Many of those suffering from anorexia and bulimia are high-functioning adults coping with stress, anxiety, and depression. They may have tried many different solutions to their problem. This article explores the typical experiences of a few people suffering from such eating disorders. Most therapists today deal with these disorders by first treating the underlying causes of the body-image problems. These causes are assumed to be past experiences and how they may have affected us.

Women and men who suffer from these illnesses may have to overcome deeper issues ranging from poor self-esteem to childhood abuse. Effective therapy can help improve their professional and family lives as well.

Therapy for anorexia and bulimia

Anorexia, bulimia, and eating disorders are a way of coping when stress and anxiety seem unbearable.

With the encouragement of a therapist, an anorexic or bulimic client can learn to face the sources of her stress or anxiety, and find healthier means of reacting to stressful situations.

One woman who had overcome eating disorders several years earlier consulted a psychotherapist in Austin when her problems recurred. This woman had recently moved into Austin, and she was without the support of family and friends while working at a new job. She had reverted to her old methods of coping with stress, namely food. Food is a form of self-treatment for many people, as it was in this woman’s case.

Her therapist helped her to see her need for developing new relationships, and she also participated in group therapy to meet people.

By the end of therapy, she made new friends and was excelling in her new job. Her eating disorder no longer affected her.

Eating disorders and treating depression

Depression can be another cause of eating disorders too. Of course, eating disorders can cause someone to be depressed, so determining cause from effect is difficult.

A depressed person may overeat, or not eat enough, and so either gain or lose a lot of weight. This will affect their physical health. A therapist will help her concentrate on her strengths and regain her sense of balance.

One woman in Houston was depressed because her husband had had an affair and left her. She blamed herself and her recent weight gain for this, but was not able to lose weight. She tried everything she could but the weight remained. Therapy helped her see several other contributors to her depression. She explored some of the events in her past that were causing her a great deal of distress.

She was able to take responsibility for her eating habits, and find a warm and supportive relationship.

Eating disorders, PTSD and victims of sexual abuse

Post-traumatic Stress Disorder may happen because of one-time traumas likes being the victim of an accident or a crime, and also because of long-term abuse like childhood sexual or physical abuse.

PTSD often goes hand in hand with eating disorders.

Victims of childhood abuse sometimes keep the abuse secret, and the therapist may be the first person they confide in. Sometimes when childhood abuse has been blocked out, a reaction may be triggered in adult life by seemingly unrelated events. And lots of times, bulemia or overeating is a symptom. One therapist in Denver helped her client work her way through traumatic memories by giving her art and journaling exercises. These gave the victim a sense of perspective and she was able to stop blaming herself. She also became better connected with others emotionally. Her eating disorder markedly improved.

Eating disorders and counseling for couples

Eating disorders may affect someone who is married or in a committed relationship.

Counseling can benefit married, engaged, or lesbian and gay couples, if one has an eating disorder. The partner with the eating disorder may feel guilty for what he thinks he is causing his partner to feel. And the partner may feel guilty for feelings of resentment towards the partner with the disorder.

That is why couples therapy helps so much.

The most common problems that bring partners into therapy are poor communication, or upheavals like illness, death of a family member, or an affair. Any of these can plunge partners into depression and conflict and often make the eating disorder worse.

Therapy can find the cause of the dissatisfaction, and a solution both partners are happy with while preserving the relationship. It helped one lesbian couple in Austin to come to terms with each other’s families of origin. They were able to work out ways to achieve both their goals without sabotaging their relationship. Even though one partner remained quite overweight, the couple achieved a peaceful resolution and enjoyed a much better relationship.

By: Richard Geller

About the Author:

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KawaiiShuichi asked:

I’ve been there since July, 2009. I still cant see a way out. See my update here: www.youtube.com

sldkfhsdkjfh asked:


I think it’s possible because I lost nearly 100 pounds from eating only one meal a day and I suffered both bulimia and anorexia. But I get some of my weight back by eating normally (3 meals a day) What have you exprienced from starving yourself?

zudykreklama asked:

ad against anorexia and bulimia

Emily M asked:


FIRST OF ALL: take note that i am not the one suffering from this horrible disease. its a very good friend of mine, once i’ve had since i was three. i am sixteen years old, i’ve done research. i’ve also suffered from bulimia nervosa, but never anorexia. i dont care for personal opinions, because im sure we all one in the same. but she suffers from the symptoms of the disease, but she’s been acting funny for about two weeks. and hasn’t been losing any significant amount of weight just yet, and i don’t want to jump right in and accuse of her of something, when it might not be the case. so if anyone knows the time that it may take to lose a significant amount, please let me know. and i am also not here to judge others who suffer, because i don’t believe in that. please please let me know, ASAP!

nicoledelight asked:


I’ve always wondered, I didn’t know much about the subject.
Haha, nope, never. I am most certainly not bulimic or anorexic, nor do I plan to be for I know it’s horrible for your body. I was just curious Thanks for all the answers!

