 Eating Disorders Are Treatable –
But Getting Help is Essential
The amount, type, and quality of food that a person eats is influenced by a number of factors, including age, health, body type, cultural preferences and practices, geography, and socioeconomic status. Similarly, the decision to voluntarily reduce or increase the amount of food a person consumes can be prompted by influences such as current weight, mental state, health, and social mores.
But for people with eating disorders, controlling what, when, how, and how much they eat may feel like either a compulsion or a factor over which they have no control.
To the uninformed, individuals who have eating disorders may appear to simply lack self control or personal discipline – but the truth is that these people are suffering from real (and treatable) medical conditions. From the more common anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa to relatively rare disorders such as pica, eating disorders have the potential to threaten the lives of children, adolescents, teenagers, and adults of both genders and all ethnic, social, and economic groups.
Health experts have expended considerable effort to determine how an essential and apparently benign behavior like eating can, in some cases, become a life-threatening concern. These studies, which include research into appetite control and the effects of prolonged starvation or increased consumption, have revealed a process of stunning complexity that is affected by influences including but not limited to physical health, mental stability, social pressures, and personal feelings of self-worth and self-reliance.
This scientific research has also indicated the potential for improvements in the ability to treat disordered eaters, both by developing better therapeutic techniques and by synthesizing more effective medications.
Eating disorders often occur in the company of mental conditions such as depression, substance abuse disorders, and anxiety disorders, as well as physical maladies including heart trouble, kidney failure, and muscle atrophy. Many disordered eaters go to great lengths to hide the severity of their illness, and are resistant to seeking or participating in treatment. But without professional help, a large number of afflicted individuals will remain incapable of resisting their unhealthy compulsions.
To help convince a friend or loved one to get help for an eating disorder, many experts recommend the following pieces of advice:
- Plan ahead for your conversation – No one understands every cause, trigger, and ramification of an eating disorder. But you shouldn’t consider discussing this matter without educating yourself about the basics of disordered eating.
- Express your concerns, but don’t judge – Emphasize that what you’re doing isn’t the result of “disappointment,” but is instead a sign of your a desire to help your friend live the healthiest and happiest life possible. In addition to being argumentative, making judgmental remarks such as “you’re nothing but skin and bones” might be perceived by your friend as evidence that what he’s doing is working.
- Ask your friend to get professional help, but don’t make an ultimatum – You’re probably not a mental health professional, so point your friend in the direction of a doctor or counselor who can help her to overcome her condition. But remember that the last thing she needs to hear from you are expressions of disappointment and threats related to her actions. An eating disorder can be an isolating condition, and one of the primary purposes of this conversation should be to let your friend know that she is not alone.
- Above all else, listen – Your friend may not like what you say to him about his disorder, and you might not like what you hear in return. But no matter how supportive you are, your friend is ultimately the one who will have to do the majority of the work to overcome his eating disorder – so help him start this process by letting him know that what he says matters to you.
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