The complex disorders of Anorexia and Bulimia are fleshed out
Often we are given a simplistic look at eating disorders, summing them up to control issues, the media and youth. In Debra M. Cooper’s new book, Behind the Broken Image, these disorders are fleshed out in a fictional account.
The story follows Alexa, Robin and Abby, three very different women and their families, on their journey into recovery. Sometimes hostile, shy or otherwise unresponsive, these women have learned to deal with life in the same way: anorexia or bulimia.
Alexa is from a wealthy family, whose mother upholds the rigid perfection that she also demands of her daughter. Although stunningly beautiful, married to a supportive husband and having a small child, Alexa’s disorder takes number 1 priority. With a younger sister who rebels against all family values, they must learn to communicate with each other before Alexa can get better.
Robin is a teenager seething with a fury that is evident by the rage blaring from her young eyes. Her doubtful attitude about getting treatment is clear from the minute we are introduced to her. She chats on the phone with her best friend and tries to excuse her gaunt body by saying that it has made her a better swimmer.
Abby is the shy, sweet girl who just can’t eat. Her mother has resorted to religion to get by and her father is lost amidst the emotions he can’t handle. Abby and her little sister are closer than most siblings and, if it weren’t for her and her cat, she probably wouldn’t have lasted as long as she did.
All three women are checked into the Remuda Ranch treatment facility in Arizona. The details of their time there are described with honesty and care. Each story is given the time to be whole and each individual unique.
By the first chapter, I was riveted by the stories each woman had to tell; the end, I felt I knew them all intimately. The novel finishes with pain, triumph and courage, the things that sufferers of eating disorders go through in their journey back to life.
Remuda Ranch is a Christian-based recovery center and the book ties in the stigma some families feel against this approach, as well as the way it can help to heal.
You can order the book from Amazon.com
