What my team needed was to be seen. We needed our coaches to be educated on female physiology, to affirm our body changes as normal, and to safeguard our healthy menstrual cycles. We needed them to identify the predictable landmines of negative body image and eating disorder culture. We needed language to talk openly about these issues without stigma. We needed athletic departments to be armed with official policies for preventing and treating eating disorders to maximize full recoveries. We needed staff to be measured and rewarded based on the mental and physical health of the athletes in
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