What Will Happen At The Appointment
At the appointment, your GP may look at your weight for your age and monitor significant weight changes, ask about concerns you have over your weight or body shape, talk about eating disorder behaviours, and might also take some blood for testing. They should look at the psychological factors of your illness, not just focus on physical signs. If youre supporting someone else as they get treatment, the GP should listen to your concerns as well. This might include how the eating disorder is impacting your mental health, and the support that you might need.
It can be frightening, but try to be as open with the doctor about how you are feeling and the impact your eating difficulties are having on you. If you feel nervous about what might happen during the appointment you can talk to your doctor about this at the start. You might find it helpful to write down the points you would like to talk about before your appointment, and any questions that you might have.
You can also ask someone you trust to come along with you to the appointment. You can still ask to speak to the GP alone for parts of the appointment. Anything a patient tells their doctor remains confidential, unless:
- They are under 16 and not considered able to make decisions about their own treatment.
- They refuse treatment for a life-threatening illness.
Be Aware Of Available Resources
Several options exist to treat people with any eating disorder. The best choice usually depends on the individuals severity, readiness, and physical and mental state.
Here are some available resources to look into:
- First, go to a doctor to check the extent of physical damage and diagnose the person. A diagnosis helps in establishing a focused treatment plan.
- Most treatment plans consist of a team. A doctor, nutritional, and mental health professionals work together to help in a persons recovery.
- The main concern initially is to discuss any serious medical issues, through nutritional counseling or weight gain/loss.
- Other outpatient services include therapy to learn better ways to cope.
- Outside of a hospital or treatment center, people need an all-around support system of family and friends.
Encouraging A Person To Get Help
Aside from offering support, the most important thing you can do for a person with an eating disorder is to encourage treatment. The longer an eating disorder remains undiagnosed and untreated, the harder it is on the body and the more difficult it is to overcome, so urge your loved one to see a doctor right away.
A doctor can assess your loved ones symptoms, provide an accurate diagnosis, and screen for any medical problems that might be involved. The doctor can also determine whether there are any co-existing conditions that require treatment, such as depression, substance abuse, or an anxiety disorder.
If your friend or family member is hesitant to see a doctor, ask them to get a physical just to put your worries to rest. It may help if you offer to make the appointment or go along on the first visit.
Read Also: Does Pristiq Help With Anxiety
Do: Ask To Be Involved In Your Loved Ones Treatment
One of the most important components of eating disorder recovery is developing a support network of people who understand what you are working on and how they can help. This is what we often call putting the eating disorder out of a job. For many people with eating disorders, the ED is a way to cope with difficult emotions, thoughts or events. Using food or disordered behaviors to exercise control over ones situation is a strategy that may seem helpful to a client until it becomes a real problem. In order to move away from the disorder, the person must begin to trust and rely on friends and family to gain the emotional support that all people need.
Another reason offering your support and involvement can be so powerful is because of the shame and stigma so often associated with eating disorders. Joining with your loved one and engaging in therapy to the degree they are comfortable sends a message of empathy, acceptance and love that they may not believe possible. The alleviation of shame can be incredibly impactful on the recovery process for a person with an eating disorder. This is something supporters can offer in a way that the person in recovery often values more than if it comes from a treatment professional. The validation you can offer with your kindness and acceptance is incredibly healing and important.
Practical Ways You Can Help
As well as developing your own understanding, these practical ideas can help the person you’re worried about.
You could try the following:
- Include them in social activities. If they find it difficult to eat, arrange activities which dont involve food. You could watch a film, play a game or take a walk.
- Keep meal times as stress-free as possible. Don’t comment on their food choices. Let them get on with eating the food they feel able to eat.
- Find safe ways to talk about it. Some people find it helps to refer to the eating problems in the third person. Try saying things like “that’s not you, that’s the eating problem speaking”.
- Help them find good information and avoid bad sources. This could mean looking for reliable facts and trusted online support. It also means helping them avoid places online that may promote unsafe eating and exercise habits.
- It can be really helpful to read stories and accounts by people with eating problems. Especially those who are ready to think about recovery. You can find some by looking in the ‘Eating problems’ category of the Mind blogs and stories. You can find more stories and blogs at Beat.
- Encourage them to seek professional help. If they are worried about talking to their doctor, you could offer to go along with them. See our page on treatment and support for more information. Our useful contacts for eating problems lists charities and other organisations they can contact.
Family therapy for eating problems
Recommended Reading: Does Celine Dion Have An Eating Disorder
Eating Disorders Are Treatable
Its usually very difficult for people with eating disorders to get better on their own, so its important that you or the person you know finds professional help and support as soon as possible. The sooner someone is treated for an eating disorder, the better their chance of making a full recovery.
