The Spring Tide Eating Disorder Day Service in Hove is the first of its kind in Sussex and only one of four in the South East to offer an alternative to inpatient care. This will enable young people to be treated in the community and stay at home with their families.
Katrina Cheshire, 24, who suffered from anorexia nervosa for eight years including six years spent in hospital, cut the ribbon to officially launch the new service. She said:
If Spring Tide had been around when I was in recovery, I probably wouldn’t have spent so much time in inpatient treatment and probably would have recovered quicker. I truly believed I’d never get better, but I’m living proof that there is a life beyond your eating disorder.
I thought I’d be trapped in this world of counting calories, exercising until I could barely stand for the rest of my life, just to numb the emotions from trauma I couldn’t begin to cope with. I know some people believe eating disorders are all about wanting to be thin, but it is so much more than that.
I can tell you now though, it does get better.
I go travelling all the time, I eat whatever I want whenever I want and I’m happy and healthy and that’s all I ever dreamed of back then.
Commissioned by the Kent & Sussex CAMHS Provider Collaborative, with funding from NHS England, Spring Tide is run by Sussex Partnership. The service supports young people aged 18 and under who are already known to specialist Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS).
Led by a multi-disciplinary team, Spring Tide operates Monday to Friday, with young people attending between 10am and 4pm. There is flexibility for families to join for a meal in the evening as part of their care plan.
The 14-week programme is designed around term times including two half terms, with a four-week programme offered over the summer holidays.
The official opening on Thursday 3 August 2023 was attending by representatives from NHS England, Sussex Integrated Care Board, Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, the Kent and Sussex CAMHS Provider Collaborative, local businesses that support the service as well as the Spring Tide and Sussex CAMHS teams.