What is eating disorder therapy?
Eating disorder therapy is a specialized approach aimed at assisting those who are grappling with a range of eating disorders. These disorders are significant mental health conditions characterized by irregular or unhealthy eating patterns and an intense focus on body weight and shape. Common conditions addressed in Eating disorders include anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge-eating disorder, and avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID).
How does eating disorder therapy work?
At Thriveworks, Eating disorders begins with a thorough assessment and personalized treatment plan. Central to eating disorder therapy is psychotherapy, often employing cognitive behavioral therapy and other specialized techniques to target negative thought patterns.
Signs of an eating disorder
The signs of an eating disorder can include:
- Drastic weight changes
- Preoccupation with food and body image
- Binge eating or extreme dieting
- Excessive exercise
- Social withdrawal and secrecy around eating
- Physical and emotional symptoms like fatigue and anxiety
What is the success rate of CBT for eating disorders?
CBT’s remission rate, according to some research, is generally between 50-30% for those seeking assistance for eating disorder symptoms.
What is the recovery rate for people with eating disorders?
The recovery rate for those seeking assistance with eating disorders depends entirely on the individual’s involvement in sessions, the severity of their symptoms, and their willingness to change their eating habits and relationship with food.
Is eating disorder therapy conducted in person or online?
Eating disorder therapy at Thriveworks is conducted both in person and online by video. We encourage you to choose the option that works best for you.
How long does eating disorder therapy last?
The length of Eating disorders will vary from one person to the next, dependent on their specific needs. Your therapist can help to determine what might be most beneficial for you.
Need more help deciding?
Far from a picky phase, eating disorders are potentially deadly illnesses. They can rob an individual of their mental and physical health. They can even steal a person’s life. They are also an illness that has treatments.
There are no quick-fixes or easy solutions, but many people are finding holistic healing that their mind and body need. That is Thriveworks Counseling in Fort Worth, TX provides therapy for eating disorders. Call our office at (682) 223-4725 to schedule today.
Eating Disorders: Signs and Symptoms
The symptoms of anorexia include:
- Restricting food intake so that a substantially lower body weight is achieved (in comparison to normal standards for an individual’s developmental trajectory, sex, age, and physical health).
- Despising one’s body shape or weight.
- Experiencing terror at the thought of putting on weight.
- Perceiving one’s body shape and weight inaccurately—seeing oneself as larger and heavier than one is in reality.
- Interfering with healthy weight maintenance or gain.
- A host of negative health effects often accompanying eating disorders. Anorexia may cause abnormal heartbeat, risk of heart failure and disease, infertility, disruptions in the menstrual cycle, kidney damage, premature osteoporosis, low white blood cell counts, disruptions in the endocrine system, low heart rate, low blood pressure, anemia, and ultimately death.
The symptoms of bulimia include:
- Iterative incidents of binge eating defined by:
- Lost control over how much food and drink are consumed.
- Ingesting more food in a specific time period than others could eat in the same period and in the same circumstances.
- A self-perception that overly emphasizes body weight and shape while downplaying the importance of other identifying characteristics such as intellect, emotional intelligence, personality, and more.
- Attempting to offset the eating binge through actions such as overusing/misusing laxatives and diuretics, forced vomiting, extreme fasting, extreme exercising.
- Bulimia can cause ulcers, constipation, electrolyte imbalance, gastric rupture, tooth decay, gastroesophageal reflux disease, kidney damage, and heart failure.
Eating Disorders: Causes
What causes an eating disorder and how it develops is often a unique process for each individual. The details are very personal, but there are general patterns. In fact, mental health professionals often speak about two categories of causes for eating disorders:
- Environmental causes: family or childhood trauma; culture fixated upon certain body types, thinness, and narrow ideals of beauty; and peer pressure.
- Biological causes: nutritional deficiencies, irregular hormone functions, and genetics.
Appointments at Thriveworks Counseling in Fort Worth for Eating Disorders
If you or a loved one is struggling with an eating disorder, know that help is available. Eating disorders are the most deadly psychological disorder, but treatments are available.
Reach out to Thriveworks in Fort Worth to schedule your appointment at (682) 223-4725 today.
