Eating Disorders and Body Image Concerns

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Eating disorders are complex and distressing conditions with profound physical, psychological and socio-occupational consequences. Increasingly common in today’s society, they affect people of all ages, ethnicity, gender and body shape and size and are heavily influenced by psychological, biological and social factors. Effective treatment requires specific skills and knowledge and a team-based approach that draws on medical, psychological and dietetic expertise to provide the individual with the best chance at recovery.

At Sage, our multidisciplinary team of experts develop an individualized treatment plan for each individual in order to address their specific needs and goals, depending on their presentation and stage of illness.

What are eating disorders?

Eating and weight disorders are serious but treatable disorders that affect how a person thinks about food and their body. If you have an eating disorder, you are often preoccupied with eating, shape and weight and may find it hard to concentrate on daily life. However, eating disorders are not just about food and weight, the individual may be experiencing significant distress in other areas of life and the eating disorder represents their best coping solution or attempt to regain control. Eating disorders are not a lifestyle choice; they are serious medical & mental health disorders. They also frequently co-exist with other mental health disorders such as depression or anxiety.

Body Dysmorphic Disorder is a condition in which the individual is excessively worried or concerned about a flaw in their appearance, leading to hours spent checking or camouflaging the flaw. Body Dysmorphic Disorder causes high levels of distress but is often not recognised or taken seriously.

Specific conditions treated by the Eating Disorders Team at Sage include:

• Anorexia Nervosa.
• Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID).
• Binge Eating Disorder.
• Bulimia Nervosa.
• Body Dysmorphic Disorder.
• Other Specified Feeding and Eating Disorders (OSFED).

Different eating disorders need different types of treatments. Our team includes experienced psychiatrists, psychologists and dieticians with extensive knowledge and training in addressing eating disorders at every stage of the lifespan: childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. However, all treatments focus on nutritional restoration alongside psychological therapy.

Who can benefit from it?

While exact symptoms vary from one person to another, you should seek medical care and consult an eating disorders team if you or someone you love:

• Restricts their food intake, skips meals or make excuses for not eating.
• Has developed eating rituals or strict rules, such as cutting food into very small pieces or eating very slowly.
• Focuses excessively on healthy or “clean” eating.
• Regularly eats a large amount of food in short period of time, followed by guilt and shame.
• Exercises excessively, especially without increasing calorie intake, and becomes anxious if they cannot exercise.
• Expresses depression, disgust, shame, or guilt about eating and weight.
• Has lost weight or appears weaker or more fatigued than previously, or experiences significant weight fluctuations.
• Frequently checks the mirror for body flaws.
• Has calluses on the knuckles from inducing vomiting.
• Has lost their menstrual cycle.
• In females, has lost their menstrual cycle.
• Appears more irritable, moody or sadder than usual.
• Withdraws from normal social activities and spends a lot of time alone.

It is difficult to know if someone suffers from an eating disorder by appearance alone, as people with eating disorders can be underweight, overweight, or of normal weight.

Therapies

At Sage, we believe in offering the gold-standard in evidence-based treatment. All the treatments we utilise are recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) 2020 guidelines. Treatments include:

• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Eating Disorders (CBT-ED).
• Family based treatments such as family therapy for anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa (FT-AN/BN).
• Maudsley Anorexia Nervosa Treatment for Adults (MANTRA)
• Supportive Psychotherapy.
• Psychiatric monitoring and medication management.
• Dietetic interventions.