Bulimia nervosa is an eating disorder where a person develops an obsessive attitude with food and their body weight. People with bulimia find themselves trapped in a cycle of binging and purging. Generally, this cycle is the result of low self-esteem and body image.

Often individuals with bulimia can struggle to admit they have a problem. They will also often go to great lengths to hide their condition. As a result, it can be very difficult to identify whether someone has bulimia. Bulimia nervosa can cause serious complications for a person’s mental and physical health. Therefore, it is vital that people with bulimia nervosa seek treatment.

Bulimia nervosa is characterised by “binging” large amounts of food in short periods and then “purging” to prevent weight gain. This purging can take multiple forms. Someone with bulimia may deliberately induce vomiting, take laxatives or exercise obsessively in an attempt to lose weight and counteract or ‘undo’ any binging.

What’s the psychology behind it?

People with bulimia struggle with a negative self-image that’s focussed on weight and body shape. Bulimia sufferers often exhibit feelings of shame and worthlessness. The binge and purge cycle revolves around feelings of control. Bulimic individuals will deprive themselves of food to avoid gaining weight but will binge upon losing control. Purging is thus both an attempt to regain control, and a method of self-punishment. This helps us understand bulimia as not only a negative relationship with food but a cycle of self-destructive behaviour.

Like other eating disorders such as anorexia, bulimia nervosa is more commonly diagnosed in women. The ratio of women to men diagnosed with eating disorders is roughly ten to one. The symptoms of bulimia show little variation across genders. That being said, in those diagnosed, bulimic men are more likely to use compulsive exercise as a method of purging than women.

What causes bulimia?

While there’s no single cause for bulimia, it often stems from low self-esteem and negative perceptions of oneself. People can focus on their weight to try and control how they view themselves. This need for control could be due to events such as trauma and abuse, the end of a relationship or bereavement. This is something that can be examined via psychoanalytic therapy. Social factors can also contribute to bulimia, with people losing weight in an attempt to fit a specific desired body image.

Is it congenital? 

Evidence also suggests that genetics might increase the likelihood of a person developing bulimia nervosa. Studies of families with a history of eating disorders found that mutations in two specific genes, ESRRA and HDAC4, greatly increased the risk of eating disorders.

How does bulimia nervosa affect the body?

Malnutrition isn’t the only risk of binging and purging. The cycle can seriously disrupt how the body regulates itself. Potential consequences of this range from low heart rate and blood pressure to abnormal heart rhythms. This can increase the likelihood of cardiovascular problems such as heart failure.

The cycle of binging and purging can lead to a range of physical complications. Long term inducing of vomiting may cause extensive damage to the esophagus. The esophagus begins to lose control, creating a build-up of acid which can then cause gastrointestinal problems. Excessive retching and vomiting can lead to the esophagus tearing, causing internal bleeding. Regular vomiting is also damaging to dental enamel and can lead to poor dental health.

If someone uses laxatives as a method of purging, they could become reliant on them to have normal bowel movements. Continued purging via laxatives may also rupture blood vessels near the anus, causing haemorrhoids.

Frequent vomiting or bowel movements caused by purging will lead a person to become dehydrated. Dehydration can severely damage the kidneys, causing kidney disease or even kidney failure.

Physical symptoms of bulimia nervosa

The most prominent physical symptom of bulimia is weight loss. The binge and purge cycle manifests itself in a variety of ways, dependent on the method of purging. If someone regularly induces vomiting, the continued exposure to acid will damage a person’s teeth and gums. They may also have sores or calluses on their hands or knuckles. Forced vomiting can lead to swollen salivary glands or red eyes due to burst blood vessels.

Behavioural signs of bulimia nervosa

There is no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ way to approach someone who may have an eating disorder. Confronting them, however, can cause them considerable distress. Their self-esteem is likely to be very fragile, and the fear of being ‘discovered’ may lead them to escalate their behaviour. However, if you are concerned that someone you care about has bulimia, there are various signs to be aware of:

  • Frequently weighing themselves or looking at themselves in mirrors, or directly avoid weighing themselves. This may seem contradictory, but either behaviour can show a preoccupation with weight or body shape.
  • Going through periods of not eating, and then suddenly eating large amounts. Soon after eating, they may disappear or excuse themselves in order to purge.
  • Being very secretive about their eating habits. Signs of binging include eating alone and hoarding food.
  • Common signs of low self-esteem or depression such as acting withdrawn or having frequent mood swings.
  • Self-destructive behaviours such as substance abuse and self-harm.

Bulimia treatment

A person with bulimia nervosa will begin their treatment with an eating disorder specialist. They will also be examined by a doctor to determine if there is any long-term physical damage. Once this has been carried out, they can then commence one of several psychological treatments.

