The Importance Of Eating Disorders A Mental Illness

My current view on food is that it creates a sense of comfort and fulfillment, yet this was not always the case. During my teenage years I struggled with an ongoing eating disorder. During that time I viewed food as a threat, or an enemy. As part of my recovery process, I was given a task to make friends with food. I first approached this task with a closed mind, finding a wrong with every meal I ate. My view changed completely when my friends took me out to a vegan diner for a burger and sweet potato fries meal.

There are 70 million individuals around the world and over 14 million Americans who are affected by eating disorders; of those 14 million Americans in the United States 200,000 live in Minnesota. According to the United States Census Bureau there are 5.4 million people living in Minnesota. Eating disorders are a big problem considering that 4 out of 100 people have an eating disorder, just in Minnesota. There are three main eating disorders: anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge eating. Although doctors still don’t fully understand what causes eating disorders, the disorder can affect someone's body and mind years after getting over an eating disorder (Eating Disorder).

The film “Dying to be Thin” followed the cases of several individuals who have struggled with an eating disorder at some point in their lives, showing the different factors that play a role in eating disorder onset. Different individuals in the film have different reasons for developing an eating disorder but there are some over-arching themes such as the media’s influence, career-related pressures, and certain personality types.

“Dying to be Thin,” produced by PBS, is a documentary that examines the troubles that persons who are affected by eating disorders go through and the constant, daily struggles they face with health and body image. The film tells the story of a number of young women who battled mainly anorexia and bulimia and mixes a variety of ages to give a “during” and an “after” perspective. Many of the women in the video were ballet or some similar type of dancer. Dancers, by their own account, are encouraged to be thin. The issue really came to the forefront after a young ballet dancer from Boston died of heart failure at the young age of 22, with an eating disorder deemed to be the cause. The narrator goes on to introduce more young women and detail the potential illnesses that their eating disorders can cause. Chronic low blood pressure, kidney and liver damage, severe early osteoporosis, and heart failure are all common things seem in patients who suffer from eating disorders. Most patients have dangerously low body weights, body fat percentages, and, often, young women will experience amenorrhea, which is the loss of menstruation. All of the people in the video wanted to be better and were seeking a road to recovery. The video showed though, how difficult that can be since the eating disorders can be so wide ranging and have a number of different root causes. Often patients develop eating disorders as something that they have control over, in a world that they feel is out of their

Eating disorders are in no way, to be considered “no big deal”. It affects the lives of many poor unsuspecting human beings and in some cases, fatally takes lives. This topic presents many things that most people don’t know. Such as the fact that bulimia nervosa has similar symptoms to using the drug heroin! Rotten teeth, pale and dry skin, and even failing organs are usually signs that someone may have bulimia. There are always key signs and factors to recognizing an eating disorder. Eating disorders are serious. We all should be aware of the affect it has on an individual, and if anyone knows or sees a person struggling with an eating disorder, outreaching and a simple hand in the right direction can save a life. Eating disorders get in the mind of an individual, then ruin the body, then finally ruin the mind.

After reviewing the “Dying to be Thin” (2000) video and the two studies on anorexia nervosa (AN) and bulimia nervosa (BN) my view of these two disorders has been expanded and somewhat altered. The “Dying to Be Thin” video looked at the history, triggers, medical complications and treatments. It documents the struggles of models, dancers and teenagers with the disease. The two studies on AN and BN asked patients in a therapeutic setting to write letters to their disorders from the friend and foe perspective. The results were interesting and merit further studies.

Dying To Be Thin, Anorexia: Friend or Foe?, and Bulimia Nervosa: Friend or Foe? The Pros and Cons of Bulimia Nervosa discuss the eating disorders anorexia nervosa (AN) and bulimia nervosa (BN). Each is valuable to the clinician because they explore the attitudes, both pro and con, of those afflicted with eating disorders.

