senule blog

Eating Disorders are not about food.

“We need to understand what a woman is saying when she uses her body to express difficult emotional issues. We need to understand why it is safer to say “I need to go on a diet” than “I feel hurt or upset or in conflict” Susie Orbach.

Bulimia was the first eating disorder to be characterised by recurrent binge eating. The Bulimic eats abnormally large amounts of food and then experiences a loss of control.. The person suffering from Bulimia engages in extreme weight-control behaviours to counteract the large intake of food. Some of these behaviours may include self-induced vomiting and/or laxative or diuretic use (purging) or severe dietary restriction and/or intense exercise.

A second syndrome of recurrent binge eating, namely” binge eating disorder” differs from Bulimia in that sufferers do not regularly engage in extreme weight control behaviours. Bulimia nervosa occurs in around 1% of young western women. Intensive psychological treatments have been developed for people with Bulimia.  A manualised form of CBT for bulimia nervosa (CBT-BN) has been developed by Fairburn and colleagues (1989) In this therapy, a range of cognitive behavioural procedures are used in a specific sequence of tasks and experiments. Treatment is out-patient based and involves 15-20 sessions over about five months. There has been positive evidence from controlled studies that CBTBN is an effective approach in the treatment of bulimia nervosa, although it has also been found that for some people it is too intensive, while for others it is not sufficient.

A graduated intervention approach to the treatment of those with bulimia nervosa and binge eating disorder, has received empirical support from research by leading investigators in eating disorders. In this approach, the patients are offered psychoeducation or self-help therapies and then re-evaluated for further treatment as appropriate. Self-help therapy is based around a manual that includes educative material and a version of the CBT-BN manual.

Other psychotherapies have been less frequently evaluated in the treatment of bulimia nervosa. However, there has been recent interest in interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT) and dialectical behaviour therapy (DBT) as alternatives to CBT.

Bulimia is one disease that affects both the males as well as females in the same numbers. In this disorder the patient goes on a binge eating for a period of time and after that he goes on a purging effort to get rid of the excess of food that he has taken in. Bulimia treatment requires a specialized as well as a scientific approach and thus it makes sense that the patient as well as his family approaches the right institute and the right people who can provide a comprehensive treatment for this disease. In majority of the cases it is seen that the people are very much unaware of the type of institute that they should select and also the type of professionals that would be able to help them in the most appropriate and correct manner. People seeking bulimia treatment in majority of the cases are also not sure about the types of questions that are needed to be asked regarding the disease of bulimia. Thus it become all the more imperative that the people who themselves or whose near and dear ones are exhibiting some bulimia nervosa symptoms get the best guidance.

There are bulimia treatment centers that offer bulimia treatment programs that are the most scientifically designed and managed. Also in many cases the professionals are themselves recovering from the disease and thus are able to empathize with the patient in a much more effective manner. Another thing that needs to be taken into account is the patients suffering from bulimia is that there near and dear ones also need to be counseled appropriately as they too are instrumental in helping the patient in overcoming this problem.

behaviors are tough to overcome especially if you’re going to want to do it alone. Bulimia, an eating disorder, is no exception to this solo journey of self, as you entrenched in your vicious cycle of over eating or bingeing and then purging after the heavy meal. A person with this vulnerability should consider seeking some form of Bulimia treatment via regular therapy, group support or a self-help method available before this condition gets worse or become fatal.

Bulimia help for many is available in the form of one to one weekly therapy with a qualified counselor specializing in Bulimia or eating disorders. National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE) reports high success with weekly Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) session over minimum of six months for bulimia treatment. Some therapist offer sessions over the phone. Although most recent studies support the value of counseling, this may not be ideal if you are shy in nature or dread talking deeply about your bulimic life to someone intensely in person right now. Joining a local support group, embarking on a CBT based Self-help program or combination of any of these three choices may be what appeals to you most.

As bulimia recovery is extremely difficult to undertake alone, recruiting professional help, support and guidance along side the support of your family and friends will help you stand a good possibility of progressive recovery that lasts. Nowadays, silent sufferers worldwide can also access bulimia treatment help via the Internet. Some professional bulimia treatment sites provide therapeutic CBT based Bulimia self-help programs written by experts in the bulimia treatment field, with bulimia sufferer in mind, so he or she can be guided to help him/herself. Therapist worldwide are now are very mindful of how people are suffering from bulimia in the dark, a situation that can easily be remedied.

