Anorexia Nervosa
Anorexia nervosa has serious effects on society, therefore it is important to analyze whether or not doctors consider this disorder to be caused by psychological and/or biological factors. There are several different psychological aspects to this illness that influence both the development and recovery of an individual. The National Eating Disorder Associations website states “No one knows exactly what causes eating disorders, but a growing consensus suggests that a range of biological, psychological, and sociocultural factors come together to spark an eating disorder” (NEDA, 2016). This allows researchers to have more factors that they can base their studies off of that will help them understand anorexia nervosa better. This
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When looking at the psychological influences of anorexia nervous there are many different factors which can play a role in the development of an individual’s illness. With that being said the amount of studies that are done alone on these psychological characteristics are extensive, and seem to be primarily focused on how factors like guilt, negative self-image, lack of control in their life, etc. According to the research study Shame and Pride in Anorexia Nervosa: A Qualitative Descriptive Study, conducted by Finn Skarderud, he states “Understanding the role of shame in the therapeutic relationship can be useful for enabling therapists to persevere, by gaining an understanding of the behavior” (Skarderud, pg. 95, 2007). As a result of Skarderud findings, it reveals how therapists can assess shame in a patient with anorexia nervosa to get a better understanding of how it influenced the development of their eating disorder. Furthermore, Kristen M. Culbert who wrote Research Review: What We Have Learned about the Causes of Eating Disorders a Synthesis of Sociocultural, Psychological, and Biological Research, (which as stated in the article addresses the gap that is created by research only focusing on one level of analysis when it comes to eating disorders, including anorexia), Culbert …show more content…
For instance, as mentioned earlier the research conducted by Kristen M. Culbert looks at the gap in research conducted on anorexia nervosa, which brings to researcher’s attention the aspects on this mental illness that they are not looking into. If other researchers were able to conduct different studies on information in this gap, then they might have a better understanding as to what influences anorexia nervosa. However; when it comes to research informed practice we cannot just be looking at research about what the causes of anorexia nervosa is, researchers need to be analyzing how effective treatment is in order to evaluate what needs to be changed and noting what works. Jordan Sibeoni analyzed the treatment of anorexia nervosa in the article Metasynthesis of the Views about Treatment of Anorexia Nervosa in Adolescents: Perspectives of Adolescents, Parents, and Professionals (which was specifically interested in the importance of dialog between adolescent patients with anorexia nervosa, their parents, and healthcare providers). According to the article their results show “suggest that dialogue between adolescents, parents, and professionals about treatment—its targets and the barriers to a therapeutic relationship—is
Incidences of Anorexia Nervosa have appeared to increase sharply in the USA, UK and western European countries since the beginning of the 60s (Gordon, 2001). The increasing prevalence of the disease has led the World Health Organisation to declare eating disorders a global priority area within adolescent mental health (Becker et al. 2011). Anorexia has in many ways become a modern epidemic (Gordon, 2000) and with a mortality rate of 10% per decade (Gorwood et al. 2003), the highest of any mental disorder (Bulik et al. 2006), it is an epidemic that social and biological scientists have been working tirelessly to understand.
Dr. Levenkron talks about Anorexia Nervosa as a pathological distortion of today’s society of being “Fashion-model thin.” This source is reliable because it is told from a doctor's/psychotherapists perspective of the disease. It informs and broadens my research on the pathological aspect of the disease. Dr. Steven Levenkron uses case studies and specific strategies to explain and help cure the disease.
With Anorexia Nervosa, there is a strong fear of weight gain and a preoccupation with body image. Those diagnosed may show a resistance in maintaining body weight or denial of their illness. Additionally, anorexics may deny their hunger, have eating rituals such as excessive chewing and arranging food on a plate, and seek privacy when they are eating. For women, they go through immediate body changes from abnormal to no menstruation periods and develop lanugo all over their bodies. Characteristics of an anorexic individual also consist of extreme exercise patterns, loosely worn clothing, and maintain very private lives. Socially, to avoid criticism or concern from others, they may distant themselves from friends and activities they once enjoyed. Instead, their primary concerns revolve around weight loss, calorie intake, and dieting. In regards to health, many will have an abnormal slow heart rate and low blood pressure, some can develop osteoporosis, severe dehydration which can result in kidney failure, and overall feel weak (Robbins, 27-29). It has been reported that Anorexia Nervosa has one of the highest death rates in any mental health condition in America (www.NationalEatingDisorders.org).
Up until 2004, there was virtually no clinical trials to prove that families should be incorporated in the treatment process. Krautter and Lock (2004), disproved all of the critics to show that family based therapy worked in a clinical trial on an adolescent girl with anorexia. Family Based Therapy works in three steps, otherwise known as the Maudsley Approach. In the clinical trial, the first step for the therapy is to ensure the patient will not die from starvation, hypothermia, or heart problems. The therapist helps the parents learn tactics on how to get their children to eat more at the dinner table, but still being gentle and caring by letting their child know it is not their fault for their eating disorder. The second step in the therapy involves more freedom given to the child because they are not in a life-threatening situation anymore (if they have gained weight), but the parents still press eating meals along with this freedom. The third step helps the adolescent find their identity and how they will organize their life with their parents being involved. These three steps in Family Based Therapy were shown to be effective in a clinical
After watching the video on “Dying to be Thin,” the one statement that really stuck with me was that in order for someone to have some kind of eating disorder, there has to be vulnerability. I find that statement to be extremely true. There needs to be a sense of vulnerability for someone to feel so down about themselves that in order for them to make them feel better, they have to change their body image for them to feel like they are attractive. The video really specifically highlights the issues with anorexia nervosa compared to bulimia nervosa and binge eating disorder. For clinicians and researchers, this may be a difficult to really find
In this article “Fighting Anorexia: No One to Blame” it discusses the struggles and challenges children face as young as 8 years old and teens from 13 to 18 years of age when dealing with the eating disorder “Anorexia Nervosa.” Which is defined in our text as an “eating disorder characterized by self-starvation” (Bee, pg. 384). The staff of “Newsweek” also discuss who or what is to blame for anorexia nervosa in the past parents have been blamed when their children have shown signs in regards to this disorder. Research has shifted from blaming the parents to the possibility anorexia might have some links to mental disorder, genetics or even environmental factors which can influence the disorder. Lastly, the article discusses various
There is a focus on helping patients to observe and label their emotional reactions to trauma, validation and acquiring a balance between acceptance and change. This is a fairly new type of approach which is being modified for the treatment of eating disorders. (Santucci, 2010) This form of therapy, according to the data is appropriate for any individual afflicted with this condition as well as many others, but currently does not have a depth of research behind it to prove it individually effective specifically for AN.