Lus asked:


i keep finding it difficult to distinguish between them
what is the difference between Bulimia and Anorexia ?
i still can’t see anything different ??!!!
do u throw up when having Anorexia or it’s just Bulimia?

Nowadays a completely effective treatment program for anorexia nervosa not exist and many patients never achieve a normal weight. Perfectionism and a drive for thinness, which are a risk for recurrence of the eating disorder, are present to many people with anorexia. One study shown that recovery took between four and nearly seven years.

The death rates ranging from 4% to 25% have been reported to the anorexic patients. The risk for early death is higher in the people with the following conditions or characteristics: being younger, having bulimia anorexia, being severely low in weight at the time of treatment, being sick for more than six years, having been previously obese,personality disorders, a dysfunctional marriage and being male.

In anorexia suicide is often present. From this point of view studies shown that suicide rates occurred in 1.4% of women with anorexia. At people with severe anorexia the most common medical cause of death is heart disease. The following effects of anorexia on the heart are: dangerous heart rhythms, including slow rhythms known as bradycardia which can be present even in teenagers with anorexia, blood flow is reduced, blood pressure may drop, heart muscles starve, losing size and cholesterol levels tend to rise.

Abnormalities in the balance of minerals, like potassium, calcium, magnesium, and phosphate, which are normally dissolved in the body’s fluid can lead to the heart problems. Electrolyte imbalance is produced by the reduction of fluid and mineral levels which occur in anorexia due to dehydration and starvation. Electric currents necessary for a normal heart beat are maintained by electrolytes of calcium and potassium. When anorexia is compounded by bulimia and the use of ipecac, a drug that causes vomiting heart problems are a risk.

In anorexia appear hormonal effects that can have severe health consequences: decrease of reproductive hormones, thyroid hormones, growth hormones and increase of stress hormones. Long-term, irregular or absent menstruation (amenorrhea) is the result of many of these hormonal abnormalities in women. These can appear early in anorexia and over time causes infertility and bone loss. To cause amenorrhea is not sufficient only low weight. A stronger role in hormonal disturbance is plaid by extreme fasting and purging behaviors.

Estrogen levels are usually restored and periods resume after treatment and weight increase. Normal menstruation never returns in 25% of such patients in severe anorexia even after treatment. There is a higher risk for miscarriage, cesarean section, and for having an infant with low birth weight or birth defects if a woman with anorexia becomes pregnant before regaining normal weight. Also there is a higher risk for post partum depression. Lower chances for success are present to women with anorexia who seek fertility treatments.

A common result of low estrogen levels in women with anorexia is loss of bone minerals (osteopenia) and loss of bone density (osteoporosis). In such women bone loss may be worsened by low calcium levels and by higher levels of stress hormones. During their critical growing period up to two-thirds of children and adolescent girls with anorexia fail to develop strong bones. An even higher risk for bone loss is present to women with anorexia. Unfortunately weight gain does not restore bone. If the eating disorder persists a long period the bone loss will be permanent.

The brain and other parts of the body can be affected by nerve damages that occur to people with severe anorexia. The following nerve-related conditions are: seizures, disordered thinking and numbness or odd nerve sensations in the hands or feet (a condition called peripheral neuropathy). During anorexic states brains scans indicate that parts of the brain undergo structural changes and abnormal activity. After weight gain some of these changes return to normal, but some damage may be permanent. The extent of the neurologic problems is unclear.

A common result of anorexia and starvation is anemia. Pernicious anemia is a serious blood problem and it is caused by severely low levels of vitamin B12. Pancytopenia is a life-threatening condition which occur if anorexia becomes extreme and the bone marrow dramatically reduces its production of blood cells. Other very common problems in people with anorexia are bloating and constipation. The organs simply fail in very late anorexia. In this case levels of liver enzymes, which require immediate administration of calories is the main signal.

In young people with type 1 diabetes eating disorders are very serious. More dangerous in this group of patients are the complications of anorexia that affect all patients. A danger in anyone with anorexia is hypoglycemia, or low blood sugar, but it is a dangerous risk in those with diabetes. Retinopathy, damage to the retina in the eye, which can lead to blindness is present to 85% of young women with diabetes and eating disorders. Some studies shown that between 12% and 18% of people who are anorexic also abuse alcohol or drugs.

Nowadays many researchers are working to find better methods for helping people with anorexia.

For more resources regarding anorexia tips or anorexia and bulimia please review this website http://www.anorexia-center.com



By: Groshan Fabiola

About the Author:

princess_silly_bitch asked:


I think I`m suffering from anorexia! But it can be possible that a person can suffer from anorexia and bulimia at the same time?

SweetSamantha16 asked:


isnt anorexia and bulimic the same?