Lived experience perspectives of receiving peer support in eating disorders

Peer support (PS) is increasingly incorporated into eating disorder services as an adjunct to clinical treatment, yet qualitative evidence exploring how it is experienced by service users remains limited. Since 2023, the Eating Disorders Unit at South London and Maudsley (SLaM) NHS Foundation Trust has piloted a 1-1 PS pathway alongside routine care.

Semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted with twelve adults diagnosed with an eating disorder who had received 1-1 PS within outpatient or day care services. Interviews explored participants' subjective experiences and the perceived meaning of PS within their wider recovery journeys. Data was analysed using reflexive thematic analysis within a constructivist-interpretivist framework.

Seven interrelated themes captured how participants experienced PS: relational understanding and normalisation; informality and shared power; re-positioning the eating disorder within a wider life; safety and non-judgement; imagining recovery through lived example; practical knowledge as relationally embedded; and multi-layered relatability. Participants described PS as distinct from formal treatment, valuing its relational qualities and lived-experience grounding. A commonly reported limitation concerned the time-limited nature of PS, with many participants expressing a desire for additional sessions.

This qualitative evaluation provides insight into how 1-1 PS is experienced within a specialist eating disorder service. Rather than evidencing effectiveness, the findings illuminate relational and meaning-making processes through which PS was perceived as helpful. These insights informed the development of an eating disorder-specific PS feedback tool and have implications for service development and future research.