Eating Disorder Help

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Author:
Elizabeth Gilley

In a world obsessed with thinness, it is very hard not to succumb to the temptations of easy weight loss even if these methods are not healthy at all. Bulimia is the most common unhealthy method of weight loss. Unfortunately, people, especially women, are easily drawn to this because they are conditioned to be attractive - thin is beautiful. Images of rail-thin models and actors emblazoned on billboards, television, and runway shows encourage the notion of thinness as beauty. But those afflicted with the disorder still have hope. Bulimia treatment is available as psychological therapy to guide patients to recovery and a healthy lifestyle.

Psychotherapy is the commonly prescribed treatment because experts agree that the problem is psychological. People often engage in bulimic behavior - eating and vomiting - because of low self-respect, distorted body image, insecurities, and other psychological factors like depression and stress. Therapists usually start treating bulimia by addressing the mental and psychological issues. They believe that if these negative perceptions are erased or converted, controlling bulimic impulses will be easier for the patient.

With all psychological therapy, it is required that the patient acknowledges her problem. She must accept that treatment takes time and effort - her disorder did not happen overnight, and neither will recovery. Given that, there are several bulimia treatment methods a counselor uses. Cognitive behavior analysis is the most popular of these methods. This type requires the patient to write a journal or food diary. Thoughts and daily food intake are recorded in the journal which the patient reads with her counselor. This will make the patient more aware of her eating habits and the emotion she attaches to her eating and food. The journal keeps everything in perspective, allowing the patient to see herself objectively, making it easier to address the emotional and psychological issues that trigger bulimic behavior.

A similar treatment is behavior analysis. The counselor suggests different rewards and reaction as means of fighting bulimic impulses. The treatment emphasizes the use of alternative activities and even food when the patient suffers bulimia attacks. For example, if the patient feels the onset of bulimic impulses, she can divert her attention to reading or taking walk rather than doing a fridge raid. Behavior experts suggest replacing the contents of the fridge and the pantry with healthy food like nuts, grains, vegetables, and fruits. This way, if the impulses become too difficult to resist, the patient won't feel compelled to purge because the food she consumed were health foods.

Joining support groups is also an effective in bulimia treatment. Having other people with the same problem encourages the patient and provides her with a support network. Enlisting the help of family members and friends is also a healthy option because the patient is assured of love and support regardless of her weight. The patient had bravely recognized the disorder as first step in her battle with bulimia. What she needs now is to come to terms with herself, her relationship with others, and loving support.

For more valuable information on bulimia, bulimia treatment, please visit http://www.bulimia-expert.com

A Quick Note From The Publisher... If you like the article above, you may be interested in the following article which is also related to Eating Disorders... Change Is Vital To End Binge Eating Disorder So, you are at the point where you realize that you have Binge Eating Disorder and you want to make a change in your life for the better… But what do you do next? If you are like how I was, a mixture of emotions used to begin to fill my head about what my new self would be like. I was excited about getting on with my life and making Binge Eating Disorder a thing of the past. But I was also a little nervous about letting Binge Eating Disorder go. Why? Not because I wanted to eat myself to death, but because I didn’t know any other way. I had turned to food for about nine years of my life and that was all I knew. I didn’t know how to deal with anything that was going on in my life. I didn’t know what I would do without bingeing to make myself feel better. What would I now do when I was happy, sad, bored, excited, or scared? It was definitely a scary time for me to wonder what my new life would be like. The most important thing that I did was to first transform my feelings toward change. When most people think of change, they are scared because they are chartering along unknown territory. They are not sure of what the future has in store for them. They start questioning whether or not they are truly ready to take on this risk. I knew that I had to erase everything negative in my mind about change and focus on what good would come from it. There were so many things that I was able to think of. For example, I would be a healthier person. I would feel better about myself. I would start to like myself. I wouldn’t feel like I was leading a double or secret life. I would not worry about when or how I would binge next. I would finally have a normal relationship with food. Most importantly, I would finally be happy. When your negative thoughts of change start to turn into...