fat people who are hated and shamed simply for existing, and to everyone who is told by the ones around them that their worth depends on the size of their body…remember this.

Join the founder of the Lone Bench Initiative Maryam Faisal, eating disorder therapist Fatema Jivanjee-Shakir, and body positive author Virgie Tovar at to discuss ways to counter negative body image, body positive books, and to learn more about eating disorders. Participants will hear from the speakers and then work on an activity to foster positive body image. If you are in the area, make sure to join!

Thank you to Aubrey Hoffer, M.A. .phd for writing this blog post on what negative body image is, why it exists and how to address it. Click the link in our bio to read!

Aubrey Hoffer, M.A. is a graduate student at Arizona State University who researches body image. Her own experiences with disordered eating and body image issues fuel her research questions about how body image develops and how to promote a healthy body image for all people. She's a proud first-generation college student and hopes to complete her PhD in the near future.

You can reach Aubrey for inquiry by email at [email protected].

Thank you to everyone who stopped by our table at the Houston NEDA Walk!! It was a great to meet everyone and participate in eating disorder advocacy. Thank you to for organizing this! It was great to meet the wonderful as well!