The initial step here is for you to recognize that you have a condition that needs to be treated professionally. Even the most effective cure for Bulimia would be useless, if your whole heart is not on your full reason to give up bulimia and lead a healthier lifestyle. Determination, self-discipline, and self-awareness are necessary if you are serious about your bulimia recovery.

These are just some of the skills you could learn using self-help program, with possible step-by-step programs to free yourself from these self-harming bulimic ways. The ongoing support, advice, motivation and recommendations from your therapist are a strong feature of an effective CBT program. The appeal of any self-help program, is that you can be at home working on yourself and bulimia recovery at the pace that is right for you, day by day, week by week with additional support from your bulimia therapist. Those already in therapy can also benefit from any bulimia self-help programs to fast track their personal development and a bulimia free life with reduced need to have lengthy or costly face to face sessions with their therapist.

You may involve a most trusted loved-one, to help you go through the self-help program, thus increasing the support around you and making sure the risk of lapse through lack of motivation or complacency does not cost you your recovery so far.

Effective bulimia treatment through various self-help programs, are available to those ready and willing to take that next step in self-empowerment and be willing to take one small step at a time on the path to recovery and freedom.

Bulimia is an eating disorder. People with bulimia usually have a normal weight, but perceive themselves to be fat. Or they may feel intense guilt or self-disgust when they eat. These feelings are so strong that people with bulimia throw up much of the food they eat.

Bulimia is not exclusively caused by the changes of puberty, nor is it exclusive to women. Although 90 percent of bulimia cases occur in women, and most of these women begin to eat and vomit in their mid- to late-teens, bulimia nervosa can stem from diverse causes.

Bulimia nervosa is obsessive compulsive disorder of eating. The person suffering from this disorder has the tendency to consume big amount of food in a short span of time.

Effects of bulimia can be divided into long term and short term side effects. Also you can then subdivide the side effects of bulimia to correspond with the system or the organs bulimia affects: e.g. psychological problems, mental, gastro-intestinal, cardio-vascular system, kidney, skin, bones and hormonal problems.

Bulimia treatments should be followed strictly, if possible it must start from the early stages of the condition. Early treatment is very important, because if a person tries to delay in treating this eating disorder, excessive eating behavior pattern might further become more deeply ingrained and harder to change.

Nutritional Therapy is yet another way to treat Bulimia Nervosa. In this type of therapy, dieticians and other health care providers offer information about a healthy diet. At times, they even help in designing a proper eating plan to achieve a healthy weight and healthy-eating habits.

Bulimia may be caused by a genetic component. Certain genes may predispose a person to developing bulimia. Bulimia appears to run in families—people with relatives suffering from bulimia have a higher frequency of developing bulimia. This may, however, have more to do with family influences and role models than genetics.

Bulimia affects people’s mental and emotional well-being. These problems can come directly from bulimia, or bulimia may be a response to the other problems. People with bulimia may be tired and unable to perform at peak levels from the mental and physical stress bulimia puts on the mind and body.

Bulimia often begins with a dissatisfaction of the person’s body. The individual may actually be underweight, but when that person looks in a mirror they see a distorted image and feel heavier than they really are. At first, this distorted body image leads to dieting.

Bulimia nervosa can cause constipation, diarrhea, and other intestinal problems. The acidic content of vomit damages the teeth and the esophagus. It can also cause stomach ulcers and sores inside the mouth. It can even cause the stomach to rupture.

Physical symptoms of bulimia are observed only after a longer period, while psychological indicators can be seen relatively early. The eating self-abuse is usually kept secret by the patient, a fact which makes identification of bulimia even harder. The person suffering from bulimia eating disorder problems will show fatigue and a general state of weakness. With women, loss of menstrual cycles was often observed, as a consequence of the bulimia eating disorder.

Majority of our youngsters as well as adults are suffering from one of the most debilitating diseases known as bulimia. It is one such disease that affects the 1 to 2 percent of the women and many of the young people all across the world. A person suffering from bulimia shows symptoms like binge eating and eating a large amount of food, an extreme fear of gaining weight, an obsession with body image and an extreme feeling of helplessness when it comes to eating. Some other symptoms that the patient shows are kidney problems, dehydration due to the purging episodes, inflamed throat, swollen glands and tooth decay due to vomiting. It is now being accepted the world over that the disease of bulimia needs to be handled with an urgency as well as care.

