Hey mama-wolf,
I only know about EDs second-hand but that's not stopping me from chiming in
Bessel van der Kolk and other trauma specialists who treat co-occurring trauma and EDs are discussed in this article:
https://medium.com/beat-eating-disorders/the-body-keeps-score-14790ec3fae7I heard van der Kolk in an interview talk about how trauma interrupts the relationship between the administrative part of our brain and our bodies, and that some ED therapists will do gentle pressure, like on arms or legs, to help the brain and body reconnect as part of therapy. I think to help the brain realize that the body can be safe?
My son has Asperger's, or level 1 ASD, and he has what I consider a severely restricted diet. I feel like I'm in the lane right next to yours.
He had some surgeries that have taken literally years to heal and every health care provider has expressed shock how long he remains wounded. He wants to heal, they want him to heal, I want him to heal, and everyone stresses how important it is he eats a better diet. But dude is stuck. I know part of it is sensory, but it is also about control and fear and trauma.
S8's food issues were a point of contention between his dad (gourmet chef) and him, and by proxy, me. Dining + food trauma, for lack of a better word, is what led me to seek out a therapist, to help figure out how we could get through a meal without feeling like we were all drowning.
In that sense, those food issues rang the bell that needed to be rung. It was like (then) S7 was saying, What do I need to do to get you guys to make me safe.
Same with my step daughter's psychotic episode at age 16. It was like she needed to hear voices and escalate the severity so her mom (uBPD) would let her foot off the gas.
