Forms of Treatment for Eating Disorders

Health-care professionals have a variety of treatments to choose from. They evaluate each in terms of the patient and his or her particular needs. Often a mix of approaches works best.

Hospitalization vs. outpatient care

A primary care physician takes into account several factors in determining whether a patient requires hospitalization. The physician considers the patient's height and weight and how quickly he or she has been losing weight. The physician may also check body temperature, heart rate, and blood pressure. He or she may order a urine analysis and blood work.

The doctor then determines if there are immediate nutritional needs that must be met in the hospital through intravenous feeding (providing nutrition directly into the veins) or other threats to the patient's health that require immediate attention. Patients resistant to treatment may be sent to the psychiatric unit of the hospital.

If the condition is serious but not immediately life threatening, the physician may recommend a residential treatment center. If the eating disorder is caught early and the patient has family support, the physician may call for outpatient care-treatment at a hospital without a hospital stay.

There are different types of outpatient care. Intensive outpatient therapy (IOP) Is a treatment plan in which a group of patients receives help for several hours at a time three or more days a week. Partial hospital programs (PHPs) are an option for people who need more structure, intervention, and supervision. The treatment plan can be stepped up or down as the patient's needs change.

Fact Or Fiction?

If people suspect that I have an eating disorder, they'll take me from my friends and family and send me away somewhere for "rehab."

Fact: The earlier an eating disorder or the tendency toward an eating disorder is diagnosed, the less intrusive the recovery plan needs to be. Many people with eating disorders participate in treatment plans that allow them to attend school or work during the recovery process.

Psychotherapy

Psychotherapy is a form of treatment that involves discussions between a patient and a therapist. It can be done with a single patient or a group. The more motivated and ready for treatment a patient is, the more likely the therapy will be successful. It also works best for those whose disorder has been caught in an early stage, before the most serious health-related problems have surfaced.

Group psychotherapy is a form of treatment that involves discussions among a group of patients with the help of a therapist. It usually occurs in conjunction with individual psychotherapy at an outpatient treatment center, a psychiatric hospital or other inpatient setting. Through group psychotherapy, people with eating disorders learn that they are not alone in their struggles. Patients are both supported and confronted by other patients who are dealing with similar problems. Their interactions can be powerful therapy.

Group psychotherapy also presents a risk. By talking to peers (people in one's own age group), someone in the early stages of an eating disorder may learn about and later try new destructive behaviors. To avoid such problems, the group leader tries to ensure that group members are at about the same stage in their treatment.

Q & A

Question: What is behavior modification?

Answer: Behavior modification is based on reward and punishment. Your parents may use a form of behavior modification when they promise to let you use the family car if you improve your grades or take the car away if your grades go down. Most behavior modification treatments for eating disorders occur in an inpatient setting. They are usually part of a treatment regimen that involves other forms of therapy. Behavior modification focuses on stopping unhealthy, compulsive habits in the present, unlike other forms of therapy that look to the past to identify the causes of an eating disorder.

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) also focuses on the present. CBT is an effort to alter the attitudes that prompt unhealthy eating behaviors as a way of changing the behaviors. For example, the belief that eating even a single gram of fat will result in obesity may cause someone to restrict all fat from his or her diet. By acknowledging and changing that attitude, he or she can begin to develop a healthier approach to eating. Education and goal-setting are major components of CBT.