After reading, “Anorexia Nervosa: Friend or Foe?” by Serpell et. al., in 1998, “Bulimia Nervosa: Friend or Foe? The Pros and Cons of Bulimia Nervosa,” by Serpell and Treasure in 2001, and viewing the documentary, Dying to be Thin, from PBS in 2000, I found several significant points within this research. Specifically, AN is the deadliest of all psychiatric disorders and the most difficult psychiatric illness to treat. As mentioned in the video Dying to be Thin, while detection as well as treatment are critical for individuals suffering from AN and other eating disorders, the potential related health risks may be serious as well as irreversible, including osteoporosis, cardiac arrest, and amenorrhea leading to infertility as well significant

After viewing the video “Dying to be Thin” and reading the articles on eating disorders, I felt as though my knowledge was broadened on this topic. Because I plan to work with adolescents, this awareness is crucial to my future career. Some of the statistics that the video shared were alarming; 8 million people suffer from eating disorders, with majority being women. The video shared that 80% of women are unhappy or not satisfied with their body. Eating disorders also hold the highest death rate of any psychiatric illness, with anorexia nervosa being the deadliest. The video also gave me insight as to what professional athletes and dancers experience, as well as valuable feedback from survivors.

I watched the documentary Dying to be Thin, which aired on PBS, it followed the lives of young women who have struggled with eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa and bulimia. There were many thoughts which raced through my mind. After having watched Dying to be Thin I read the articles Anorexia Nervosa: Friend or Foe? By Lucy Serpell, Janet Treasure, John Teasdale, and Victoria Sullivan. I also had read Bulimia Nervosa: Friend or Foe? The Pros and Cons of Bulimia Nervosa by Lucy Serpell and Janet Treasure. What first captured my attention was when the narrator of the documentary spoke about a young woman Heidi Gunther. The narrator stated that Heidi Gunther died at age 22 due to her heart giving out, which was caused by an eating disorder. I think about this and I think about how her body no longer had enough nutrition for her to live. This made me think about what other women said in the documentary. Katy Tracey said that an eating disorder is “love, glory, power”. These are powerful words. If a young woman is saying that an eating disorder is having love, having glory, and having power then what else is left? It sounded like what the deeper meaning behind those words are would be that that an eating disorder consumes the person who has it until there is nothing left. It is interesting to look at anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa and dissect them more closely. From what I have learned from the articles bulimia nervosa has “Two positive themes (BN allowing the

People often turn eating disorders into an impersonal set of medical details because they forget to consider the personal aspects. In her book Hollow: An Unpolished Tale, Jena Marrow describes anorexia with, “I am forever engaged in a silent battle in my head over whether or not to lift the fork to my mouth, and when I talk myself into doing so, I taste only shame” (17). Shame prevents many people from seeking treatment for anorexia nervosa, an eating disorder in which the person weighs significantly less than what doctors consider healthy, experiences body dysmorphia, and has an extreme fear of gaining weight (Mayo Clinic Staff). People downplay anorexia nervosa as a rich girl disorder or a cry for attention, but less than 28 percent of people

In America today, eating disorders are highly recognized amongst the general public. From the numerous after school specials to the headlines on various gossip magazines accompanied by underweight starlets, the issues of eating disorders is a hard one to ignore. The documentary I chose to watch is one called Dying to Be Thin directed and produced by Larkin McPhee. This compelling picture focuses on eating disorders like anorexia and bulimia in relation to teenage girls and young women in the United States.

Bulimia Nervosa was first characterized as a mental disorder in 1979 by Gerald F.M. Russell. Bulimia nervosa was initially a variant of anorexia nervosa, but now the disease has its own symptoms, and is distinguished as a psychiatric condition (Palmer, 2005). Bulimia Nervosa seems to occur in adolescents and women between the ages of 14-40. The percentage of men suffering from the disease are about 10% (Farrar, 2014).

I share this story not only because it is a part of who I am, a significant part of the journey that has brought me to where I am today, but also to break the idea of a single story. A lot of people have the single story of an eating disorder. When one says anorexic, people think of a very slender, thin person. To many people, an eating disorder is glamourous. It is a sign of strength, a sign of beauty. I have heard things from “I wish I could be anorexic for a day” to “I wish I was strong enough to be anorexic, but I just love food too much.” The word “anorexic” has become interchangeable with “skinny.” Society has taught us all that thin is beautiful. It has taught us that thin is attractive; that thin is an indicator of health. All of

With all of the pressures of daily life, some look to eating disorders to help ease the pain. In recent statistics on the webpage for the South Carolina Department of Mental Health states, “It is estimated that 8 million Americans have an eating disorder- seven million women and one million men.” Among the millions are actors Paula Abdul, Elton John, and Joan Rivers to name a few. (Eating Disorder Statistic 2006).With the disorders becoming a growing problem, physicians look at each case to see how the disorder affects the person individually. Previous victim Amy describes her experience: “Anorexia is like you’re running down a hill and all this wind is going through you hair and it’s exciting. But all