Eating Disorders / Disordered Eating
Disordered Eating
Disordered eating describes a variety of eating behaviors that, by themselves, do not warrant diagnosis of an eating disorder, but that cause distress to the person's emotional health (in the form of anxiety, guilt, shame, etc) and possibly their medical health as well. This may include having rigid rules around food, dieting, compulsive eating, and binge eating. Sadly, many traits of disordered eating, like dieting, are normalized by our society, such that the person doesn't realize there is a different, more peaceful way, to be with food and their body. I work to help people that struggle with disordered eating to understand the paradigm they find themselves in and to explore different ways to relate to food, their bodies, and themselves.
Eating Disorders
Eating disorders include extreme emotions, attitudes, and behaviors surrounding weight and food issues. Eating disorders are serious emotional and physical problems that can have life-threatening consequences for females and males. The longer you wait to get help, the more ingrained and stronger the eating disorder often becomes.
I work with clients to help them understand their eating disorder, how it is serving them (which is often not apparent on the surface), and how we can help them meet those needs in healthier ways so that their eating disorder is no longer needed. I also work with clients on their negative body image, helping them to slowly accept their body in a neutral way and ultimately appreciate their body as it is. Inherent in this work is often learning to identify and tolerate feelings, set healthy boundaries, increase sense of self-worth, shift unhelpful thinking patterns, and connect with one's values.
The following information is a brief summary of the Feeding and Eating Disorders described in the American Psychiatric Association’s Fifth Edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5).
Anorexia Nervosa
Binge Eating Disorder
Bulimia Nervosa
Other Specified Feeding or Eating Disorder (A feeding or eating disorder that causes significant distress or impairment, but does not meet the criteria for another feeding or eating disorder)
Disordered eating describes a variety of eating behaviors that, by themselves, do not warrant diagnosis of an eating disorder, but that cause distress to the person's emotional health (in the form of anxiety, guilt, shame, etc) and possibly their medical health as well. This may include having rigid rules around food, dieting, compulsive eating, and binge eating. Sadly, many traits of disordered eating, like dieting, are normalized by our society, such that the person doesn't realize there is a different, more peaceful way, to be with food and their body. I work to help people that struggle with disordered eating to understand the paradigm they find themselves in and to explore different ways to relate to food, their bodies, and themselves.
Eating Disorders
Eating disorders include extreme emotions, attitudes, and behaviors surrounding weight and food issues. Eating disorders are serious emotional and physical problems that can have life-threatening consequences for females and males. The longer you wait to get help, the more ingrained and stronger the eating disorder often becomes.
I work with clients to help them understand their eating disorder, how it is serving them (which is often not apparent on the surface), and how we can help them meet those needs in healthier ways so that their eating disorder is no longer needed. I also work with clients on their negative body image, helping them to slowly accept their body in a neutral way and ultimately appreciate their body as it is. Inherent in this work is often learning to identify and tolerate feelings, set healthy boundaries, increase sense of self-worth, shift unhelpful thinking patterns, and connect with one's values.
The following information is a brief summary of the Feeding and Eating Disorders described in the American Psychiatric Association’s Fifth Edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5).
Anorexia Nervosa
- Inadequate food intake leading to a weight that is below the healthy range.
- Intense fear of weight gain, obsession with weight and persistent behavior to prevent weight gain.
- Self-esteem overly related to body image.
- Inability to appreciate the severity of the situation.
- Binge-Eating/Purging Type involves binge eating and/or purging behaviors during the last three months.
- Restricting Type does not involve binge eating or purging.
Binge Eating Disorder
- Frequent episodes of consuming very large amounts of food but without behaviors to prevent weight gain, such as self-induced vomiting.
- A feeling of being out of control during the binge eating episodes.
- Feelings of strong shame or guilt regarding the binge eating.
- Indications that the binge eating is out of control, such as eating when not hungry, eating to the point of discomfort, or eating alone because of shame about the behavior.
Bulimia Nervosa
- Frequent episodes of consuming very large amount of food followed by behaviors to prevent weight gain, such as self-induced vomiting.
- A feeling of being out of control during the binge-eating episodes.
- Self-esteem overly related to body image.
Other Specified Feeding or Eating Disorder (A feeding or eating disorder that causes significant distress or impairment, but does not meet the criteria for another feeding or eating disorder)
- Examples include:
- Atypical anorexia nervosa (weight is not below normal)
- Bulimia nervosa (with less frequent behaviors)
- Binge-eating disorder (with less frequent occurrences)
- Purging disorder (purging without binge eating)
- Night eating syndrome (excessive nighttime food consumption)