Cynthia Marshall asked:


Recovering PeRfeCtly

For many people suffering from eating disorders ‘perfectionism’ is a central underlying issue. Healing from the demands of needing to be ‘perfect’ (perfect eater, perfect body, perfect diet) takes time sometimes can feel elusive. The critical voice of the ED can be heard long after other symptoms of the disorder have reduced. For many, the critical voice inside that demands perfection becomes even louder the more they move away from their disordered eating patterns.

Angie Harmon a psychotherapist at Woodleaf eating disorder treatment in San Francisco, CA believes these feelings may be a good sign: “as painful as the internal demand for perfection can be, it also signals us that we are reaching the very root of what prompted the disorder in the first place.”

For most people these feelings of perfectionism are paired with self hatred, low self esteem and self criticism. When asked to remember when these feeling began many say early childhood, long before the eating disorder developed: “Understanding the origin of these feelings and the context in which they developed is a very important part of the healing process. Exploring this ‘critical voice’ is vital to the healing process.” Harmon states.

The all or nothing mentality that so afflicts ones eating can also create unrealistic expectations about recovery. Before recovery, the eating disordered person believed they must “look perfect” “diet perfectly” and now once in recovery they may similiarily expect themselves to “recover perfectly.” Giving themselves permission to struggle, ask for help or have a moment of relapse can be very hard for them to bear.

What many people with ED do not realize is that recovery from eating disorders is fundamentally “imperfect” and is a process, not a destination. Recovery can be feel easy some days, difficult others and just like life can be diverse and bring the unexpected. There are bad days, good days, boring days and a variety of differing experiences. Just like life feelings and experiences change from day to day. For many people with eating disorders like anorexia and bulimia learning to be ‘imperfect” is the very core of healing. Beginning to accept with compassion the peaks and valleys recovery can bring is where we find freedom. Beginning to allow ourselves to be human and to stop judging our every move as our worst enemy takes time and practice. Recovery does not happen overnight, and that really is okay. There is no perfect “recovery” and letting go of this illusion can be the most liberating thing of all.

Harmon gives us an example: “A female client in her early twenties comes to me to treat her symptoms of Bulimia. She explores her feelings, begins to identify certain triggers to her ED behaviors and greatly reduces her binging and purging behavior. A week comes where she finds out her stepfather is terminally ill, she is laid off her job and within days she finds herself on a two day binge. She comes to therapy beating herself up and announcing she has ” failed” and had been doing so well until she “messed everything up again.” I point out to her how very stressful the last few days have been and how harshly she is treating herself. She agrees full-heartedly and then goes on to say “Oh my GOD your right, I am beating myself up, what the hell is wrong with me!!” Now the client has found a way to beat herself up about beating herself up!”

This kind of self imposed perfectionism and self criticism is all too common. I cannot tell you how many clients I have worked with IN TREATMENT who beat themselves up over not doing recovery “perfectly”. It is important for people in recovery from eating disorders to learn that there is no perfect recovery. Recovery is an individual as people are and the process is different for everyone.

“I have to say that as a therapist who has been treating eating disorders of all kinds for years I still wish I could just magically take the self hatred and perfectionism away from my clients” Harmon tells us, “I know I can’t but to watch them from outside beat themselves up for normal recovery experiences can be difficult.”

Recovery mean there will be hard days, painful days, challenging days as well as liberating, joyous and happy days. Life contains both and so will our recovery. The important thing is that we begin to learn to support ourselves in our recovery no matter where we are at. Hitting a bump in the road does not mean we should beat ourselves up, but that we need support more than ever because we are having a hard time. Opening ourselves up to the idea of self compassion is not easy, but can be done, and once we learn to accept our human-ness, our lives become brighter than ever before.



Francis

jackb son asked:


Eating foods with addictive substances such as sugar and salt. Overtime people become addicted to these ingredients as does their body. Eating disorders transcend all ages. Statistics show that 10% of all eating disorder cases are reported to occur in young children who are 10 years old or less, 33% of the reported cases are between 11-15 years of age, 43% between the ages of 16-20 and 86% of the cases are reported in individuals who are 20 years and older.

