You suspect teen has an eating disorder and to talk to them about it. How do you go about that when you can not get them to talk to you?

First of all, you need to know that people with eating disorders tend to use distortion behavior to conceal themselves, their thoughts and their feelings. One of the problems is that they do not know how to express themselves, knowing that they do not know how to talk about what they feel inside. And if the child is a teenager, it is even more difficult at that age because of all the changes they are going through physically and mentally.

Even when parents ask the right questions, adolescents often still do not know how to put their thoughts and feelings in words that they think you will understand.

Think about it. As a teen, you have a hard time getting them to open up and talk to you. Now factor in that they have an eating disorder, and it’s really going to be hard to crack them open and talk.

Here are some tips for getting them to open up with you and actually talk about their feelings.

sessions should be short, simple and to the point.

As parents, we tend to barrage our kids with questions one after another. Sometimes we do not even give them a chance to start answering one question before we ask other. Is this you?

We talk and we talk to fill the silence because the kids just look at us with a blank look, right?

Hint, hint! The blank look is an indicator for parents to slow down the run of words, take a deep breath, and instead become a run on and on, just ask a simple question and wait for a response.

Don ‘t fill in silence for them and try to look encouraging and open-minded.

Remember, just as you are looking at the face and body of evidence from them to figure out what to say, they are doing the same to you! If you have your arms crossed in front of the chest or you’re tapping your toes or jaw is set, they are not really going to want to talk to you right then and there. Body language is to tell them you’re not going to be sympathetic or understanding.

Be aware of your body language and keep information to a minimum. Ask your question and wait for a response. Be receptive and inspiring place judgmental or close-minded. What teenagers the body language will go a long way they wanted to share their feelings with you.