All these professionals should be
experienced specifically in treating eating disorders. The return to normal
eating unmasks the underlying psychological issues enabling these to be
explored. The illness is often associated with depression and low self-esteem,
and patients may benefit from treatment with antidepressant drugs. Self-talk is
one thing to help the patient. To maintain positive self-talk, fill your mind
with uplifting ideas. Recognize your strengths. Comfort yourself when things go
wrong. Let your self-talk be like the soothing, supportive words of a counselor,
friend, or mentor. As you improve your self-talk, commit to changing your
actions accordingly. Lasting accomplishments come when we change our behaviors
as well as our thinking. (Bruch, 150) The patient will need to begin to lead a
normal life again and when confidence is very low this can be a slow process.
Inpatient treatment will often last for 12 to16 weeks and full recovery will
often take a further 18 months. About half of known anorexia cases resolve
themselves without relapses (Claude-Pierre, 263). Because many persons with
anorexia nervosa never seek medical treatment, the exact prevalence of the
condition is unknown. Studies indicate that it may develop in as many as 1% of
the young women in the United States. (Bruch, 158) Many times anorexia will
develop and go unnoticed because family members, friends and others close to the
anorexic simply do not observe the warning signs, or refuse to believe that the
person is anorexic. One must be prepared for resistance in the approach of a
suspected anorexic, but it's far worse to leave the problem alone.
Bibliography
Hornbacher, Marya. Wasted: A Memoir of Anorexia and Bulimia. Chicago:
HarperCollins Publishers Inc. January 1999. Claude-Pierre, Peggy. The Secret
Language of Eating Disorders. California: Random House Inc. January 1997. Bruch,
Hilde. The Golden Cage: The Enigma of Anorexia Nervosa. Oregon: Vintage Books.
April 1979. Costin, Carolyn. The Eating Disorder Source Book. New York: Lowell
House. January 1999.
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