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Coping and support
By Mayo Clinic staffYou may find it difficult to cope with anorexia when you're hit with mixed messages by the media, culture, and perhaps your own family or friends. You may even have heard people joke that they wish they could have anorexia for a while so that they could lose weight.
So how do you cope with a disease that can be deadly when you may be getting messages that being thin is a sign of success?
- Remind yourself what a healthy weight is for your body, especially at times when you see images that may trigger your desire to restrict calories.
- Don't visit pro-anorexia Web sites. These sites can encourage you to maintain dangerous habits and trigger relapses. Anorexia isn't a lifestyle choice. It's a disease.
- Acknowledge that you may not always be the best judge of whether you're eating enough or are at a healthy weight.
- Identify problem situations that are likely to trigger thoughts or behavior that may contribute to your anorexia so that you can develop a plan of action to deal with them.
- Look for positive role models. Remind yourself that ultrathin models or actors showcased in women's magazines or gossip magazines may not represent healthy bodies.
If you're interested in joining a support group, ask your doctor if he or she knows if there's a group in your area, or call the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Eating Disorders' (ANAD) helpline at 630-577-1330. (This is not a free phone call.) You can also find information on its Web site.
- Anorexia nervosa. The Merck Manuals: The Merck Manual for Healthcare Professionals. http://www.merck.com/mmpe/print/sec15/ch199/ch199b.html. Accessed Oct. 13, 2009.
- Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, DSM IV-TR. Arlington, Va.; American Psychiatric Association: 2000. http://psychiatryonline.com/content.aspx?aID=3610. Accessed Nov. 2, 2009.
- Forman SF. Eating disorders: Epidemiology, pathogenesis and clinical features. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Nov. 2, 2009.
- Walsh BT. Eating disorders. In: Fauci AS, et al. Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine. 17th ed. New York, N.Y.: McGraw-Hill Medical; 2008. http://www.accessmedicine.com/content.aspx?aID=2865564. Accessed Nov. 1, 2009.
- Williams PM, et al. Treating eating disorders in primary care. American Family Physician. 2008;77:187.
- Gwirtsman HE, et al. Eating disorders. In: Ebert MH, et al. Current Diagnosis & Treatment: Psychiatry. 2nd ed. New York, N.Y.; McGraw-Hill Co.: 2008. http://www.accessmedicine.com/content.aspx?aID=3288493. Accessed Nov. 1, 2009.
- Steffen KJ, et al. A survey of herbal and alternative medication use among participants with eating disorder symptoms. International Journal of Eating Disorders. 2006:39;741.
- Forman, SF. Treatment and outcome. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Nov. 2, 2009.
- Douglass L. Yoga as an intervention in the treatment of eating disorders: Does it help? Eating Disorders. 2009;17:126.
- Sim LA (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic. Rochester, Minn. Nov. 3, 2009.
- Sim LA, et al. Family-based therapy for adolescents with anorexia nervosa. Mayo Clinic Proceedings. 2004;79:1305.
