Do you think you suffer from eating disorders such as bulimia nervosa? Are these problems interfering with your life? In the United States it is estimated that about 4% of women will suffer from bulimia in their lifetime and only 6% will receive the proper treatment. If you think you are bulimic or are seeking treatment, there are several treatment options you may want to consider.
Steps
Part 1 of 3: Helping Yourself to Overcome Bulimia
Step 1. Find out if you have bulimia
Self-diagnosis is not recommended if you have a psychiatric disorder. If you are concerned that you need help, see your doctor, especially if you find that you are engaging in the following behaviors:
- You indulge in huge bites or consume more food than usual at one time.
- You feel that you have no control over this compulsive need.
- Take purgatives and use other methods to prevent weight gain, such as stimulating vomiting, using laxatives and / or diuretics to compensate for overeating, fasting, or vigorous physical activity. Bulimic people do it at least once a week over a three-month period.
- You see your body in a distorted way and your self-esteem is affected more by the way you look at yourself physically (weight, shape, etc.) compared to other factors.
Step 2. Identify the triggers
If you want to become more aware of this eating disorder, try to find out the emotional factors from which it arises. In practice, it is about identifying events and situations that touch naked nerves and cause the compulsive desire to eat and subsequently get rid of ingested food. Once you learn to recognize them, you will be able to avoid them or at least try to manage them differently. Some of the more common triggers are:
- Negative perception of your body. When you are in front of the mirror, do you always look at yourself with a critical eye?
- Interpersonal stress. Does the difficulty in relating to a parent, sibling, friend or partner make you want to gulp down large quantities of food?
- Negative moods. Anxiety, sadness, frustration, and more cause you to gorge yourself and get rid of what you ate greedily.
Step 3. Learn about intuitive eating
Traditional diets are usually not effective against eating disorders, on the contrary they risk aggravating the symptoms. However, intuitive eating can allow you to restructure your relationship with food. It is a method, developed by dietician Evelyn Tribole and nutritional therapist Elyse Resch, which teaches you to listen and respect the body. It can help you:
- Develop Interoceptive Awareness. Interoception is the ability to perceive what is happening inside the body: it is a fundamental requirement to acquire a healthier awareness of what the body wants and needs. Interoceptive deficiency has been shown to be associated with eating disorders.
- Gain self-control. Intuitive eating is associated with decreased disinhibition, loss of control, and binge eating.
- Feeling better overall. Intuitive eating also links to improved overall well-being: less worry about physical problems, higher self-esteem, and so much more.
Step 4. Keep a journal
A bulimia diary will help you keep track of what you eat and when you eat, what triggers the symptoms of the eating disorder, and also give vent to what you are feeling.
Step 5. Buy just enough food
Don't stockpile with groceries, so you won't have a chance to gorge yourself. Get organized and take as little money with you as possible. If someone else is shopping, like a parent, ask them not to neglect your dietary needs.
Step 6. Plan your meals
Try to have 3 or 4 meals and 2 snacks: schedule them at particular times of the day, so knowing when you will eat, you can respect certain times. Make it a habit to prevent impulsive behavior.
Part 2 of 3: Enlisting the Help of Professionals and Doctors
Step 1. Rely on psychotherapy
The support offered by psychotherapy, including cognitive-behavioral therapy and interpersonal therapy, has been shown to promote healing by prolonging its effects. Therefore, find in your city a therapist who specializes in these psychological addresses or eating disorders.
- Cognitive-behavioral therapy aims to restructure thoughts and behaviors so that self-destructive tendencies rooted in these two aspects are replaced by healthier patterns. If swallowing food and freeing yourself using purgatives and laxatives depends on deeply rooted beliefs, as happens to many people, this form of psychotherapy can help you rework the underground of these kinds of thoughts and expectations.
- Interpersonal therapy affects relationships and personality structure rather than already clearly defined patterns of thought and behavior, so it may be more effective if you want instructions about behavior and reorganization of thinking to be less rigid, and prefer to focus more. about your relationships with family, friends and even yourself.
- The therapeutic alliance is one of the most important factors in the success of psychotherapy, so make sure you find a therapist you can work with. It may take you a while and change more than one specialist before you can find one you feel comfortable with when you confide in, but choosing the right person can make the difference between recovery and relapse, so don't settle for it!
Step 2. Evaluate drug alternatives
In addition to psychotherapy, some psychiatric drugs may offer benefits in treating bulimia. The main class of drugs recommended for eating disorders is antidepressants, especially selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, such as fluoxetine (contained in Prozac).
- Ask your doctor or psychiatrist what antidepressant medications for bulimia are.
- Psychiatric drugs, when combined with psychotherapy, are more effective against certain mental disorders than taken alone.
Step 3. Join a support group
While not much data exists on the effectiveness of support groups in combating eating disorders, some people find their support useful as a secondary form of therapy.
Check this site to find a support group near you: click here
Step 4. Consider hospitalization
In severe cases of bulimia, consider going to hospital. It will allow you to access higher-level medical and psychiatric care than that provided by self-help methods, individual psychotherapy or support groups. Admission to a healthcare facility may be necessary if:
- Your health condition is deteriorating or your life existence is threatened by bulimia.
- You have tried other treatment methods in the past and have experienced relapses.
- You suffer from additional health problems, such as diabetes.
Step 5. Check out the bulimia recovery websites
Many people use virtual forums to find support during the process of recovering from an eating disorder. These sites can be an important resource of interpersonal support and allow people suffering from these conditions to discuss particular difficulties they encounter during treatment with those who are facing such a battle. Here are some websites you might visit:
- Forum of Psychologists Psychotherapists Blue Pages
- Medicitalia Forum
- Forum of the Italian Association of Weight Eating Disorders
Part 3 of 3: Enlist the help of family and friends
Step 1. Inform your support system
Research suggests that family support can play an important role in the recovery process from eating disorders. In order for you to recover in the best possible way, inform your family and close friends about your condition. In this way you will make more receptive to the social environment in which your recovery will begin. Use the material you find on websites, such as that of ABA (Association for the study and research on anorexia, bulimia and eating disorders) and AIDAP (Italian Association for Eating and Weight Disorders).
Step 2. Invite friends and family to attend conferences and information meetings
At universities, hospitals or mental health clinics, find information about organizing information events on bulimia. They will allow people close to you to find out how they can help you during the recovery process. They will learn the most suitable communication techniques and general information on bulimia nervosa.
Step 3. State your needs clearly
Sure family and friends will want to support you, but it is likely that they are not sure how to do it. Make their collaboration easier by being clear about what you "expect" of them. If you have to follow a particular diet or if you feel judged because of your relationship with food, let them know about these problems!
- Some research links bulimia to relationships with parents when they are characterized by rejection, ambivalence or excessive involvement. If your relationship with your parents also falls into these categories, invite them to talk about their lack or excess of attention. If your father buzzes around you every time you sit at the table, tell him that you appreciate his concern, but that his over-involvement doesn't actually make you feel good about yourself or food.
- Research also suggests that communication is a rather neglected or almost absent aspect in families where eating disorders arise. If you feel like you're not being listened to, present it assertively, but without making judgments. Try telling your parents that you feel the need to talk to them about something important and that you are afraid of not being heard. This will direct their attention to your concerns and make them understand your point of view.
Step 4. Plan lunches and dinners together with your family
Research has shown that those who sit at the table with their family at least three times a week are less likely to suffer from eating disorders.
Step 5. Discuss the possibility of having a therapy that requires family participation
Treatments that require family intervention implement behavioral models based on the involvement of family members in the therapeutic process. Scientific research shows that they are very effective with adolescents, even more so than with individual therapy.
