The human body undergoes so much mechanisms and processes that dictate its proper functionalities. For this reason, the human body must be maintained and well taken care of in order for it to function as required. One of the ways to maintain the body for better functioning is through eating well. Food is a source of nutrients for the body, and hence one is needed to maintain and develop proper eating habits for them to function well. While trying to achieve this goal of well-maintained bodies and its functions, eating disorders are observed and hence the development of anxiety and in most cases ends up to depression. Eating disorders has been related to a ‘metal problem’ more than a ‘habitual problem’. This is because in many cases it is anxiety that causes the eating disorder, whereas at other times it is the eating disorder that causes anxiety. Anxiety being a state of mind, then the root of the eating disorder should be resolved mostly through the help of a psychiatrist and nutritionist. Some of the sources of anxiety may be due to, self-dissatisfaction, self-esteem issues, pressure from the surroundings, stress, and fear among others. According to Keel (2005), r esearchers have found out that in order for one to meet or deal with the listed anxiety sources, they use food as a cover up for these emotions leading to the disorder in eating.
In this assignment, we will focus more on the root causes of eating disorders, the most affected individuals, and the most efficient ways to deal with eating disorders and anxiety.
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Age, lifestyle, the state of mind, and surroundings are major causes of eating disorders and anxiety. To deal with eating disorders and anxiety a psychiatrist and a nutritionist should be consulted, but family and friends too, play a big role in helping the victim.
Methodology
Being a very sensitive topic, I had to come up with a very creative way to find the right answers to the questions concerning eating habits without being offensive to my participants. Considering this, I consulted a medical doctor in the hospital whom was willing to help with my research as I use his patients to answer the questions I had in mind. The idea was to have therapy session with the whole team together with a psychiatrist and a nutritionist in order to be able to analyze the root causes of anxiety within them and develop profound methods of dealing with eating disorders. These patients sought treatment for totally different medical conditions but were found to either have the same cause of their conditions or the same outcome.
Participants
The number of participants in the research was six, of whom both genders were equally represented. The age gap was between sixteen and thirty-five years. The female participants included a sixteen year old high school student, a twenty-eight years old practicing lawyer, and a thirty year old stay at home mum of three young. Whereas the male participants were made up of, two seventeen year olds, and a thirty –five year old single father of two.
Materials
In this research, the approach was to find the root cause of the illnesses the participants had through a counseling session with a panel of a psychiatrist and a nutritionist. The only thing that was needed was a quiet conducive ‘safe space’, the expertise of a psychiatrist, a nutritionist and a willingness of the participants to open up and share their experiences.
Procedures
Each participant was expected to candidly share their experiences and the state of their body conditions. Both the psychiatrist and nutritionist were supposed to engage them freely making sure that they did not in any way ask any inappropriate questions. The one on one session was meant to encourage openness that would help me collect the precise information
Design
I consider this set up more appropriate for my study because as viewed earlier, eating disorder and anxiety are more of a mental state than the physical. Therefore the approach by the help of a psychiatrist and a nutritionist would in many ways deal with the root cause of most of the medical conditions the participants had.
Results
As the sessions took place, each participant was supposed to state the kind of treatment they were undergoing, and briefly give a history of their lifestyle. This was to make sure that the right answers were found for each participant’s condition and therefore the correct counsel would be offered. Here are the outcomes and responses from the participants.
As for the sixteen year old girl, she was undergoing kidney dialysis. The psychiatrist found out that she came from a family of professionals and there was pressure to perform highly in school as it was a family requirement. The need to work hard and dedicate herself in school work has seen her skip meal times and sometimes deny herself food, leading to kidney failure. As for the practicing lawyer she was undergoing check-ups for the level of calcium in her body. Her case was quite similar to the teenage girl, where with the pressure and high demands of her job, she never had time for meals. The stay at home mother of three was being treated for constipation and poor digestive processes. She admits to feed herself uncontrollably probably to deal with the pressure of attending to three children and the house chores all by herself. As for the teenage boys, they were overweight and had self-esteem problems because of the fun other peers made out of them. They admitted to eat secretively and would sometimes hoard meals. The case of the single father was a rare case in men of Anorexia Nervosa. Weight loss and loss of appetite were the major symptoms he had. During the sessions the psychiatrists found out that, he had just lost his wife and ended up taking care of their children. All the participants were under a certain anxiety, depression, stress and pressures which were the core reasons for their eating habits that led to their medical conditions.
Discussions
The high school teenage girl, the female lawyer and the single father were the participants who were suffering from ‘Anorexia Nervosa.’ An eating disorder that is quite fatal amongst all. It is characterized by excessive weight loss that has been particularly caused by self-starvation. This type of eating disorder is life-threatening because it can lead to death. In reference to Anorexia Nervosa (2016), most of the people who suffer from this disorder tend to deny that they are hungry. In some cases, these individuals develop certain habits during meal times in order to either skip meals or they became extremely choosy on their intakes. They are more concerned about their body images and hence develop sensitivity to fatty meals and bigger portions. Some of the results caused by ‘Anorexia Nervosa’ include: extreme weight loss and body weakness; dehydration that might lead to other complications and kidney malfunction; fatigue and convulsions; osteoporosis – ‘the reduction of bone density’; and growth of ‘lanugo’ (thin layer of hair) all over the body.
