An eating disorder is a serious mental health condition that involves an unhealthy obsession with eating, exercise or body shape. Eating disorders are often associated with preoccupations with food, weight or shape or with anxiety about eating or the consequences of eating certain foods. Behaviors associated with eating disorders including restrictive eating or avoidance of certain foods, binge eating, purging by vomiting or laxative misuse or compulsive exercise. These behaviors can become driven in ways that appear similar to an addiction.

Eating disorders often co-occur with other psychiatric disorders most commonly, mood and anxiety disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and alcohol and substance use disorders.

If you have an eating disorder, you may have any of the following:

  • Concern about your appearance, food and gaining weight.
  • Extreme dissatisfaction with your body — you would like to lose weight even though friends or family think that you are underweight.
  • A fear of gaining weight.
  • You let people around you think you have eaten when you haven’t.
  • You are secretive about your eating habits because you know they are unhealthy.
  • Eating makes you feel anxious, upset or guilty.
  • You feel you are not in control around food.
  • You keep checking your body — for example, weighing yourself or pinching your waist.
  • Making yourself vomit or using laxatives in order to lose weight.

What are the common types of eating disorder?

Anorexia nervosa

Anorexia nervosa is characterized by self-starvation and weight loss resulting in low weight for height and age.

People with anorexia nervosa can be severely underweight, are preoccupied with food and fear putting on weight.

They often have a distorted body image and see themselves as fat. Changes happen in the brain due to starvation and malnutrition. This can make it hard for someone with anorexia nervosa to recognise that they are unwell. They may also struggle to understand the impact of their condition.

Bulimia nervosa

People with bulimia have frequent eating binges. These often occur in secret. They then get rid of the food by vomiting (being sick), taking laxatives or diet pills. This is known as ‘purging’. Bulimia nervosa often begins during or after a diet.

People with bulimia often feel out of control.

Binge eating disorder

People with this disorder will often eat large amounts of food, even when they aren’t hungry. This is known as ‘binging’. They often feel shame and guilt after an eating binge. Often people with binge eating disorder will fast or go on a diet in response to the way they feel after a binge. However, people with BED don’t purge (vomit) their food.

What are the symptoms of eating disorders?

  • Dieting — counting calories/kilojoules, fasting, skipping meals, avoiding certain food groups.
  • Binge eating — including hoarding of food or the disappearance of food.
  • Purging — frequent trips to the bathroom during or after eating.
  • Too much exercise — continuing to exercise when sick or in bad weather.
  • Eating in private — you may stop eating with other people.
  • Body image — you may be very sensitive to comments about your body and weight.
  • Change in clothing style — you may start wearing baggy clothes.

Treatment

CBT-E is one of the most effective treatments for eating disorders. It is a “transdiagnostic” treatment for all forms of eating disorder including anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder and other similar states​.

How does CBT-E treatment work?

CBT-E is about understanding the interactions between your thoughts, feelings and behaviours, then developing strategies to change unhelpful thoughts, feelings and behaviours with the end goal to improve mood and physical symptoms. For example changing a behaviour (such as regular eating) to get a positive benefit (such as improved health).

CBT-E treatment focuses on the unhelpful thoughts, feelings and behaviours that are maintaining the eating disorder. The premise is that these unhelpful thoughts and feelings drive eating disorder behaviours including binge eating, restriction, exercise or avoidance behaviours. Throughout the treatment, clients will work with their therapist to create an individualised CBT-E plan that will be tailored to specific eating problem and needs. Clients will work to identify the underlying unhelpful thoughts and feelings and then develop strategies to help with change. Some examples of possible areas that might be addressed are mood intolerance, perfectionism, low self-esteem and interpersonal difficulties.

What should I do if I think I have an eating disorder?

If you are concerned that you or someone you care about is experiencing an eating disorder, it is important to make an appointment with a health professional as soon as possible. Early intervention is the most effective action for long-term recovery.

The first health professional you will likely see is a General Practitioner (GP). A GP will be able to provide an initial assessment.

If the GP has made a diagnosis, they will then discuss the treatment options available to you. This should include a referral to the most suitable services based on your psychological and/or physical condition.

If you are to receive private treatment, referrals may be made under an Eating Disorder Plan (EDP) which allows for 20 subsidized sessions with a dietitian and up to 40 subsidized sessions with a clinical psychologist.

Here at Sehat Psychology we have psychologists who can assist with eating disorders. If you or someone you know are struggling with eating disorder, book an appointment with our psychologist. You can book appointments by calling (08) 7079 9529 or emailing us at admin@sehatpsychology.com.au