‘The perceived scrutiny is immense’: how weddings can worsen eating and body image disorders

The 36-year-old has struggled with body image and eating disorder symptoms since her early teens, but only received targeted psychological treatment briefly several years ago, after a dentist noticed the enamel of her teeth was eroding due to purging behaviour.

Helen Bird, the education services manager at the Butterfly Foundation, says that pressure – alongside increased attention and comments on appearance – can leave anyone vulnerable to body dissatisfaction.

For 34-year-old Chantel Le Cross, managing their eating disorder symptoms takes constant work – though the autism and ADHD diagnoses they received two-and-a-half years ago have helped them to understand the importance of fulfilling a need for routine without tipping over into “obsessiveness”.

Photograph: Lexy PottsThey first met their now-wife in 2018 at one of the bimonthly marathons of TV series Xena: Warrior Princess hosted by Le Cross, who is non-binary and uses they/them pronouns.

The couple decided to hold a surprise ceremony at their “engagement party”, but the stress of planning a secret wedding in five months exacerbated Le Cross’s chronic illness.

Avoid appearance-focused comments While it’s fine to acknowledge how special the couple look, the Butterfly Foundation’s Helen Bird also suggests using words such as “full of joy, elated and glowing from the inside”.