'I felt abandoned and isolated': woman shares dark battle with eating disorder in rural Australia

By Bianca Farmakis|

"When you place value on people in their darkest times, that's how you help them come out the other side," Hannah Mason tells 9Honey.

"But you've got to make them feel like they're not alone."

Hannah, a mental health advocate from Toowoomba, was among the 280,000 patients combating an eating disorder in regional areas of the country.

Stemming from a childhood trauma, Hannah's desire to "be invisible" nurtured an insidious need to starve herself from the age of six.

Hannah Mason battled an eating disorder from age six.
Hannah Mason is a mental health advocate and eating disorder survivor from Toowoomba. (Supplied)

"I associated consuming less space with decreasing my ability to get hurt again," she says. "Which often led to screaming matches at the dinner table, or not being allowed to leave the principal's office until I ate."

Formally diagnosed with anorexia at 15, Hannah's condition worsened to the point where she was hospitalised at 19, and would spend the next several years in and out of in-patient treatments.

Her most recent stay - a 10-month stint Hannah describes as "hell" – saw her involuntarily hospitalised and fixed with a tube that would pump all her meals into her system.

"I was told if there was a change in temperature I could die due to the weakness of my heart," she recalls.

After abusing laxatives to offset any weight gain, Hannah was combating "severe heart issues, dehydration, electrolyte imbalances, and a bowel prolapse" where nearly half of her large bowel came out of her body. 

The barrier to treatment was her postcode.

"Where I live, there aren't any specified eating disorder services," Hannah explains, adding "there was just general psychiatry - there were no specialists, or experts - it was often just hoping for the best."

While the Mason family applied for private clinics across the state of Queensland, hours away from the family's rural home, the complex nature of Hannah's case was deemed "too difficult" to take on, and she was left to recover in her local hospital.

"I felt abandoned and isolated," she recalls.

"So many people walk away when you struggle for so long and don't seem to be getting better. My treatment for the next few years just seemed like a guessing game and unless people specialise in it it's so complex to understand."

Hannah Mason battled an eating disorder from age six. (Instagram)

The Mason family were among the 94 per cent of regional families grappling with an eating disorder that find their living situation an obstacle to getting help, according to the Butterfly Foundation's MAYDAYS report.

92 per cent of healthcare workers in regional areas also revealed they need more training on eating disorders

"Time and time again I was told my medical professionals that they weren't giving up, but that they didn't know what to do," Hannah recalls.

Kevin Barrow, CEO of the Butterfly Foundation explains, "with COVID-19 we've all felt the social isolation that can come from being disconnected for our networks - but individuals with an eating disorder go through that every year."

"Eating disorders do not discriminate by postcode, age, gender, ethnic background, culture, size or shape. Having to travel long distances for treatment highlights the gaps in our health system," he says.

The impact of isolation, heightened by the coronavirus pandemic, can exacerbate the symptoms of an eating disorder and make access to treatment difficult.

"A team based approach is crucial - these are mental illnesses with physical symptoms," Barrow adds.

"They are not a lifestyle choice, they are a complex mental illness with some of the highest mortality rates in Australia."

As part of the mental health services annual MAYDAYS campaign, Barrow spearheaded the theme #PushingPastPostcodes to highlight the need for increasing access to eating disorder treatment and recovery services for all Australians regardless of their postcode.

While many Australians suffering from an eating disorder remain isolated in their battle, Hannah shares the glimpse of hope she found after years of struggling.

"Not having to wear a mask anymore is the biggest win."  (Instagram)

"I got a wake up call when my dietitian came in to see and told me she didn't know what to do anymore," she shares.

"That's when it hit me - I can't keep waiting for someone to come along and save me."

After 10 months of involuntary hospitalisation, Hannah was discharged.

"The day I got discharged one nurse kept pointing out to everyone to show them how happy I was and how much I was glowing," she says.

"For people to say look how far you've come means the absolute world to me. Not having to wear a mask anymore is the biggest win." 

For more information on MAYDAYS and key #PushingPastPostcodes survey findings please go to www.butterfly.org.au/MAYDAYS 

If you or anyone you know is struggling with an eating disorder, please contact the Butterfly Foundation.