There are many bulimia treatment centers that provide the best bulimia treatments to the people who are in real need of support. The bulimia treatment at these bulimia treatment centers is managed by the expert professionals who completely understand the needs and requirements of the bulimia patients. The bulimia treatment programs at these bulimia treatment centers are designed in a very scientific manner. It is also an accepted fact that the people who are suffering from bulimia or are showing bulimia nervosa symptoms also require psychological help from the specialists. The bulimia treatments at these centers take into account this factor also. All that is needed is the selection of the bulimia treatment center that has necessary wherewithal to carefully handle the patient.

Another important aspect that is related to the bulimia treatment is the counseling of the near and dear ones of the patient. They are the real people who completely understand the nature of the patient as well as know how to take care of him in the trying times.

e among those many, preoccupied with your body, image, or weight and feel pressured to buy in to the society’s constant admiration for those who measure up to the commercial standards for beauty, armed with other pre-disposing factors, you could fall victim to Bulimia. This has become a serious threat to many women, both young and old of this time because they want to be accepted. They want to become the thin person that everybody seems to regard as beautiful or successful with a sense of misplaced Self-esteem. To achieve this you may indulge in extreme diets or be consumed by emotional and psychological compulsion to be bulimic, under the delusion that you have a secret strategy that works! Sadly, the fatal damages from Bulimia are real and they affect a small percent of women and men, out of which 10 percent even die from this dangerous condition.

You may already be familiar with the following physical signs and symptoms?

Regular stomach Complaints

Feeling bloated

Acid flux and heart burns

Swollen salivary glands

Swollen cheeks, which makes face appear to be round

Dry or unhealthy looking Hair

Teeth damage and decay

Feeling weak or tired

Constipation and diarrhea

Swelling or edema of hands, legs and feet

Scars or scabs on the back of the hand or knuckles

Irregular or loss of menstrual period

Bones that easily break or dislocate

What is less commonly known is the range and degree of internal damage to your body, such as:

Sore throat or hoarseness

Mouth ulcers and gum disease

Irregular heart beat, palpitation

Salt or Electorlyte imbalance

Hypoglycaemia or low blood sugar

Being prone to contract germs

Experiencing nausea, breathlessness or dizziness

Kidney damage, urinary tract infection

Body mineral loss

Internal bleeding

Rupture of stomach lining

Cardiac arrest and much more

The severity of any of the symptoms will vary depending on how long you have been a bulimic, your frequency and regularity of bingeing and purging behaviour, and how effective your body’s own capacity to endure and counterbalance the self-inflicted chemical disturbance. The quantity of nutrition that is absorbed in between bingeing and purging will also be a factor in determining how sever your symptoms will be and how able your body is at healing all the damage done to it.

The physical cost of Bulimia is huge since it just worsens an already existing emotional or psychological condition. About 10 percent of Bulimic people die from starvation, dehydration, cardiac arrest, and other complications. Others small percent even commit suicide under the hands of unbearable depression. Young or mature, many bulimia women are progressively finding it difficult to conceive babies, having to sacrifice the joy of motherhood due to many internal damages.

Seeking help for your bulimia is therefore critical and crucial, and it has to start with you admitting to yourself that you have this eating disorder and that it is about time your Bulimia treatment plan or professional help began with a visit to your most trusted doctor. Armed with the knowledge most of these critically dangerous symptoms are reversible once you managed to control your bingeing and purging habits, you really can look forward to working on regaining your full health and vitality back.

Mesa, AZ, July 9, 2009/PressRelease/Anorexia and Bulimia are incorrectly thought of as issues that young girls go through in the name of vanity. Unfortunately this misconception leaves many people both men and women, suffering through these disorders without the help that they need. Often times Anorexia and Bulimia are a product of other deeper psychological problems that may not ever be addressed properly. Casa Palmera is an eating disorder treatment center that has developed techniques and therapies that will help individuals living with Anorexia or Bulimia regain back their lives.

Gone untreated both Anorexia and Bulimia will cause health problems. Anorexia causes more than weight loss. Hair loss, fragile nails, yellow skin, and skeletal damage all occur when the body is depleted and starved of the essential vitamins and minerals that the body needs to function properly. In some cases liver and kidney failure, and an irregular heartbeat may also occur, and all too often, when left untreated, death. Although people who suffer with Bulimia encounter the same medical problems, Bulimia brings with it its own set of maladies. From the act of purging alone a person with Bulimia will encounter bad breath and rotted teeth, and possible ruptures in the throat and stomach. The need for widespread attention to Anorexia and Bulimia is apparent, and required if we are going to stop the senseless deaths of people caught in the middle of a disorder they don’t have the tools to overcome.