 

The fact is eating disorders do not discriminate and can be developed by both males and females, as well as those of all ages and races. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, approximately 5-15% of individuals that have been diagnosed with an eating disorder and approximately 35% of those diagnosed with binge-eating disorder are male.

 

There is a lot of misleading information on anorexia, bulimia and other eating disorders among young people. Many people follow such incorrect information making rounds and misjudge the dangers posed by eating disorders. Eating disorders are known to cause a host of serious, permanent, medical conditions. They put young people at the risk of organ breakdowns and heart attacks.

 

Self-esteem problems are at the core of many eating disorders. They also play a role in other conditions, such as depression, alcoholism, drug abuse, self-injury and *******. Depression may precede eating disorders and contribute to their onset. It has also been observed that living with the eating disorder leads to depression.

 

Cases of eating disorders are not to be taken for granted. Professional help is always available. There are also numerous self-help books to consult. Eating disorder treatment methods are categorized into three groups: diet regulation, medications and psychotherapy ranging from individual to family therapy. The treatment will not cause an abrupt change, as the problem may have been deeply rooted. What matters is the concerned individual’s willingness to be cured.

 

Sleep disorders accompanied by eating disorders might cause dramatic increase in weight. Some say that this condition is merely due to eating habits while others are of the view that this condition is the result of some changes in the hormone levels. Most people who suffer from this nocturnal eating syndrome are prone to poor sleep, stress, lack of concentration and weak immune system.

 

It is a regrettable fact that in the US there are 7 million women annually who suffer from one type of eating disorder or another. These horrific figures are fed by the media stereotype of how our body and appearance should be. The two most common eating disorders are bulimia and anorexia and they will worsen and have a severe impact during pregnancy.

 

When treating eating disorders, many experts recommend that both the psychological and physical issues be treated at the same time. Experts also recommend that sufferers of anorexia or bulimia start eating small amounts of fruits and vegetables along with adding a small amount of protein to their diet. Food that is high in zinc is also a good idea as it can help to stimulate the individual’s appetite.

 

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Jean

Future Teacher asked:


I am going to start seeing an eating disorder specialist next week and eventually do a partial hospitalization program possibly. How hard is it to recover from anorexia or an eating disorder not otherwise specified (EDNOS)? Does the therapy really help? What exactly happens in treatment that helps? Do they make you force yourself to eat?

Albert

Kevin J Smith asked:


Eating Disorder problems are a worldwide concern for health issues. But in America, the abuse has magnified to a great scale. The disease affects an individual mentally as well as physically. A person’s eating habits are indicative of his condition in the usual life. For instance, a person who is depressed due to relationship problems feels eating more might relieve him/her off the stress. On the whole, the eating disorder totally wears down a person’s life and self esteem. Studies show that at least 5-7% American females are affected by Eating disorders during there lifetime.

With the much escalation in the occurrence rates of Eating Disorders and specifically Bulimia Eating Disorder, several Eating Disorder Treatment clinics have cropped up throughout the nation. These Eating Disorder Treatment centers set a different strategy and plan for each patient. The eating disorder treatment is different for each patient because of the fact that each patient responds differently to the treatment. The Bulimia Eating disorder particularly shows a varied pattern of patient’s response to the treatment. So it is very necessary that you find out the right Eating disorder treatment center, where you get special care and right direction as to how to get rid of Eating Disorder problems.

Luckily enough, it is all within your reach now. Internet has landed up distant solutions to your tough problems within your reach at one click. There are a number of trusted and well recognized Eating disorder treatment centre which have full expertise in curing Bulimia Eating disorder and Anorexia too. These treatment centers have there own websites which layout a set plan for helping patients who suffer from Eating Disorder Problems. There are only a trusted few sites which provide really effective solutions. So don’t wait anymore, if you are fed up of the eating disorder problems you should already be searching for such websites which help you get rid of this problem.



Janice

Chris Marshall asked:


If you or someone you know has an eating disorder, then the most important thing to do right away is to find eating disorder treatment; eating disorders are often life-threatening and so you need to do something about the problem before it is too late.

An eating disorder is basically characterized by that of a person and an abnormal relationship with food and body; the pattern involved here truly and substantially affects health, relationships, and socialization, with significant emotional and medical complications.

