Eating Disorders - a medical risk

The director of Psychological Services at a reputatable eating disorders treatment clinic, Dr David Wall, notes that : "The danger of not seeking help for an eating disorder can be very serious because they can cause many medical complications, even death ... eating disorders often take a turn for the worse due to increased personal and family stress. As eating disorders intensify, they become more difficult to treat."

Does stress cause Eating Disorders?

We're as yet uncertain of the exact causes of eating disorders but it's fairly certain that stress worsens an eating disorder. For many patients their disordered eating patterns represent an attempt to "cope" with life and so an increased amount of stress could push them to indulge even more in their eating disorders. They might even try more extreme behaviours in an attempt to deal with the increased stress. For somebody with an eating disorder their disordered eating patterns represent an attempt to regain a sense of control over their external world. They use their eating disorder to try and block out the problems of their life. Stress can increase their dependence on the dangerous behaviours of their eating disorder.

Family and Eating Disorders

The family of somebody with an eating disorder are the primary source of support. If the family is experiencing financial stress they may have less emotional resources to be able to provide meaningful support to the patient. This can leave the patient feeling isolated. Additionally the patient may feel guilty that their problems are compounding the existing problems that the family is facing. This guilt can lead to the patient feeling a heightened need to engage in their eating disorder.

Eating Disorder Treatment

Eating Disorders are very unlikely to "just go away". Treatment is usually required to help the patient come to terms with the root causes of the illness and to be restored to a healthy pattern of eating. There are a great many support options open to people looking for help with an eating disorder. Please contact us for more information.