We all eat to survive and to let our bodies stay healthy while maintaining metabolic processes. But, do you know that eating is more than consuming food and taking care of nutrition? The psychological meaning of food is more important than the mere nutritional value of the food consumed. It is a common phenomenon that people invest a lot of their time and effort in choosing, preparing, and serving food.
So, our biological nature makes us dependent on food, while there is still psychological reasoning related to our behavior.
Sometimes, the body image we have for us may result in unhealthy food relationships. That means the person thinks they are too overweight (even when they aren’t) and decide to simply stop eating, causing an eating disorder known as anorexia nervosa.
But, how it all started?
In the past, many magazines were full of tiny and thin models, as an example of how a woman should look like. So, many girls had a wrong perception of themselves, thinking they need to lose weight, by avoiding food and using diuretics and laxatives. The thinness trend has persisted to this day, and television programs and women’s magazines are flooded with thin girls, various diets, and weight loss advertisements.
A false impression is created among young girls that for success in life it is necessary to be impeccably slim. However, it would be wrong to explain such serious and difficult diseases as eating disorders only by the influence of fashion.
It’s a challenging condition, and the treatment depends on the person suffering from anorexia nervosa. They usually have a hard time dealing with the food without even being aware they have an ongoing health issue. So, many clinics decide to dedicate enough time to these people and help them get out of the situation.
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How is anorexia nervosa diagnosed?
Denial and treatment resistance are the most obvious signs someone suffers from anorexia nervosa. These symptoms are usually seen by the doctor at the request of the family or due to some illness. Anorexia nervosa is usually evident when the person loses plenty of body weight in a short period and fears obesity. The amount of body fat is usually very low.
Two usual symptoms of the disease are the fear of being fat and the need to maintain a low body weight. The third symptom of the disease can be a wrong perception of body image, which is especially common in adolescence. However, in anorexic patients, the discrepancy between the perception of their body and its real appearance is much more obvious.
There is evidence for biological, psychological, developmental, and sociocultural risk factors, but the exact cause of eating disorders is still pretty unknown. Many times, very attractive people are affected by it, so we can’t really determine the real reason.
As for social causes, people who work in professions where the social pressure to be thin is very strong are more likely to suffer from anorexia. Constant exposure to media that represents body ideals can become a cause of body dissatisfaction and anorexia too.
The diagnosis is difficult and challenging, because the person may not be collaborative. Usually, it takes a few professionals, including a family doctor, dietitian, and psychologist to determine if the person has anorexia or any other eating disorder.
Recognizing the symptoms can be pretty challenging, but here are a few you have to be cautious of:
- Refusal to maintain an optimal body weight
- Amenorrhea – loss of menstruation
- Fear of even the slightest increase in body weight
- Abnormal preoccupation with food
- Cold hands and feet at normal room temperature
- Chronic insomnia and fatigue
- Taking laxatives and diet pills
- Wrong perception of the
- Depression
- Mood swings
And many more.
The treatment is not easy, because it must be personalized according to the specific situation. All patients have different symptoms, so there is no specific treatment to cover them all. Anorexia treatment requires a lot of patience and dedication, especially when there is a life-threatening situation.
Every patient needs vital function examination and regular psychologist sessions.
Usually, these people suffer a general health decline, because they don’t eat enough food to keep the organs vital and functional. That’s why we can’t even determine a treatment that will work for all cases.
Anorexia often needs to be treated with medication to return all vital functions to normal functioning. Sometimes the heart stops working, as well as all organs because simply, the patient does not take in enough food to be able to keep them in optimal working mode.
Therefore, it is important to find a way to approach the patient, to give understanding and support, and to wait for an appropriate response from them. Of course, you shouldn’t wait long, because every minute lost can lead to a more life-threatening condition. That is why anorexia nervosa is treated by doctors, psychologists, and psychiatrists. The treatment is complex and long-term, and there is always a risk of repeating the dangerous behavior.
If you are aware that you have anorexia, prepare well because a road with many challenges awaits you. If someone you know and love is suffering from anorexia, prepare yourself even better, because it is always harder to watch someone suffer than when we are going through the problem ourselves. Awareness that the problem exists is the first step to stability and successful treatment. So don’t turn down a hand, because, after that, things can only get better for you.
Conclusion
As you can see, the symptoms of anorexia nervosa are different for each patient. It also means that the treatment approach is different. It is therefore necessary to address any suspicion that there is a disorder in time. It facilitates the healing process and increases the chances of success in all of it.
And that is what we want to achieve, without risking anyone’s life in the whole process.
