Overview

An eating disorder is a compulsion to eat, or avoid eating, that negatively affects both one's physical and mental health. Eating disorders are all encompassing. They affect every part of the person's life. According to the authors of Surviving an Eating Disorder, "feelings about work, school, relationships, day-to-day activities and one's experience of emotional well being are determined by what has or has not been eaten or by a number on a scale." Anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa are the most common eating disorders generally recognized by medical classification schemes, with a significant diagnostic overlap between the two. Together, they affect an estimated 5-7% of females in the United States during their lifetimes. There is a third type of eating disorder currently being investigated and defined - Binge Eating Disorder. This is a chronic condition that occurs when an individual consumes huge amounts of food during a brief period of time and feels totally out of control and unable to stop their eating. It can lead to serious health conditions such as morbid obesity, diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease.

Tuesday, April 8, 2008

The Psychology Behind Anorexia Nervosa

With more and more people are turning to a healthy diet, there is still possible that the extremes to go. Women desperately tried to make it through weight loss are always at risk for the development of Anorexia Nervosa by excessive dieting. Women are not the only sex in danger, as more and more people develop Anorexia Nervosa too.

Anorexics themselves to be obese, no matter how much they weigh or how thin they look in the mirror. Unfortunately, they do not see themselves as something different and refuse to accept or seek help if they are offered, and simple to diet, 10 to 20 percent of Anorexia Nervosa suffers finally dying from related health complications.

Most are often perfectionists , are very strict with themselves and set high and unrealistic targets which are not lead to anything but failure. Often this leads to behavior is a lack of control in another part of their life. They know that they have a certain control of the power back, or feel they are not in control of at least a part of their lives through diet. This turns slowly into an obsession, as they monitor their food intake and weight, as they are the satisfaction of finally take control of something.

This obsession or concentrate on the continuous monitoring of calories and a weight of even helps them block unwanted feelings and emotions. Thus it as a symptom of possible mental health problems, particularly around the self-esteem or what I prefer to refer to the self-acceptance. These need for control does not help them, as they live in denial and refuse to seek help basically because they do not feel they deserve the attention and most believe that they do not deserve to eat: The Mount in the Problems with self-acceptance.

However gloomy picture presented in this article so far are that the majority of Anorexia Nervosa suffers not anticipate and help the disease is all in their hands. There is a range of treatments available to suffer. Medical care, especially for people with severe anorexia, along with psychotherapy. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) proved to be very helpful in addressing the affective thoughts and behaviors that affect the core of eating disorders. Particularly rewarding, triggers and coping strategies that patients can use to help take control of their anorexia can be very effective.

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Tuesday, April 1, 2008

Eating Disorders

A normal person eats, his hunger for and stops eating when he considers the signal satisfaction. A normal person can not eat more than its capacity, but on the other hand, is an eating disorder when a person overeats or refuses to eat to fulfill a psychological need, and not a physical necessity. The person, not physical signals to be heard, or perhaps not at all aware them.

There are mainly three types of eating disorders, as anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa or binge eating disorder. Anorexia is the body with a distorted picture, thinking they are bold, even though you are underweight. Serious consequences for health can be literal hunger. Bulimia is characterized by recurrent episodes of binge eating and purging. Binge eating disorder refers to a pattern of consumption of large amounts of food, even when a person is not hungry.

These diseases are now even people (men and women) of all races and socio-economic groups. These victims need help and support from professionals and family. If left untreated, which leads to many physical and emotional eating disorders problems.

The main symptoms of anorexia are unusual eating habits or refusal to eat normally; ebermaigen weight loss, extreme physical activity; hair, nails or skin problems, depression and low Self-esteem, denial of a problem. The symptoms of bulimia, abuse of laxatives or diuretics, mysterious behavior in terms of eating habits, weight fluctuations, depression and denial of the joint problem.

The circumstances that contribute to the development of eating disorders include: family problems or a troubled life home, big life changes, the social problems that trauma. The other psychological factors include low self-esteem, depression, anxiety and anger. The interpersonal factors include, difficult family and personal relationships, difficulties in the expression of emotions feelings.

The and for the treatment of such diseases is very necessary, and it consists of a number of components, the comprehensive assessment, psychiatric assessment, coordinated care, psychotherapy, cognitive ethology therapy, interpersonal therapy and medication.

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Anorexia - My Story

I was a wife and mother in 1994 and at the age of 27 I never thought I had an eating disorder. Eating disorders were for the youngsters - and not someone who is older than twenty. But I had did.

I to my family doctor for panic attacks for a long time, and he prescribed me Xanax. Every time I had gone to him, I would have to weigh them. I started, the 130 was good with me, because I am 5 '5 1 /2 ".

By the time I reached 100lbs and addicted to Xanax, I was taken to a hospital. I have a few little errors and mistakes that saved my life. My doctor asked me a question. One question that I thought I had the right answer to, or thought that everyone felt like me. He asked me if I wanted to die, and of course I said "Yes". Before I knew it I was 302 in the hospital. (302 means that anyone can commit you in a hospital, if they think you are a harm to themselves or others) .

Before I knew it I was in a mental hospital and in the eating disorder. They were legends to me that I had an eating disorder, and, of course, I was denying it all the time. Doctors and nurses in question were questions which my blood, and I just wanted to go home to my little girl, much as they needed me.

As I thought that my daughter needs me, they do not need a mother who was addicted to Xanax and who is Anorexic. I owed it to her and my husband to get better and to out.

The first morning and every morning after the other, which we had to Weighed in our clothes. We would you weighed backwards, so we do not see the scale upwards. I remember the doctors saying to me that they wanted me to 115lbs to them for releasing me. I also remember thinking "yeah right"

Then If we go and have breakfast. There were men, women (even older than me), and adolescents. Some were there for anorexia, bulimia and Compulsive eating.

Now look that I return to the breakfast table was not a pretty sight. The Anorexics and bulimics which did not want to eat, but the compulsive eaters ate very quickly, as they could not get enough. After breakfast, we had to wait an hour after we ate, to ensure that our food is digested and we were not in the bathroom for fear of vomiting us. So we would sit and talk. Then we were assigned therapy for eight hours. It was art therapy, music therapy, relaxation therapy, psycodrama, group therapy, family therapy, and one on one therapy, and in this time, we had to eat lunch and dinner. I will tell you what you really know, even if you have all this therapy for 5 days straight. On weekends we were allowed visitors, and there was no therapy. It was time for us. Some of us would sleep, write and magazines, to play, arts and crafts, or just to talk. It is amazing how we all have in the clinic. Any person, the story was different in every respect. He did nothing, if we Anorexic, Bulimic Compulsive eating or were there for the same reason, we had only from their own coping strategies mechinism.

I spent the entire summer of 1994 in a hospital in that time I have learned more about myself and the disease, which I . Yes, one disease. Just like alcoholism or diabetes.

When I left that day I thought I would never get back, but I was wrong.

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