Finding Help For An Eating Disorder

If you or someone you know has an eating disorder, then you should know that the first thing you need to worry about is getting help. Eating disorder treatment is crucial, and this means as soon as you even think that you might have a problem. Eating disorders are an incredibly dangerous disease, and should be taken with the utmost seriousness and consideration, and you should know that there is eating disorder treatment available.

Where to Find Eating Disorder Treatment

There are many places that have at least some form of eating disorder treatment available, and if you are looking for eating disorder treatment, the best thing you can really do is use the Internet as your searching tool so that you can find a place closest to you in order to have convenience.

Many people who have an eating disorder feel ashamed or disappointed with themselves, and this is the most primary reason as to why people with eating disorders so often do not want to get help.

There are many places in the world today where you can find eating disorder treatment; the primary reason as to why it is so easily attainable is because of how much of an epidemic eating disorders are truly becoming.

One eating disorder treatment center in particular is the Avalon Eating Disorder Treatment Center, which is a company that is earnestly committed to providing a state of the art program of specialized treatment for the purpose of helping those people who are suffering with eating disorders.

Rebecca’s House is another great treatment center, and this is a center which provides that of affordable transitional living for women who are recovering from eating disorders. As well, they provide a safe and comfortable homelike setting where women are able to learn life skills and heal emotional wounds while establishing healthy lifestyles.

Then yet another option is the Top of the World Ranch Treatment Center, which is a center whose mission is to provide the finest treatment facility possible, and they holistically address the biological, psychological, social, and spiritual intentions of their clients.

Remember that the most important thing is that you get better, and so if you or anyone you know is suffering from any kind of eating disorder then you should make sure to get help before it is too late. Recovery can be a long and hard road, but will absolutely be worth it in the end, especially when you consider that all eating disorders can be life-threatening.



Dora

Tricia Greaves asked:


If you suffer from an eating disorder or obesity and are searching for a solution, it’s important to know that not all help is equal. Eating disorder treatment is extremely expensive ($1,000 a day) and so is on-going therapy. And how can you be sure that the treatment you are seeking will work?

Having been helping people with eating disorders, weight loss and addictions for 20 years, and having overcome an eating disorder myself, I have identified 5 key points that I believe are crucial for successful treatment. When researching your options, have this checklist available. The closer your options come to meeting these criteria, the better your chance of success.

1. Be cautious of “cures”.

Despite having lived free from the food problem for 20 years I don’t consider myself cured. “Cured” is a tricky term so I suggest that before you buy anyone’s claim to “cure” you of your eating disorder you do a little detective work. An anorexic who gains weight and a bulimic stop stops purging may be considered “cured”. So may an obese person who loses significant weight.

My experience with all eating disorders is that eliminating the immediate symptom does not end the more persistent compulsion and obsession with food and weight – another significant component of the problem. A life time of obsession and dependence on the eating disorder as a life coping tool cannot be cured in 30 days. This doesn’t mean someone has to struggle with food the rest of their lives either. But recovery requires vigilance in self-awareness and self improvement. Don’t be tempted by a “quick fix”. Seek a real solution based on ongoing inner and outer change and you will come to appreciate the life lessons the eating disorder is here to teach you.

2. Seek help from those who have “been there”.

We have been used to being told by well meaning therapists, doctors, dieticians and coaches to just “eat less, exercise more, moderate your portions, etc.” It’s sound advice but close to impossible to follow at times if you’re a real emotional eater. There is a “disconnect” when you are trying to get help from someone who doesn’t truly know how you feel. Somebody who has not lived the hell you are living (the self-hatred, the insanity of the food obsession and the powerlessness to control oneself, etc.) will have trouble reaching you because in the back of your mind you are thinking: “they don’t really understand”. It’s too easy to tune them out – feeling even more isolated and alone with our problems than ever.

The bottom line is that getting help from those who have actually “been there” and overcome it (that’s important) is the only way to receive help in the deepest way. Not only will the information make sense because it’s based on personal experience and not book knowledge (which has never worked for us) but it will penetrate into our hearts. Our hearts open when we believe that those who are helping us truly understand what we are going through.

