Do people with eating disorders know they have eating disorders?
In the last post, we saw how:
- Some of the symptoms seen in anorexia are those of starvation and it is important to start treatment for this as the treatment for the psychological ailments of Anorexia.
- Those who have Anorexia typically are in denial about the condition.
- There are different forms of therapy that have been seen to be useful in treating Anorexia.
Do people with eating disorders know they have eating disorders?
Welcome to Medic Vibes, where we discuss mental health disorders and make sense of them. Dr Ebingo Kigigha is a medical doctor (aspiring psychiatrist) and creative person (illustration and music). This has been our routine for four consecutive months. This month will be dedicated to Eating Disorders. In the first month, we discussed Depression, and in the subsequent month, anxiety. We just finished with Schizophrenia.
In this post, we are looking at Quora. To learn more just keep scrolling down. You can also skip to the key point of the post if you which or go to the conclusion to get the summary.
Nobody is sure why people suffer from this condition but as with many other mental health conditions, there are usually Biological, psychological and social factors that can be linked to this disorder.
The biological factors responsible are thought to be genetic. These genes have not been localized but it has been found that certain traits such as the tendency to be a perfectionist are associated with anorexia.
People who have some psychological conditions like Obsessive Compulsive Disorder are also known to make the patient comfortable with their dietary choices even though they would wish to eat. The expressed traits of perfectionism also make it more likely that they continue with these bad eating habits than someone without them.
Socially it is also more common to find that those who have this condition live in the West. In one of our Quora reviews, we saw that the person was among those who were also restricting their diet. It is also less likely to find those who have this condition in non-western cultures but with globalization, it is becoming more common.
Anorexia has also been found to affect girls more than boys this is closely linked to the pressure that women face as they grow. It is also more likely to find a teenager who has anorexia than an adult.
Resolving Eating Disorders(Reaction post)
According to Natalie Laster, she does not think people recover from eating disorders. She explains that those she knows who say they have recovered usually still have minor issues.
She explained a friend who had an eating disorder offered that she’d do push-ups when she’s stressed. According to her, the person does an unreasonable number of push-ups whenever she is stressed.
She says in her current state that she sees all her muscles and the person’s general appearance is unhealthy.
The person usually is anxious especially when food is presented to the person and they have habits of compulsion that can come in several ways.
She explains that some aspects of the restriction that people place on diets she considers to be responsible for the bad eating habits seen in eating disorders.
She explains that it took 3 years for her to get to the point she is in right now where she is comfortable around food. She use to be very glued to the thoughts of food restriction and weight control. She said she didn’t feel like she deserved to be thin at many points in her life.
As is common in those who have an eating disorder is the poor parental relationship seen in these patients.
She realized that the thought was responsible for her behaviour pattern and those thoughts had her convinced that if she tried to behave differently it was something to be ashamed of or afraid of.
She explains how letting go of that thought was the first step to her recovery.
According to the Mayo Clinic, treatment starts with going to the primary health care centre or a facility that deals with mental health issues. They may refer you to a health care centre with an eating disorder specialist or to the specialist within the facility to see you.
A psychotherapist will be very important in helping deal with the eating disorder. You may also be sent to a psychiatrist who can handle the psychotherapy.
The team handling the case will also comprise a dietitian that will be in charge of handling eating schedules. The physician and dentist will also be very important for dealing with the complications of the eating disorder.
Everyone close to the patient must be active in the management of this disorder as they form the social aspect of the treatment. This includes people like family members, romantic partners and very close friends.
Those involved in the treatment need to be regularly updated about the treatment of the patient. Recovering from an eating disorder requires patience as the process can take months to years to accomplish.
A treatment plan needs to be built for the person and this is done by the whole team managing the person and it is done in accordance to set principles. It must be emphasized that the person is working with the team and not the team working on the person.
This plan will contain milestones to help the person beat milestones and recover from the eating disorder. The medical wing of this team will address the medical complications that have taken place as a result of this condition. The medical team will also continuously reevaluate the person if they need to be admitted for close monitoring.
Therapy may last from a few months to years.
Psychotherapy is ideally supposed to be ongoing as medical treatment is ongoing except in very critical cases when the person's life is in danger. The person is supposed to see a therapist in regular sessions.
It is the therapist's responsibility to make eating healthy a normal habit, show you how to form those healthy eating habits, guide you as you navigate between psychological states and eating habits, and teach you to solve problems so that they do not manifest as poor eating habits.
Treatment
Psychotherapy for patients with anorexia has not been very straightforward. While there are so many publications about how effective it is, it's neither here nor there. Some papers have pointed out the effectiveness of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) while others have pointed out a need for effective therapy methods to be used in addition to CBT. A meta-analysis tried to analyse 16 studies.
The study was able to show that CBT was useful in dealing with this condition and patients who participated in the study were able to go through with their treatment. There were noticeable results in the body mass index. However, there was no marked superiority to dietary counselling or other supportive treatments.
More works need to be done in developing an effective therapy method for anorexia
Questions
- What did you learn about Eating Disorders?
Conclusion
- There are biological psychological and social factors responsible for eating disorders.
- Resolving eating disorders it will require effort from a team of therapists, dieticians and the family.
- The treatment for anorexia still needs more studies to drive treatment as many still see it as untreatable.
References
- Kaplan-Sadocks-Comprehensive-Textbook-Psychiatry
- Page demarcations made with Inkscape.org
- Eating Disorder Hope
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Quite an interesting article which I learnt a lot. Well some people might be praying to have the eating disorder though 🙂
You are welcome. I can hardly see why people could be wishing a life-altering disorder on themselves, would you care to explain?
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