Integrating a holistic program that promotes total healing of the person both inside and out is how Casa Palmera addresses eating disorders. An integrative medical approach coupled with psychotherapeutic modalities address the medical and psychological aspects of eating disorders. Teaching the healthful balance of spiritual reflection, fitness, healthy eating, and stress management, a resident at Casa Palmera will learn how to live their life in a positive way that will be rewarding. Using relaxing exercises that focus on the entire person such yoga, and meditation, the body will respond greatly to recovery and with 24 hour care in a safe, nurturing environment, a resident of Casa Palmera will learn what is the healthy, self loving way to care for themselves.

The foundation of Casa Palmera’s approach to health and well being is to treat the entire person based on 4 core elements. The staff at Casa Palmera is a diverse, comprehensive, extensively trained staff of professionals that work as a team to promote healing and giving the tools to each person and training them to use those tools to live a healthy, happy life.

If you are looking for an answer to your questions, if you are desperately worried about someone you love that is slowly killing themselves because of Anorexia or Bulimia and you know you have to get help, if you have tried other forms of anorexia treatment and it has failed, if you are looking for bulimia treatment that works, Casa Palmera is the answer. Casa Palmera can help you help the one you love. To schedule a consultation or if you just need to ask questions, contact Casa Palmera via email at info@casapalmera.com  or call 888.481.4481.

Bulimia nervosa is obsessive compulsive disorder of eating. The person suffering from this disorder has the tendency to consume big amount of food in a short span of time. Research says – the individual who is suffering from bulimia nervosa can eat much more than 3,000 calories in an hour.

Normally, bulimia nervosa starts at adolescence age and typically can be seen in women; it’s never mean that men are untouched from this disorder. Men also suffer from this disorder but comparatively in lesser number. The intensity of this disorder obsesses the individuals to be compulsive for the food. Resultantly, individuals loose their control and start eating. If it not get cured on time, its consequences could be dangerous enough to cause life-threatening troubles like heart damage and injury of digestive system. The other severe problems are anxiety disorders, kidney damage, and dental problems.

In addition, this disorder also forces individuals to indulge themselves into self-destructive behaviors like kleptomania, alcohol/drug abuse, sexual promiscuity, and self-mutilation.

The causes of bulimia nervosa are yet unknown to physicians and researchers. However, the probable causes are:

The person who is already suffering from anxiety or other obsessive compulsive disorder. Has low self-esteem. If the person has not healthy relationship with his/her family members. It might be hereditical. Sometimes, culture also causes bulimia nervosa.

Bulimia nervosa symptoms are viz…

Consume excessive food in short period of time. Excessive care if body’s weight and shape. Tendency to purging (self induced vomiting) immediately after intake of food by taking enemas or by abusing laxatives. And, it causes dehydration. Self-criticism; unhappy mood; feelings of embarrassment and guilt during and after bingeing and purging. An acute fear of becoming fatty. Too much exercise or fasting. Kidney problems and tooth decay.

The person who is suffering from bulimia nervosa has no need to bother about it because there are many bulimia treatment centers running useful bulimia treatment program. Many people get cured and again re-started their healthy lives.

The objective of bulimia treatment is to lessen or abolish binge eating and purging tendency. Hence, as soon as individuals identify the bulimia nervosa symptoms, they should immediately get in touch with bulimia treatment center. Bulimia treatment center provides comprehensive medical care by monitoring the all activities of patients.

However, bulimia treatment program exclusively designed in such a way that it –

Counsels the patients to diagnose the problems properly Assists in restoring the lost weight Control the behaviors of excessive eating, dieting, and purging Provides long term bulimia treatment for full recovery Bulimia treatment program also takes care of the other disorder associated with bulimia nervosa.

Moreover, the bulimia nervosa, disorder of excessive eating can be easily diagnosed and cured by proper identification of problems. Bulimia treatment center has well established program for the treatment of bulimia patients. Above all, psychotherapy helps patients to regain the lost self-esteem and correct the distorted behaviors.

Bulimia is yet another eating disorder reality and one of the fastest growing neuroses in the western world. Unlike anorexia which is a very visible as serious disease, bulimia is a master of disguise and characterized by binging and purging behaviors. The person who face this type of disorder usually consume or eat a lot of food at once and then try to get rid of the excessive food either by vomiting, using laxatives or even sometimes by over-exercising. In addition to this, person with bulimia eating disorder is preoccupied with his or her weight and body image.

