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Around the Dinner Table Forum

What is the Around the Dinner Table Forum?

The “Around the Dinner Table” (ATDT) is an online community of parents of eating disorder patients around the world. ATDT is a moderated 24/7 Forum that has connected and supported parents since 2004.

Why Should I Join the ATDT Forum?

Peer support can be an important adjunct to a family’s toolbox when researching and engaging in treatment. Parents have unique experiences and skills to help other parents feel more informed, supported, and empowered. Newcomers to the forum benefit from learning what other parents have done and experienced. Longtime members get satisfaction from supporting others. The collective wisdom and community at our forum has been an important and often life-changing asset, and can lead to lasting and treasured relationships.

Forum Rules:

  • Kindness and civility.
  • The forum is meant for parents and adult caregivers only.
  • Registration is required to join the discussion. Contact information given during registration will not be used for any other purpose than FEAST.
  • Clinicians and Professionals in the eating disorder field may register and post replies, but we ask that the conversation remain primarily between and in the service of parent’s and carer’s specific questions. For this reason, professional members may not create new topics. In addition, clinicians should refrain from marketing their services, and are asked to contact F.E.A.S.T.’s staff before posting any links to surveys, interview requests, or announcements.
  • Clinicians who are also caregivers should clarify this relationship if posting for support as a caregiver.
  • Posts by current patients will be deleted, not because we don’t care but because we do. Care advice should come from one’s own parents and treatment providers, not strangers.
  • Caregiving parents who are also in treatment for eating disorders must limit questions to caregiving issues.
  • Protect your privacy by choosing a username that does not reveal your real name or identity, and be careful in what information you provide in your profile: it is available for viewing by registered members. You can mark your name as private to keep members from seeing it. Email is always private.
  • Advice given on online forums is of variable quality and reliability.
  • This is an anonymous forum but anything you post will be available to anyone, anywhere, permanently. If you post about specific people, treatment providers, or methods you can assume that the subject will read it.
  • This forum is an adjunct, not a replacement for professional consultation.
  • Inappropriate registrations and posts will be deleted.
  • Please use an email account that you will monitor regularly (including spam folders) for occasional communications from F.E.A.S.T. Administrators or Moderators. Failure to respond to personal email communications from F.E.A.S.T. may result in the suspension of posting privileges. Disposable email accounts are NOT ALLOWED.
  • When parents grow depressed or anxious under the understandable strain of caregiving, it is essential to seek clinical assistance ‘on the ground.’ ATDT cannot provide therapy or interventions.
  • Users can edit or delete their own posts and registration information at any time.
  • Please feel free to share your experience and opinion, but refrain from telling others what to do. Please be mindful and inclusive of the range of religious and cultural backgrounds using the forum.
  • The marketing of books, resources, or services is not allowed on the Forum. Members may suggest resources that they have created, heard about, or used and found helpful in the context of a Forum discussion. Advertising and point of sale links will be removed from member signature fields. F.E.A.S.T. understands that this is a grey area and asks that members err on the side of caution if they are unsure if a post is appropriate.
  • Members of the forum are welcome to contact one another privately, but these contacts — including those with moderators and mentors — should be considered personal and outside of the forum’s functions. Private contact with members of the Moderator Team will be shared with the rest of the team unless specifically agreed as a private communication between friends.
Click to download:

ATDT Welcome Letter

ATDT User Guide and Instructions

CLICK BELOW TO ACCESS THE COMMUNITY:
www.aroundthedinnertable.org