The best advised and most effective way to handle or deal with this type of disorder is make sure that the victim undergoes the necessary components of the treatment for anorexia which are; therapy, medical and nutritional treatments. As for the therapy part of the treatment, the anorexia patient must be helped to first assess themselves and find out the root problem that raises the anxiety within them. To deal with the self-esteem problems and find out the causes of pressure that arises and lead them to indulge in poor eating habits. This is very important because it is the cause of the problem that must be dealt with and it will definitely help the victim not to relapse (Eating Disorder Hope, 2016). The medical part of this treatment, which is the most important, is meant to address the health issues that resulted from the poor eating habits like low blood pressure and poor heart rate. The last form of treatment is the Nutrition treatment where the individual is helped to regain their weight and they are taught more on how to eat in a normal and healthier way. This was a condition that was not viewed in any of the male participants and the case was the same even in the outside population. However, in reference to Eating Disorder Hope, (2016 ), extremely very few men suffer from ‘Anorexia Nervosa’.
Another eating disorder is ‘bingeing’ that entails quick overeating to the point of discomfort in the body. This was characterized mainly from the two teenage boy and the stay at home mother participants. These participants took more than their bodies could handle and ended up feeling shame, discomfort, guilt, resentment towards themselves and restlessness. Binge is the most common eating disorder and is very severe compared to other eating disorders. Its main cause trickles down to the state of mind of an individual, the insecurities and low self esteem issues. The stay at home mum admitted to sometimes ‘purge’ after intake of the meals a condition that really explains, having more than what she needed (Lindsey, 2016). Anorexia is a factor that with time can lead to bingeing. Other factors include childhood trauma, anxiety, stress and depression.
Some of the ways that binge is dealt with are through prescribed medications that are of two kinds, antidepressants and anticonvulsant drugs that can either be taken in combination or alone. Due a possible relapse, the patients are also advised to undergo ‘cognitive behavioral therapy - CBT’ sessions that are meant to help the patients to change their thoughts about food and also assist them to indulge in healthier eating habits (Jaret, 2016).
Bulimia Nervosa is a disorder that combines all the discussed eating disorders. It is characterized by the need to eat lightly but then for some reasons the individual ends up bingeing and finally forcing themselves to vomit (well expressed as purging). Bulimia Nervosa is considered very harmful to the body especially to the digestive system (Nhs.uk, 2016). For instance, the continuous vomiting may lead to inflammation of the esophagus and tear too of the same. The frequent release of acids from the stomach may cause staining of the enamel or even decay. Some factors that lead to this type of disorder includes stress dissatisfaction of the body image, low self-esteem, and trauma. Just like the other eating disorders, patients with Bulimia may take much time to get better but with acceptance of the individual and the core reasons at hand, a therapy treatment does come handy and is more effective (Nhs.uk, 2016).
There are other conditions that of eating disorders that are referred to as ‘OSFED – Other Specified Feeding and Eating Disorder. Under this condition and individual may not meet all the criteria of which ever eating disorder they are indulging into. For instance, an individual may have all the psychological symptoms of a given disorder but lack the expected physical symptoms. In such cases, the individual’s condition does not mean is severe since the root causes of these disorders are more psychological (Nedc.com.au, 2016).
With a proper understanding of eating disorders, its causes and effects to the body, it will be much easier for the individuals suffering from these conditions to manage and treat it. Anxiety, on the other, hand can be dealt with through the therapies and also find a personal time that will enable the individual to eliminate the negative energies running through their minds (Monarch Cove, 2016). For instance the participants were advised to focus on the important issues at hand and be optimistic that it will work out and also to put aside the pressures and need to please the society more than their inner selves. Their health was also more important because it would determine their performance in any area of their lives, hence the need to be serious in taking good care of the body through proper eating with the right proportions and the right nutrients.
The mind is a very important organ that dictates most of the body’s functionality. With good care for the mind, anxiety, stress and depression would be things of the past. As a result eating disorders will be conditions that will be dealt with before they are developed. For one to get better and keep off a relapse the individuals affected must accept their conditions and state of mind and at the same time be willing to undergo all the treatment processes including the therapy treatments, medical treatments, and nutritional treatments. Love for self is another vital item that can help deal with this issue since in many cases we observed that low self-esteem is a major factor of poor eating habits. Knowledge of healthier eating habits should be encouraged amongst teenagers and also in children of very tender ages.
References
Eating Disorder Hope,. (2016). About Anorexia: Signs, Symptoms, and Causes & Articles for Treatment Help . Retrieved 27 August 2016, from http://www.eatingdisorderhope.com/information/anorexia
Anorexia Nervosa, . (2016). National Eating Disorders Association Retrieved 27 August 2016, from https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/anorexia-nervosa
Monarch Cove,. (2016). Anxiety and Eating: Disorders Monarch Cove Treatment. Retrieved 27 August 2016, from http://www.monarchcovetreatment.com/eating-disorder-therapy/anxiety-and-eating-disorders/
Nedc.com.au,. (2016). National Eating Disorders Collaboration: Eating Disorders in Australia . Retrieved 27 August 2016, from http://www.nedc.com.au/
Nhs.uk,. (2016). Bulimia - NHS Choices Retrieved 27 August 2016, from http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/bulimia/Pages/Introduction.aspx
Jaret, p. (2016). Eating Disorders and Depression WebMD Retrieved 27 August 2016, from http://www.webmd.com/mental-health/eating-disorders/features/eating-disorders?page=2
Keel, P. K., (2005). Shared transmission of eating disorders and anxiety disorders: International Journal of Eating Disorders , 38 (2), 99-105
Lindsey, K. (2016). What Is Binge Eating Disorder? EverydayHealth.com . Retrieved 27 August 2016, from http://www.everydayhealth.com/binge-eating-disorder/guide/