This article is relevant to the research on anorexia nervosa because it explains the hidden factors behind eating disorders along with a detailed study on how traumatic events can affect body image. The study ascertained that self-image, emotional stability, and trauma history are all influences on psychological disorders such as anorexia
Anorexia Nervosa is an emotional disorder that causes its victims to have an obsessive desire to lose weight by refusing to eat. It is known to be the third most common eating disorder among adolescents. Many who suffer from the disorder have a strong fear of gaining weight and they 're very determined to prevent any weight gain. AN patients are also incapable of recognizing the severity of their condition. In the article entitled, "A Factor Analysis of the Meanings of Anorexia Nervosa: Intrapsychic, Relational, and Avoidant Dimensions and Their Clinical Correlates", Enrica Marzola explains, "AN sufferers often refuse treatments, show poor compliance with therapy leading to high dropout rates, relapse, and high mortality" (Marzola 2). Marzola examines how many patients become very attached to their illness and do not wish to be recovered from it. In addition, Not only do many AN patients believe that the disorder has help them gain their ideal body image, but they 've also described their starvation as a way to escape from any negative emotions, strengthen their identity, and reveals their distress. Enrica Marzola also addresses, "These instruments confirmed that AN sufferers experience a
Eating disorders have become an increasing public health problem once thought to be an affliction amongst young women, now an epidemic across culture and gender boundaries. Anorexia gives rise to serious socio-economic and bio-psychological circumstances of our ever vast, growing society. Awareness of eating disorders have increased but perhaps only in proportion to its advancement of its research and treatment. That which still leaves us in a position for a much greater demand for education and heightened awareness of this perplexing disease.
In my research, I explored the world of eating disorders. I wanted to see if there was anything specifically encouraging eating disorders and if there was a way to stop it. Eating disorders affect the community greatly because often times, they go unchecked or unrecognized. As a recovered anorexic, I feel it’s very important to address this issue. It’s a very big problem that is often not addressed at all, or is seen as normal, like counting calories. I hoped to find a way to improve the way that eating disorders are viewed and explain to people about what defines an eating disorder, because many people will never know if it is not explicitly explained to them. My study’s purpose is to bring light into the dark world of eating disorders
Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder that consists of self-regulated food restriction in which the person strives for thinness and also involves distortion of the way the person sees his or her own body. An anorexic person weighs less than 85% of their ideal body weight. The prevalence of eating disorders is between .5-1% of women aged 15-40 and about 1/20 of this number occurs in men. Anorexia affects all aspects of an affected person's life including emotional health, physical health, and relationships with others (Shekter-Wolfson et al 5-6). A study completed in 1996 showed that anorexics also tend to possess traits that are obsessive in nature and carry heavy emotional
Anorexia Nervosa is currently viewed by society as an extremely complicated disorder, misunderstood, over looked, and misjudged based on the stigmas of society. People who suffer from eating disorders like Anorexia do not always report the fact they are in living with the disorder because they are ashamed or scared of what might happen to them or what people will say. An individual may also feel that they do not met the exact criteria of Anorexia Nervosa in the DSM 5. An example of the DSM 5 criteria for Anorexia Nervosa is an individual purposely takes too little nourishment, has below average body weight, fearful of gaining weight, refusal to keep a normal weight, distorted body perception
Today we live in a world full of ridicule and expectations concerning our body image. The morphed image of a perfect body consists of a skinny and toned waist, perfect hair and makeup, and pearly white straight teeth. Models, actors, singers and other celebrities that everyone idols go to great lengths to make their body perfect. This stressed image of a perfect body has led to an enormous outbreak of mental disorders seen predominately in high school and college students, especially anorexia nervosa. Individuals suffering from this mental health disorder are not fully aware of the severe symptoms and risk factors this disorder brings, or the treatment available to them. Stigmatization and from friends, family and society like self infliction and addiction lead to an internal battle for a person suffering with anorexia.
Fairborn (2005) points out that there is a range of treatment options and a variety of treatment settings for anorexia nervosa, however there is inadequate empirical support for this abundance of options as what minimal research on the treatment has been inconclusive. One reasoning behind this is that anorexia nervosa has been an uncommon disorder and sample sizes for studies have been low. Furthermore, the lack of evidence based treatment research can be attributed to the individual’s avoidance of treatment and dropping out of treatment. Many individuals with anorexia nervosa are unwilling to change as their identity and self-worth are intertwined with their distorted body image; they tend to deny that anything is wrong with their weight and are ambivalent on changing (Abbate-Daga, Amianto, Delsedime, De-Bacco & Fassino,