Understanding Anorexia Nervosa

Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder which claws the entire lifestyle of the person. It greatly disturbs the patient psychologicaly and physically.

Types of Anorexia

There are two types of anorexia- restricting and purging. In restricting type, the person tends to lose calories by over exercising, restricting calorie consumption and following harsh diets. In purging type, the person will consume laxatives and diuretics to expel out the calories consumed.

Signs and Symptoms of Anorexia

The person shows intense fear of weight gain even when they are too thin. They will not show any response when told about dangers of crash dieting and rapid weight loss. They will see themselves different in mirror (with more weight) from their actual image (thin figure).

They will feel fat and will refuse to maintain a healthy body weight. They are stuck with a certain body image and obsessed to obtain it. Anorexic patients often seem too obsessed in calculating the calories of each food they eat. They will also suggest to people around them the amount of calories in their food. They rigorously read books on dieting and calories.

Also, such people tend to lie about their eating habits. Excuses like “I can`t have dinner because I had heavy lunch” or “My stomach isn’t well, may be I should skip this meal” are common. They may seem to have their own food rituals. Not eating at public places, chewing food but spitting out the residues instead of swallowing the food are characteristic signs of anorexia.

Treatment for Anorexia

Anorexia is can be treated in more ways than one. One therapy is not sufficient to treat it therefore most of the therapies are given together to work synergistically.

Group therapy will allow anorexic persons to allow meeting other anorexics. Loneliness is one major issue to deal with anorexic people. In group therapy, the members who are recovering or have recovered from anorexia share their experiences with the new person.

Family therapy will help in making the family aware about how to deal with the anorexic person. Cognitive therapy makes the individual aware about their condition and how dangerous it is for them. It aims at boosting the self-esteem of the person and helping them accept their body weight.