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Anorexia nervosa is a dangerous and potentially deadly disorder that causes afflicted individuals to starve themselves in misguided attempts to achieve their distorted image of “thinness”.
The disorder is marked by extreme weight loss and an unwillingness to maintain a level that health professionals would consider to be even minimally normal for the person’s age, gender, and height. Though it primarily affects teenage girls and young women, anorexia can also occur in men and boys.

Individuals who suffer from anorexia become fixated on body shape and weight, and regardless of how emaciated they become, they remain convinced that they are “fat.” Though they will often attempt to hide the effects of their disorder by withdrawing from friends and family, or by wearing baggy clothing, they actually view their self-starvation as a successful imposition of self-discipline – and any weight gains as personal failures.

All people with anorexia nervosa need treatment. In most cases, this involves seeing a doctor and having regular counseling sessions. A hospital stay is needed for those who are seriously underweight or who have severe medical problems. The goals of treatment are to restore a healthy weight and healthy eating habits.

Achieving a more healthy weight helps the body as well as the brain to recover from anorexia. When the body and brain are no longer in starvation mode, you’ll find that you can think more clearly. And you may have more control over your eating disorder behaviors rather than being controlled by obsessive thoughts.

Medical treatment for anorexia:The first priority in anorexia treatment is to address and stabilize any serious health issues. Hospitalization may be necessary to prevent starvation, suicide, or a medical crisis. Dangerously thin anorexics may also need to be hospitalized until they reach a less critical weight. Outpatient treatment is an option when the patient is not in immediate medical danger.

Getting back to a normal weight is no easy task, especially for those being treated against their will. Fear of weight gain is extraordinarily frightening to people with anorexia, and forced weight gain even more so. But research shows that the closer body weight is to normal at the end of treatment, the greater the chance of recovery, so weight restoration should be a top treatment goal.

Nutritional therapy for anorexia:A second component of anorexia therapy is nutritional counseling. In nutritional counseling, a nutritionist or dietician teaches the patient about healthy eating, proper nutrition, and balanced meals. The nutritionist also helps the person develop and follow meal plans that include enough calories to reach or maintain a normal, healthy weight.

Counseling and therapy for anorexia:Therapy plays a crucial role in anorexia treatment. Its goals are to identify the negative thoughts and feelings about weight and the self that are behind the anorexic behaviors, and to replace them with healthier and less distorted attitudes. Another important goal is to teach the anorexic how to deal with difficult emotions, relationship problems, and stress in a productive, rather than a self-destructive, way.

Behavioral family therapy can also help your family members support your recovery. In the first phase of this type of family therapy, parents are helped to temporarily take control over their child’s eating to help the child gain weight. After a reasonable amount of weight has been gained, control over eating is gradually given back to the child. Also, general family issues are dealt with during counseling sessions.

Psychological counseling:A counselor will help you develop your own plan to use new coping and stress management skills and prevent relapse. Your counselor can help you at those times when it is hard to follow healthy ways of thinking about food and your body. Family therapy can also help your family members support your recovery.

Depending on how advanced this disorder has become to someone’s life, it can vary the different available treatments. In extreme cases, proper treatment may be necessary to treat ailments such as dehydration or other imbalances within the body. Usually people who treat anorexia nervosa are dietitians or other medical providers that specialize in eating disorders. A doctor may be able to provide proper vitamins and minerals supplements that can help the body get back to a healthy weight and may be able to provide a treatment plan that includes therapy sessions. Gaining a healthy body image is important to learn the proper relationship between food and the human body.

Treatment can be conducted on an outpatient basis unless the weight loss is severe and accompanied by marked physical symptoms, dizziness and weakness and/or electrolyte and vitamin disturbances. Hospital admission may then be unavoidable and may need to be on a medical ward initially. Rarely the patient’s weight loss may be so severe as to be life-threatening.

A team approach to care – combining aggressive medical management. nutritional counseling, and individual, group. or family psychotherapy or behavior modification therapy – is the most effective treatment for anorexia nervosa. Even so, treatment results may be discouraging. Many clinical centers are developing inpatient and outpatient programs specifically aimed at managing eating disorders. If the patient cannot be persuaded to enter hospital, compulsory admission may have to be used. Inpatient treatment goals include:

1.The elimination of purgative and/or laxative use and vomiting.
2.The provision of a balanced diet, building up to 12.6 MJ (3000 calories) in three to four meals per day.
3.Restoring the weight to a level between the ideal bodyweight and the patient’s ideal weight.
4.Establishing a good relationship with the patient.

Outpatient treatment can be conducted on cognitive behavioural or dynamic psychotherapeutic lines or on a combination of both. Setting up a therapeutic alliance is vital. Individual psychotherapy is better than family therapy if the patient has left home, and vice versa. Motivational enhancement techniques are being used with some success.