Recovery is Relational: Digital Support Needs for Patients and Supporters in Eating Disorder Recovery

Eating disorder (ED) recovery extends beyond therapy sessions, unfolding in vulnerable moments embedded in everyday life and relationships. Yet empirical understanding of how these moments arise, how supporters contribute, and how technologies might offer timely, contextual assistance remains limited. To address this gap, we conducted a design session and two-week diary study with 27 individuals with ED and 12 social supporters. Our analysis identified diverse contexts in which patients and supporters perceived support to be needed, and the forms of support they envisioned digital tools could offer. While many needs were mutually recognized, the actual practice of support often involved mismatches, suggesting opportunities for technologies to help mediate supportive engagement. Our study contributes empirical insight into everyday support moments in ED recovery and highlights opportunities to design digital interventions that provide context-sensitive assistance, empower supporters, and extend care beyond clinical settings.

• Human-centered computing → Human computer interaction (HCI); Empirical studies in HCI.