Eating Disorders

The next lesson is on Eating disorders or as I like to think of it 'What do you think of me? or What do I think of me?' Body image is what these disorders are all about. About 30% to 60% of these cases are adolescents, and many are college females. There are several factors that are a part of these issues and they are overweight, depression, suicidal ideations and other issues that result from many reasons. In this area of abnormal psychology one must learn how to deal with socio-cultural media that causes dissatisfaction in aspects of living. Friends can also have effects in working through these kinds of issues. These disorders affect people of all ages from teenage to adult. Teens and American Indians have rates that are high for Eating disorders.

Anorexia Nervosa has three main aspects and they are as follows:

1. There is a refusal to maintain a body weight above the minimal body weight for age and height less than 85%.

2. There is a an intense fear and guilt in gaining weight or becoming obese and this fear stays for the long term.

3. There is a distorted body image that is exaggerated and the person denies the seriousness of the problem. They deny the medical implications, and in women three menstral cycles are absent.

These persons are in pursuit of thinness that leads to self-starvation. In estimating their body and their self-achievement in making their body size perfect in their eyes. These disorders take away the self-discipline and self-control one has to be healthy and any weight gain is unacceptable and a failure to self-control and affects the persons weight and body shape.

There is a restricting type to anorexia and the goal is weight loss and with extensive diet and exercising and a refusal to eat or only eats small amounts of food. Another type is Binge eating purge type where one loses weight by forcing themselves to vomit and self-induces the use of laxatives and diuretics. Binge eating is not the same as bulimia this is when 18% below the normal body weight with the loss of the menstral cycle along with other differences of purge type, anorexia, and restricting anorexia. These indivduals have a tendency to deny problems and seek appreciation of others.

Binge purge type exhibits unstable needs where there is difficulty in controlling impulses. In the area of dealing in the area of struggles like substance abuse and still being self-motivated in the chronic ways of the self-starvation nature of the person. There are many physical complications to anorexia nervosa starting with cardiac arrythmias, electrolyte imbalance, low blood pressure and slow heart rate. The most serious damage is to the heart muscle for heart failure and the fluid around the heart will show a swollen puffy face. Other issues are there is a hypertrophy around the gland from purging. Anemia is also an effect of this for there will be bleeding due to extreme vomiting. They are also susceptible to dehydration and hypothermia and irreversible osteoporosis that causes stress fractures along with dry and brittle hair and dry skin. There is also decalcification of the teeth that start to decay due to the vomiting for the acid from this causes the decay to occur. There is also for the person feels lethargic and tired. The mortality rate is 20% and this disorder begins at the ages between 14 and 18 and typically in adolescence.

To be continued More on Eating disorders

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