3. Help must have a spiritual component.

Much of the help available today primarily addresses the psychological and physical aspects of eating disorders. Unfortunately, this isn’t enough. People spend years in therapy and working with dieticians yet continue to harm themselves with food. Their brains are filled with sound psychological insight as well as information about calories, exercise, eating schedules and nutrition, yet they continue to give in to cravings for hamburgers and ice cream!

The truth is that eating disorders, emotional eating and addictions are driven by a soul-sickness that no amount of intellectual understanding or personal will power can heal. A person must be given spiritual tools they can use and rely on when their own personal resources fail. It’s important to note that there is a difference between spirituality and religion, and in this case I’m suggesting the use of the former. By being encouraged to cultivate a belief in a higher power that is loving and ever-available for support and strength, a person can begin to depend on that power for the intervention and grace that can help them stop their destructive behavior.

4. The solution must address the underlying causes.

There is no hope of overcoming an eating disorder without looking beyond the eating disorder. Obsession with food and weight and other addictions are symptoms of deeper problems. They conveniently distract us from extreme unhappiness and self-loathing that lie underneath the surface. Any treatment program that focuses on primarily on food, body image and weight management is missing the point.

A person must be supported in looking at the cause of the self-loathing and subsequent self-destruction. (We don’t ever just happen to **** ourselves.) We are engaging in destructive thoughts and actions that cause us to believe we deserve punishment. By changing these thoughts and actions (most of which have little to do with food and body) we can feel deserving of better self-care. Anyone who has struggled for more than a few years with an eating disorder, if honest, will be able to admit that their problem really isn’t about food. Finding a program that reinforces this and addresses the real problem is essential.

5. Recovery includes changing your life.

How we live determines how we feel about ourselves. How we feel about ourselves determines how we eat. Therefore, in order to eat differently we have to live differently. Many treatment centers consider a person to be “cured”, or well on their way, if their symptoms of anorexia, bulimia or obesity lessen while in treatment. (If anorexic, they gain a few pounds; if bulimic, their episodes decrease or stop; and if obese, they lose some weight.) The problem is that they eventually have to leave treatment and return to the same life that perpetuated or caused their problem in the first place. This is why relapse is so common.

Eating disorders are a symptom of living a life that is severely out of balance. Recovery comes when a person makes concrete, significant changes in her life. Change must be deeper than body behavior and diet. Change includes communication, thoughts, relating to people, priorities and attitude. There is no 30 day program that will automatically cause a person to overcome an eating disorder or help a person lose weight for good. It is the hard, but necessary, ongoing changes in one’s life that enable a person to break free. Be sure that the help you seek isn’t skin-deep. There is no success without a commitment to real life change.

Bonus: It needs to work!

“Does the treatment work?” Believe it or not, people forget to consider this critical question when evaluating options. They also forget to ask this of themselves after receiving help. People turn to treatment centers, doctors and counselors for answers but never stop to ask if the help they are receiving is actually making a dent in their actual behaviors. They may feel comforted, supported and heard, but is it actually changing their symptoms? And if the answer is “yes”, ask how much are the symptoms changing. Most people feel that going from purging 7 times a day to 3 is good enough. But how good can one’s quality of life be when one is still purging (or bingeing) at all? I am well aware that progress of any kind is never to be discounted. However, I have had the privilege of routinely witnessing people’s symptoms being removed completely. In light of the knowledge that a person can be totally free of their eating disorder, settling for “a little less self-destruction” doesn’t seem like such a great deal after all. Be sure that the help you’re seeking isn’t just a “feel-good” measure, but an actual solution that shows results.

These 5 (and a bonus) key elements for seeking help for eating disorders are crucial for true success. Many people search for decades and spend thousands of dollars on programs that don’t give them results. It’s easy to let the desperation of this disease drive you to spend money now and ask questions later. It’s important to let your head and intuition – not your emotions– make your decision. You deserve to be (and can be) totally free from your problems. While only you can issue the permit for freedom, getting the right help along the way can make all the difference in the world.