We know that gaining access to treatment isnt always as straightforward as we would like it to be, and you might find that youre faced with a wait before getting NHS treatment. In these instances, do remember the support services on offer through Beat. You could access our support groups online, contact our Helpline, open 365 days a year, or use HelpFinder, our online directory, to search for services near to you, including private treatment.
What Are Some Examples Of Nimh Research
Eating disorders tend to run in families, so one example of NIMH-supported research involves the study of human genetics. Researchers are working to identify DNA variations that are linked to an increased risk of developing eating disorders. This research may help develop strategies for early detection.
Brain imaging studies are also providing a better understanding of eating disorders. For example, researchers have found differences in patterns of brain neurocircuitry and activity in people with eating disorders in comparison with healthy people. This research may lead to new or improved ways to diagnose and treat eating disorders.
Read Also: Can Dehydration Cause Anxiety
How To Help Someone With An Eating Disorder
If youre here, it’s because you want to better support someone in your life who has an eating disorderand that’s an amazing first step. Very likely, you are feeling worried about your loved one and you are confused about what you should and should not do.
You are probably feeling a little helpless and thinking what is there you can really do to help? Youre not alone as a lot of people have been in this position. With a little more information and guidance, please know that you can do a great deal to support your loved one.
How To Prevent Eating Disorders For Parents
It definitely pays to be informed about eating disorders in order to spot warning signs and seek out the proper treatment. This is especially true for parents of tweens and teens, who may be at an especially sensitive place for eating disorders as their bodies are changing due to puberty, and may also be facing increased peer pressure to have their figures look a certain way. Here are some eating disorder prevention tips for parents to help instill positive body image in their children and help head off eating disorders before they can take root.
Read Also: Schizophrenia Inheritance Rate
Anorexia Nervosa And Long Flowing Hair
to an eating disorder. There are many types of eating disorders and different ways to diagnose each one. Many people go through body images issues at some point in their life but people with eating disorders take things to an extreme. Many people suffer from eating disorders and it is estimated that 7 million of American women will suffer from an eating disorder and 1 million men. . Eating disorders not only effect the body but also the mind and spirit. Eating disorders
Words: 431 Pages: 2
Anorexia Nervosa Treatment Options
Anorexia treatment can be challenging. Sometimes a person with anorexia doesnt recognize they have an eating disorder thats impacting their well-being.
But when someone with anorexia does seek support either on their own or with the help of a loved one the right treatment can make a big difference.
Some of the first steps to treatment can include talking with a doctor or eating disorder specialist. After having a conversation with a healthcare professional, they can then suggest a treatment program or another approach that fits your needs.
Don’t Miss: Does Pristiq Help With Anxiety
Intensive Outpatient Or Outpatient
Outpatient means that you return home following a treatment session. This level of care is often used for individuals who:
- dont need to be monitored on a daily basis
- are functioning well in school, work, or social settings
- are continuing to make progress in their recovery
Outpatient programs may vary in intensity depending on an individuals needs. Some may have sessions once or twice per week, while more intensive programs often involve sessions that are longer and more frequent.
Eating Disorders And The Media
1.0 Introduction
Eating disorders are serious psychological illnesses that result in people having dangerous eating habits. People with eating disorders usually have a negative perception of their body image and will attempt to control their weight through excessive dieting, exercising or purging. In fact, eating disorders cannot be separated from the culture in which they arise. In western countries where thinness is emphasized as an important social value, millions of women are suffering from eating disorders like anorexia, bulimia and binge eating.
If you need assistance with writing your essay, our professional essay writing service is here to help!
Even though the media has the power to shape peoples behaviors and attitudes, do you agree that the media encourages people to develop eating disorders?
Looking further into the issue, we will see that the media is indeed guilty of encouraging eating disorders in the society. It portrays an unattainable standard of body image, gives leeway for pro-anorexia groups to spread on Internet and promotes dieting and weight loss.
This report will show compelling evidence on how media encourages people to develop eating disorders. They are many negative effects than positive one. The research findings are confined to the United States of America and United Kingdom due to their high prevalence of eating disorders in comparison to other countries.
2.0 Media Promotes Ideal Body Image
Family Influence
Recommended Reading: What Are The Three Stages Of Schizophrenia
Your Support Could Be Their Key To Recovery
Knowing how to help someone with an eating disorder can be difficult, but its important to speak up if you recognize changes in someone you care about. Your support can be one of the most critical elements in helping your friend or loved one recover.
Many times, people struggling with an eating disorder do their best to hide it. Eating disorders are known as a disease of disconnection and often cause those with anorexia, bulimia, or binge eating to isolate themselves to maintain their symptoms.
