The University of Stirling Shinty Club is marking Eating Disorder Awareness Week with a series of events aimed at opening up conversation around disordered eating and challenging stigma within university sport.
What’s happening this week?
The campaign, which includes a yoga session, a walk-and-talk and a dedicated talk with SupportED, has been shaped by personal experiences within the club.
“One of the primary driving forces was personal connections within the shinty club to the impact of eating disorders,” club secretary Tilly Anderson told Brig.
“We wished to address the lack of conversation around eating disorders within the Students’ Union, Sports Union and university as a whole, as this was a positive change that we thought needed to happen.”
Events begin with a joint yoga session alongside university yoga societies on Monday 23 February at Level 3, Campus Central. On Friday 27 February, the club will host a walk-and-talk in King’s Park, offering a relaxed environment for discussion.
Although taking place just outside the official awareness week, the campaign will conclude with a talk delivered by SupportED, Scotland’s national community eating disorder charity.
The session aims to provide a safe space for students to learn more about eating disorders and ask questions in an open, supportive setting.
Challenging stigma in sport
The club believes sport has a crucial role to play in tackling stigma. While exercise can promote wellbeing, it can also intersect with pressures around body image and performance.
“We thought that it was incredibly important for sports clubs to be involved in this campaign as unfortunately sport and exercise have often been contributing factors towards the development of an eating disorder,” Anderson said.
“By more people becoming aware of the complexities that come with an eating disorder, we can better look out for one another and hopefully be proactive in aiding those who might be struggling.”
She acknowledged that conversations around eating disorders can feel daunting. “It’s completely understandable that the topic is scary, and that talking about it is hard because there’s always a worry that you might ‘make it worse’”.
“But by sitting in silence we are creating spaces for eating disorders to develop – and that is where they can become deadly.”
By encouraging open discussion within teams, the club hopes to normalise seeking support and dispel common misconceptions.
Supporting each other
Tilly also encouraged other sports clubs to engage with awareness initiatives. “It doesn’t have to be anything major – It could just be sitting in a circle and having an honest conversation for 10 minutes at the start of your session,” she said, while stressing the need for sensitivity when approaching the topic.
At the heart of the campaign is a simple message: students are not alone. Reflecting on their own university experience, Anderson added: “When I came to university four years ago, I was still heavily immersed in my eating disorder, so if I saw something like this I would have felt a sense of understanding from others and that things were going to be okay.”
Students seeking support can access university mental health services. Nationally, the UK’s leading eating disorder charity Beat provides helplines and resources for both individuals and carers, while SupportED runs support groups and educational sessions across Scotland.
The club hopes the week will act as a starting point for more open conversations across campus – within sport and beyond.
Featured Image Credit: @stiruni_shinty on Instagram
2nd year journalism and sport student at the University of Stirling, with a particular interest in music and sports. Sport editor for Brig Newspaper.
