An Irishman who is cycling across the US to raise awareness about eating disorders has warned that supports in the public health system are “virtually non-existent”.
Cormac Ryan is cycling 6,000km from San Francisco to New York to raise funds for Irish eating disorder charity Bodywhys.
On Newstalk Breakfast this morning, he said he as struggling with an eating disorder for around nine years before his friends and family realised something was wrong and encouraged him to seek help.
“I Went to see a GP and the GP, correctly, said there’s no point waiting on the public system because it’s virtually non-existent,” he said.
“I was lucky enough to be able to go to the private system and I went to a see a consultant who gave me the diagnosis that I did in fact have an eating disorder and I went in then for eight weeks last summer.
“The key point in my story is that, had I gone via the public system, I would probably still be in the thick of it now and I probably wouldn’t have started out on a recovery journey.”
Cormac said the lack of public awareness about male eating disorders really added to his struggle as he was coming to terms with his condition.
“It is an extremely stigmatized illness for males and for females but, from my own experience, in my own head, when I knew deep down that I probably had an eating disorder and I went online looking for information, there was nothing there,” he said.
“Men just don’t talk about this thing and for me personally, the isolation of that added to my pain and distress so much more.”
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He said his condition began after he collapsed on pitch while hurling for Dublin as an 18-year-old.
He said he was fitted with a pacemaker and was unable to play for about a year and it was on his return that people began commenting about his weight.
“Just little comments you would often hear thrown around the GAA about kind of, ‘he wintered well’ or ‘put on a bit of timber’ and that kind of stuff,” he said.
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He said the disorder gradually deteriorated over about eight or nine years, until “things really started to spiral” and in January of last year, he ended up in patient treatment for eight weeks.
He urged people to think twice before making comments about someone’s appearance or body image.
“I am very much aware that not everyone who gets a comment made at them like that will develop an eating disorder or will even take it to heart,” he said.
“It is just to have an awareness that you never know what is going on inside someone’s head in terms of any kind of mental health condition.
“Just to be that little bit more careful particularly around someone’s appearance and just be a little bit more mindful.
“If you wouldn’t say it to yourself probably don’t say it someone else.”
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Cormac will set off on his journey across the US in May of this year and you can donate to the cause at idonate.ie.
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If you or a loved one is affected by any of the topics discussed in this article, you can find information on treatment and support by calling Bodywhys on 01 283 4963.
