Beyond the Revolving Door: Long-Term Lived Experience of Eating Disorders and Specialist Service Provision.

In this study, we undertook a narrative analysis of participants' long-term lived experience of eating disorders and specialist service provision. Eight participants were recruited with service experience across five National Health Service (NHS) Trusts in the United Kingdom. All participants had a minimum of 10 years self-reported experience living with an eating disorder. The data are presented across different temporal stages that demonstrate the development of participants' self-construct in relation to their first contact with specialist services, what had happened in their lives for this to become necessary, and their current relationships with services, before exploring what participants need from services to help them feel heard going forward. Findings suggest that current methods of service delivery result in delayed and inappropriate supports and a consequent "battling" against professionals, which can provide an obstacle to compassionate and collaborative working and promote "revolving door" experiences.

Changing Relationships through Interactions: Preliminary Accounts of Parent-Child Interactions after Undertaking Individual Parent Training.

Parent and child interaction training has been increasingly investigated over recent years. However, the mechanisms of change within individual training programmes are not well understood. To explore the factors that can facilitate or inhibit meaningful changes in interactions and ultimately relationships, the current study employed semi-structured interviews to obtain first person accounts from parents who had undertaken an individualised parent-training programme. Three participants provided accounts of the training programme and their perceived impact upon interactions with their children were analysed using inductive thematic analysis. The analysis resulted in three themes, which illustrate how participants adjusted their interactional style with their child to varying degrees through enhanced personal awareness, increased understanding of their child's emotional and interactional needs, and accepting the reciprocity of interactional accountability. Changes in interactional style enabled participants to alter their perceptions of their own behaviours, their child's behaviours, and how they influenced one another through interactions. Recommendations for future research and therapeutic practice are discussed in the context of the findings and the existing evidence base.