Does my 12 year old daughter have an Ed?

[Potter10]

I'm looking through some of these posts and becoming more and more concerned that my 12 year old daughter may have an eating disorder. After searching for help online I've ended up here.
I've noticed a huge decline in my once very good eaters habits since pre Christmas. She started to get a bit better over new year but once back in school I noticed a huge decrease in her eating. I didn't want to make an issue of it and it get worse but when I saw she hadn't been having lunch as well as not having breakfast and then avoiding tea too I couldn't not talk to her about it. She laughed when I asked if she was concerned about her weight and stated "you know I don't care about that sort of stuff, I'm just not hungry"
She has lost a significant amount of weight and I've had 2 of her friends parents contact me to say their daughters have noticed she doesn't eat in school and they are worried about her. I'm completely out of my depth and really don't know what to do. We can go a week with her eating really well every meal then then all of a sudden she's just not interested again. Her mood is great, she's got lots of friends and always seems in good spirits. Please help, what do I do?

Get her to the GP asap. They will weigh/ do blood pressure and pulse/ bloods etc. look at www.beateatingdisorders.org.uk for lots of information. And be aware that eating disorders like to stay hidden, trust your instincts

Agree with a trip to the GP.

Just a thought: I bought my DD12 protein shakes in cartons to take to school when she started to become a bit funny about eating. It worked; she's back to eating her regular lunch again. It got her through a period of "not being hungry" which I think was her way of finding her level of control over food.

In terms of control over food, does she make her own lunchbox? Sometimes part of growing up is wanting to have control over diet, as a part of moving away.

Thank you for your reply's. I've been suppressing my instincts as dh says she's fine, it'll pass but I just don't agree. I know this isn't right.
Thank you for the tip re the protein shakes I will see if she will try them.

I tend to make her a sandwich, that she has asked for, three times a week and she does the rest of her lunch (supposedly)
She has P.E the other days so prefers school dinners as she doesn't have room in her bag (she doesn't want a bigger or extra bag!) But my app shows me when and what she is buying. I know when she has eaten it as the wrapper and crumbs will come back in her bag as apposed to no wrapper when I suspect its just gone straight in the bin. She has admitted when asked that she didn't eat it.

Eating disorders are a lot easier to get treated sooner rather than later. Sort asap. Find local child therapist that specialises in ED. Don’t bother waiting for NHS referral, you will be waiting years.

I agree - go to your GP asap. When I was first worried, I phoned a friend who is a psychiatrist and asked her what to do, mentioning that we could go private if necessary. She recommended going to the GP and within two days we had referral and within about three weeks she was diagnosed by a paediatrician in the hospital.

The care from then onwards was a bit patchy but I really can't fault the initial response.

I spoke with the doctor this morning. She wanted to see my dd and do some tests this afternoon. She has had a diabetes test, which was fine, and has arranged blood tests. She wants to rule out any medical issue before exploring anything else is what I was getting from her.