As part of our mission to support all people suffering from eating disorders as well as their family and friends, we have provided a number of useful resources below, and will continue to update this page with any new resources or research as and when they become available.
- Professionals
- Organisations
- ED Related Articles and Guides
- Local Research Papers
- Other Online Resources
Professionals
Isabelle Jakobsen
Isabelle Jakobsen is a Youth Worker by profession and has worked with young people for the past 6 years both as an informal educator teaching positive thinking and also as a therapist. She has a master’s degree in gestalt psychotherapy and has been working in the field of eating disorders for the past four years. She holds motivational groups for people with this challenge and together with clients explore ways of healing and making the process easier and more manageable. Together they give birth to new ways of thinking positive and find creative means of reaching the light at the end of the tunnel.
She can be contacted on puninna@gmail.com
Dr. Valentina Bezzina
Dr. Valentina is a warranted Counselling Psychologist. After completing a Bachelors Degree in Psychology at the University of Malta, she completed a Doctorate in Counselling Psychology at Teesside University, UK. She has been working in the field of psychology in Malta since 2013, both in the public and private sector, and is currently a Clinical Coordinator at FSWS. She has experience with individual clients, groups, lecturing and supervising academic work. Therapeutically, Valentina practices from an integrative approach, bringing together principles of CBT, Psychodynamic and Humanistic approaches. She works with clients who present with Anxiety, Depression, Personality issues and Relational issues.
She can be contacted on +356 79049562 and via Solace
Marisabelle Bonnici
Marisabelle is a pharmacist. Between 2008 – 2010 she lived in the Netherlands reading for a masters in Toxicology and Drug design, she returned to Malta and bought her first business at age 27 – a village pharmacy which she owned between 2013 and 2018. She has battled binge eating disorder for most of her adult life. In 2017 she started her journey to recovery from her eating disorder. She realised that her life in the pharmacy was aggravating her eating disorder, so she decided to sell her pharmacy. She lost a total of 50kg, started working out and learned to listen to her bodies needs. In the meantime, she got certified as a Holistic health and nutrition coach and intuitive eating coach and started a course in eating disorders. She has also recently learned she is suffering from Celiacs disease and is now in the process of learning how to tackle this auto immune disorder. She is now organising workshops and coaching people in their journeys and restoring their relationship with themselves and food.
Services: Health and nutrition coaching, emotional and overeating coaching.
Website: www.roadtobelle.com
Roadtobelle on Instagram and Facebook
Martina Aquilina
Martina works as a play therapist with children ages 3 and over. In play therapy, a child’s natural medium of expression – play and games – is used to help them express their feelings more easily through toys instead of words. Martina has experience helping children with eating disorders both locally within her private practice, and in schools in the UK.
She can be contacted on +356 99803651 or via email on martina.playtherapy@gmail.com
Organisations
Dar Kenn Għal Saħħtek
‘Dar Kenn għal Saħħtek’, a residential, day care and out-patient facility, is aimed to provide a holistic treatment of patients with eating disorders and weight behavioral problems. The Foundation was set up between the Malta Community Chest Fund and the Ministry of Health. 4 board members are appointed by the MCCF and 4 appointed by the MFH while the Chairperson is appointed by The President of Malta and the Prime Minister.
Website: http://www.dks.org.mt/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kennghalsahhtek/
Victim Support Malta
Eating disorders can sometimes come about as the result of abuse or can even lead to abuse, such as substance abuse. Sufferers of eating disorders are also affected, directly or indirectly, with suicide or suicidal thoughts. Victim Support Malta (VSM) has a project running aimed at providing free therapy to people that need it.
Victim Support Malta (VSM) is a registered Non-Governmental Organisation which provides support and assistance to victims of crime, such as theft and burglary, domestic violence, sexual assault, harassment, discrimination and cybercrime.
The services provided by VSM include the provision of emotional support to assist victims in overcoming trauma following a crime; legal information pertaining to the relative criminal procedures (e.g. the victims’ right to request compensation and to access forms of protection provided by the law); and practical assistance (e.g. liaison with the police, or other ancillary matters).
Website: http://victimsupport.org.mt
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/victimsupportmalta
Karl Vella Foundation
The Karl Vella Foundation is an NGO which provides educational and psychological support to children who are experiencing an illness or loss within the family. These services are free of charge.
They have worked with children affected by eating disorders, both directly and indirectly. Each case is assessed individually and the foundation then decides what action, if any, should be taken to assist the child in dealing with the issues in question, in relation to teh programs that they offer.
Website: https://karlvellafoundation.org/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/karlvellafoundation/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/karlvellafoundation/?hl=en
ED Related Articles and Guides
Understanding Eating Disorders
Note that this site is based in the U.S.A. so is targeted towards students residing in the U.S.A.
Many students face a daily struggle with eating disorders. The National Eating Disorder Association (NEDA) estimates that 20 million women and 10 million men in the U.S. will experience a clinically significant eating disorder during their lifetime.
To help these students, and those who may be on the verge of developing such disorders, BestColleges.com has developed a guide to eating disorders covering important topics such as causes, treatments, and classifications. It also features an interview with an eating disorder expert, and in addition to this resource, we have other guides to stress and nutrition as supplements to this guide.
The guide can be accessed here.
Local Research Papers
The Maltese psychologists’ lived experience of working with eating disorders
Agius, Marie Claire
URI: https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar//handle/123456789/5902
Date: 2015
Eating disorders in Malta
Grech, Anton
URI: https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar//handle/123456789/16639
Date: 2013