Those struggling with an eating disorder may fear talking about it. They may not be ready to change, or perhaps the idea of life without an eating disorder seems foreign to them. But as someone who cares, your job is to encourage change to help them live a life not dictated by worries around weight, shape, and size. You have to help them be honest without judging their struggles.
It may be hard to understand why someone may engage in behaviors that put their life and health at risk. Its important to realize that someone struggling with an eating disorder isnt bad. They didnt choose to develop an eating disorder. Rather, they just got stuck, likely over time.
Letting your loved one know you care and are willing to help them find a path to recovery can be life-changing and life-saving.
Recovery from an eating disorder is possible. You can help.
How To Help People With Eating Disorders Context:
Having a conversation about internal and external resources is always pretty safe.
True, you might need to call the person over and have a sit-down chat with the person.
Now normally in the beginning of the conversation there might be some defensiveness. Thats almost unavoidable.
Yet these resource lists are an exercise that are nonthreatening!
Going through these lists will get a person warmed up to seeing how much support they have around them.
As a person gets used to the idea that they are safe, that they will not be teased if they get help, and that they wont be judged
Then the person can move from a pre-contemplation stage to an action stage. This is to a gradual conversation tip as to how to help people with eating disorders!
Also Check: Phobia Suffix Meaning
Treatments For Eating Disorders
The right treatment approach for each person depends on their specific symptoms, issues, and strengths, as well as the severity of the disorder. To be most effective, treatment for an eating disorder must address both the physical and psychological aspects of the problem. The goal is to treat any medical or nutritional needs, promote a healthy relationship with food, and teach constructive ways to cope with unpleasant emotions and lifes challenges.
A team approach is often best. Those who may be involved in treatment include medical doctors, mental health professionals, and nutritionists. The participation and support of family members also makes a big difference in the success of eating disorder treatment.
Medical treatment. The first priority is to address and stabilize any serious health issues. Hospitalization or residential treatment may be necessary if your loved one is dangerously malnourished, suffering from medical complications, severely depressed or suicidal, or resistant to treatment. Outpatient treatment is an option when the patient is not in immediate medical danger.
Nutritional counseling. Dietitians or nutritionists can help your loved one design balanced meal plans, set dietary goals, and reach or maintain a healthy weight. Counseling may also involve education about proper nutrition.
What Is Disordered Eating
Dr Omara Naseem is a senior psychologist who describes disordered eating as ‘symptoms of an eating disorder which are at the subclinical level for diagnosis’.
This does not mean they aren’t harmful or can be safely ignored. Symptoms of disordered eating still warrant attention, as early intervention is the key to stopping disordered habits becoming entrenched.
Disordered eating can include:
- Limiting food intake.
- Binge eating – eating a very large amount of food at once and feeling out of control of eating.
- Purging – making yourself sick or misusing laxatives.
Disordered habits are not limited to food, though, as someone might also engage in:
- Detoxes.
- Cleanses.
Dr Naseem says disordered eating often represents the development of ED symptoms. These can wrongly be viewed as someone being ‘healthy’.
“Preoccupation with food, and weight and body shape are the first physiological signs of undereating and often manifest in disordered eating,” she says.
Don’t Miss: Pristiq Anxiety
Eating Disorders : An Eating Disorder
as an eating disorder. Weir goes on to explain the origins behind eating disorders in individuals. This topic is important because, in the United States, many women and men suffer from a clinically significant eating disorder at some point in their life. It is important to know the influences that cause an individual to experience an eating disorder. Genetically, or environmentally, or both genetically and environmentally. Anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge eating disorder are
Treatment For Eating Disorders: How To Cope
Unfortunately, only 1 in 10 people struggling with eating disorders will receive treatment. As mentioned above, this is due to a variety of reasons. The most important being stigma, and how society perceives mental illness.
Feelings of shame, guilt, and discrimination for having a mental condition hinders many people from receiving life-saving treatment. Due to this, people who have already entered rehab often end up relapsing in early recovery. However, with the right form of treatment, support, and motivation a full recovery and improved quality of life are possible.
The good news is that there are many treatment options available for people with eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia, as well as substance use disorders. Research has shown, that with treatment, 60% of eating disorder sufferers make a full recovery.
Eating disorders are treated most effectively when diagnosed and intervened with as early as possible. The earlier a person receives treatment, the greater the probability that they will make a full recovery, and be able to live a more fulfilling life.
Treatment with the best long-term and successful outcomes include tailored plans to an individuals needs, including both the severity of the disorder and the patients problems, needs, and strengths.
Co-occurring disorders are treated in a dual diagnosis program. Most involve a combination of medical care, therapy, educational resources, and speaking to a nutritionist.
Read Also: What Is The Phobia Of Throwing Up