Clinical Therapy for Eating Disorders

Eating disorders are characterised by an abnormal attitude towards food. They may involve either insufficient or excessive food intake to the harm of one's physical and mental health.

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Types of eating disorders

There are many types of eating disorders and the most frequent are:

Binge eating disorder (BED) – when a person feels compelled to overeat large amounts of food in a short space of time.

Anorexia nervosa – when a person tries to keep their weight as low as possible; for example, by starving or exercising excessively.

Bulimia – when a person goes through periods of binge eating and is then deliberately sick or uses laxatives (medication to help empty the bowels) to try to control their weight).

Eating disorders can affect you psychologically and socially and can lead to severe health problems such as:

  • anaemia
  • liver damage
  • heart failure
  • acute kidney (renal) failure
  • low blood sugar levels (hypoglycaemia)
  • dental problems, such as tooth decay caused by regular vomiting (stomach acid affects the enamel on the teeth)
  • osteoporosis (fragile bones) and loss of muscle strength
  • low blood pressure (hypotension) particularly in women and girls
  • loss of sex drive (libido) and erectile dysfunction in men

Treating eating disorders

An eating disorder can have a negative impact on your job or schoolwork, and can disrupt relationships with family members and friends. The physical effects of an eating disorder can be fatal.

Eating disorders can affect you psychologically and socially and can lead to severe health problems such as:

Treatment for eating disorders is possible through hypnosis, although recovery can take some time. It's important that you real want to get better and have the support of you family and friends.

If you have been having an eating disorder for long time it is unlikely that you can recover without any help, even with therapy you need to be committed to work on it. You can book a consultation with me or speak with your GP as soon as possible. The treatment of eating disorders is not something that you can postpone, you need to act now.