William

yourasthmatreatment asked:


sorders are caused by abnormal eating patterns. These could be overeating or inadequate food intake. Many people tend to eat more food to suppress extreme emotions and depression. They use the snacks and food indulged in as escape routes to deal with emotional stress or bad relationships. Some common eating disorders are anorexia, compulsive eating, binge eating and bulimia.

Psychologists qualify an eating disorder as something of a mental illness that affects a person’s eating habits in such a way that drastically disturbs the physical health of that person. An in-depth analysis by psychologists and psychiatrists list the types of eating disorders as Anorexia Nervosa, Beriberi, Bulimia Nervosa, Hyperphagia, Kleine-Levin Syndrome, Rumination, Binge Eating Disorder, Orthorexia, and Pica. Among these, Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia Nervosa rank as the most common eating disorder.

Eating foods with addictive substances such as sugar and salt. Overtime people become addicted to these ingredients as does their body. It’s very difficult to stop eating disorders. Most of the time people who try to stop eating a certain food they are addicted to or change their way of eating to stop eating disorders can’t last for 1 week. And in most cases these things can take up to a month or more. however, there is a way for you to get rid of eating disorders and food addictions in 10 days or less.

Eating disorder treatment will look into many different areas of an eating disorder. When an individual receives eating disorder treatment that individual will find out what caused or triggered their eating disorder to start. This is one of the most important phases of eating disorder treatment. For a person to recover from an eating disorder one has to know the underlying causes.

Among the known eating disorders, anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa and binge eating rise as the most adamant cases particularly in western countries. Research sums up that over a span of one lifetime there are at least 50, 000 people who will die because of eating disorders. If untreated, a total of 20% of individuals inflicted with eating disorders will die. But if applied with treatment, it is trimmed down to between 2-3%.

Eating disorders do not discriminate on the basis of age, either. While eating disorders seem to be more common in young females, the fact is eating disorders can affect those in their elderly years, as well. More treatment centers are beginning to see women in the fifties and beyond and the unfortunate issue with eating disorders in the elderly is they become more deadly.

When treating eating disorders, many experts recommend that both the psychological and physical issues be treated at the same time. Experts also recommend that sufferers of anorexia or bulimia start eating small amounts of fruits and vegetables along with adding a small amount of protein to their diet. Food that is high in zinc is also a good idea as it can help to stimulate the individual’s appetite.

It is essential to be vigilant about these disorders. The family support system can be of great help. It is not unusual for young girls and boys to be worried about their appearance and unhappy with their weight. This worry and unhappiness sometimes results in eating disorders. It is important to treat them as soon as possible, as left unchecked, eating disorders can prove fatal.

Gregory

David Karlson asked:


 

Anyone who has suffered from an eating disorder knows that it is difficult to overcome this condition. Binge eating disorder treatment may involve the individual attending a treatment center in order to solve the problem. Binge eating consists of over eating large amounts of food. It is difficult to stop this sort of destructive behavior. One issue encountered with this problem is that we all need to eat, so food is always going to be in the picture. This is why it can be difficult to treat this condition.

What steps are involved with binge eating disorder treatment? Well, to start with, here is a list of things that he or she should do to solve this serious eating problem:



Tell someone you have a problem

Get treatment or therapy

Limit the amount of food you have at home

Take part in relaxing endeavors

Do not beat yourself up emotionally

Start an exercise routine

Try to determine what causes your binge eating – record your findings in a journal

Do not skip breakfast

Do not go on a diet

Accept you for who you are and not for your appearance



Most people that suffer from this eating disorder will not be able to treat it without some form of binge eating disorder treatment. Plenty of clinics treat these issues. Talk to your family doctor, as they should be able to refer you to a clinic or getting you into therapy. Here is a list of some of the things a clinic will focus on for the individual that suffers from these disorders:



Reduce the amount of eating binges

Develop healthy eating habits

Help the patient deal with guilt and shame associated with an eating disorder

Develop a healthy outlook on yourself

Treat the conditions that may be causing the eating problem such as depression or anxiety



So, go ahead and make that first step in getting help if you have a problem with eating. Binge eating disorder treatment starts with telling someone. If someone, you know, may suffer from this condition, then talk to them and try to convince them to see a doctor.



Adrian