These days this type of eating disorder is most common in adolescent and young adult women. This type of eating disorder might appear a tiny factor in their early stages, but with the passage of time it may develop and produce numerous negative effects. Though the exact and real cause of bulimia is not known, there are various factors that appear to cause its development, like:

•    As per recent studies, it has been found that eating disorders occur more frequently in relatives of people with bulimia than in others. This incidence appears to be related to genetics, but family influences may also be important.

•    Researchers have even recommended that altered levels of the chemical serotonin in the brain also play a major role. Serotonin levels are usually interrelated to the development of clinical depression.

Effects of Bulimia

If we talk about the effects of Bulimia then we can see that the repeated loss of fluids and nutrients caused by bulimia can render a body useless. The sufferer may also feel fatigue and apathy. It may even lead to casualty, if the disease is not taken care of. The functioning power of internal organs can be severely disrupted by bulimia and more likely an organ may fail to work.

Symptoms of Bulimia

Bulimia may affect the whole body of the person and so it becomes very important to identify its warning signs, like-

1.    Extra obsession with calories and food

2.    Routine use of different medicines to control weight of body

3.    Unusual swelling around the jaw

4.    Over concern about body weight even if the person is not overweight

5.     Damaged tooth enamel & bad breath

6.    Sore throat or mouth sores

In addition to all this, people with bulimia might complain of general weakness, abdominal pain and loss of menstrual cycles. Sometimes, they might also complain of vomiting or diarrhea without telling that it is self-induced.

Treating Bulimia

Bulimia treatments should be followed strictly, if possible it must start from the early stages of the condition. Early treatment is very important, because if a person tries to delay in treating this eating disorder, excessive eating behavior pattern might further become more deeply ingrained and harder to change.

Today many people suffering from Bulimia are treated by psychologists without being admitted to the hospital until a severe physical complication requires hospitalization. Therapies like Individual therapy, combined with group therapy and family therapy are new way of treating Bulimia eating disorder. These days often counseling combined with the use of antidepressant medication are widely practiced for treating Bulimia eating disorder.

Apart from all this, as per recent observation it has been found that people with bulimia are more likely to have vitamin and mineral deficiencies. Moreover, vitamin deficiencies can result cognitive difficulties such as poor judgment or memory loss. Getting enough vitamins and minerals in daily diet or through supplements can correct the problems and reduce symptoms.

Bulimia is usually a long-term disease, and so it also becomes very important for an individual who are suffering from Bulimia check his or her weight, exercise habits, and physical and mental health periodically.

Bulimia is an eating disorder that affects a large number of people all across the world.An individual suffering for bulimia will binge on food and then in most cases induce vomiting in a cycle that is called “binging and purging”. Generally, Binge eating  refers to eating large amounts of food ( much larger than would be considered normal) in a discrete or measured and usually quite short period of time. Today there are various methods used to treat this disorder. Most people are treated by doctors and psychologists on an outpatient basis without being admitted to  hospital unless a serious physical medical condition manifests. Over the past few years Cognitive Behavioural Therapy has emerged as one of the most popular models of treatment for Bulimia Nervosa.

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, also known as CBT, is a psychotherapeutic approach that primarily aims to influence dysfunctional thought processes. It is one of the treatment procedures that helps the patient to become aware of thought distortions which cause both psychological and physical distress.

CBT makes use of use psychological approaches that are based on scientific, clinically proven research. It has emerged as one of the best treatment options in recent times and proved to be effective for problems associated with various eating disorders. This therapy starts with an assessment procedure using diagnostic tests, and a semi-structured interview. In the treatment phase the client has an individualized program specifically drawn up for them.

For any individual who is suffering from Bulimia, understanding the relationships between thoughts, emotions and actions is extremely important. This is because, once these relationships are understood, the patient can recognize and appropriately react to the negative thoughts and feelings that have previously resulted to abnormal eating behaviours with more positive thoughts that lead towards a healthy lifestyle.

The first and the key part of this treatment targets symptomatic relief for specific by using a series of Behavioural techniques. The second part of the treatment actually educates clients about the relationship between thoughts, feelings and behaviours. This is very important and plays a vital role in treating Bulimia. As clients learn to recognize and categorize negative thoughts, he or she can challenge those thoughts and replace them with more balanced alternatives. For an individual, it is important to have some type of relaxation or “de-stress” strategy and with CBT it is accessible. Cognitive Behavioural Therapy has been clinically proven as an effective treatment for Bulimia Nervosa.