Doctors are seeing a surge in eating disorders across the country as people try to cope with the stress and anxiety induced by the COVID-19 pandemic. Jennifer Wildes, an associate psychiatry professor and director of outpatient eating disorders program at the University of Chicago Medicine, says she’s “absolutely seeing massive increases.” Patients are waiting 4 to 5 months for treatment when the wait for treatment prior to the pandemic was usually only a few weeks. Wildes’s program is treating about 100 patients currently, nearly double from before the pandemic. Other programs are experiencing a similar problem. Jillian Lampert with The Emily Program has reported that her daily calls have nearly doubled since 2019. “The Alliance for Eating Disorders Awareness, which started offering virtual therapist-led support groups for adults during the pandemic, has also seen a surge. Since January, more than 7,000 people from every state and 32 countries have attended their …