H E A L T H:
Eating Disorders
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"I was relieved to finally go to this hospital. But then I realized they don't have any magic cure. They're going to make me gain weight. And I'm going to have to solve the whole thing myself. I met this girl, Josie - she weighed about 56 pounds. She was in and out of the hospital and one day she had a heart attack. Her body couldn't recover and so she died. That was really scary. At that point I realized that you can die from this! And I thought, I don't want to die. I want to get better. I'm the one who has to take care of this. I am in control of my life. I'll need help, but I'm going to get out of it." - Teen Recovered from Anorexia |
Treatment can save the life of someone with an eating disorder.
Support from parents, friends, therapists, teachers, doctors may contribute to a person's decision to get help. But ultimately it is up to them. Since many factors go into the development of an eating disorder, the "best treatment" has to be tailored for each individual.
Treatment Options Include:
- Therapy
- Psychotherapy. Addresses the person's underlying emotional conflicts
- Behavioral therapy. Uses behavior modification to change eating patterns
- Family therapy. Seeks to change destructive
patterns in the way family members related to each other
and create healthier new ones
- Hospitalization - This is often necessary when:
- Weight loss is extreme
- There are related medical problems
- There is a risk of suicide
- Outpatient treatment has failed
- Support groups
- Help break down isolation and alienation
- Provide peer support
- Should be part of a larger treatment plan
- Hypnosis
- Trance therapy used to change eating behavior patterns
- Some success claimed by those teaching self-hypnosis
and biofeedback techniques during hospitalization
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"Me then and me now are in some ways just totally different people. But in other ways, I think there's always going to be remnants of that particular way of dealing with life. A life process is learning who you are and that you are a worthwhile human being. You can trust yourself and you can trust other people. That for me was real recovery." -Teen recovered from Anorexia |
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H E A L T H