Psychoanalytic therapy for bulimia

Psychoanalytic therapy centres on an understanding of the self. Since bulimia stems from a negative opinion of one’s self, psychoanalytic therapy is an effective means of treating bulimia. Psychological issues such as bulimia often represent a deep-seated internal conflict. The cycle of binging and purging is, therefore, an attempt to restore balance and a sense of self. A person will believe that if they reach a goal weight, they will feel happier within themselves. However, a warped sense of self-image often makes this ‘goal’ unattainable.

Psychoanalysis is a highly individualistic method of treatment. The nature and length of treatment depend entirely on the person’s state of mind. Long-term psychological problems can take a considerable amount of time to resolve. For instance, a person with bulimia may also be experiencing anxiety or depression. Their bulimia may also be a consequence of past trauma. These circumstances must be identified and treated for eating disorders to be rectified. Ultimately, psychoanalytic therapy will help someone understand why they are bulimic. From there, they can begin to rebuild their sense of self and maintain healthier attitudes towards food and body image.

You can find out more about psychoanalytic therapy by visiting this page.

Cognitive behavioural therapy for bulimia

Whereas psychoanalytic therapy examines past reasons for bulimia, cognitive behavioural therapy looks to treat present signs of bulimia.

The first step of cognitive behavioural therapy for bulimia is to help someone develop healthy eating habits. This involves a degree of education surrounding the adverse effects of binging and purging. This is vital, as the most immediate goal of treatment is to restore the person’s physical wellbeing.

The binge and purge cycle represents a series of negative thought patterns which govern a person’s relationship with food. Cognitive behavioural therapy seeks to break these thought patterns. This is so people can understand the long-term damage caused by bulimia. Once these thought patterns are broken, the focus then shifts to reducing the likelihood of relapse.

Visit this page for further information about cognitive behavioural therapy.

Psychotherapy for eating disorders

Therapy may last from a few months to years. It can help the sufferer to:

  • Normalise their eating patterns and achieve a healthy weight
    • Exchange unhealthy habits for healthy ones
    • Learn how to monitor their food consumption and moods
  • Develop problem-solving skills to counteract any negative thoughts or behaviours
    • Explore healthy ways to cope with stressful situations
    • Improve their relationships with those around them
    • Improve their mood

Psychological treatment may involve a combination of the following different types of therapy. There are many different approaches and the best treatment depends on the particular eating disorder and the individual. 

Cognitive behavioral therapy 

This type of psychotherapy focuses on behaviors, thoughts and feelings related to the eating disorder. After helping the sufferer gain healthy eating behaviors, it helps them learn to recognise and change distorted thoughts that lead to eating disorder behaviors.

Family therapy

During this therapy, family members learn how to appropriately support and help the person restore healthy eating patterns and achieve a healthy weight until they can do it themselves. Due to the challenges outlined later on, it’s crucial for those around the sufferer to understand the nature of the disorder and the individual’s personal case to ensure they offer the right kind of support and advice, at the right times. This type of therapy can be especially useful for parents learning how to help their child or teen with an eating disorder.

Binge eating

Is experienced by nearly everyone at some point in their life. Binge eating is especially common during times of stress, depression, grief, separation and other difficult life situations. Due to close connection between our minds and bodies, pleasure experienced by the body in the form of food intake has a short-term uplifting effect on the mind, due to endorphine or happiness hormone release. Someone with fast metabolism may use this strategy without gaining excessive weight, however, not without other health related problems. With the help of cognitive behavioural therapy, your psychotherapist will help you to establish whether there are any unhelpful beliefs around the topic of food, yourself or your coping capacity that encourage your binge eating. Together with psychotherapist, you will devise new strategies of overcoming your unhelpful thinking patterns and habits. You will be encouraged to challenge and believe in yourself. With the help of psychoanalytic psychotherapy, you may discover that other common reasons for binge eating might include difficulties with regulating your emotions or other co-existing mental health problems. You will be offered a unique treatment plan that may include learning to regulate your emotions, increase your self-esteem and overcome any co-existing difficulties that may influence your need to binge eat.

At Psytherapy we pride ourselves on providing a treatment plans for eating disorders that are adapted and lead by the individual, with guidance from our qualified psychotherapist. Get in touch to find out more.  Scroll down for more advice on eating disorders. 

 

How do you treat eating disorders?

The sooner someone is treated for an eating disorder, the better the chances of them making a full recovery. Be sensitive in the way that you approach the illness and therapy for it. It is rare for a serious case to be diagnosed and treatment accepted early on for the following reasons. 

Challenges 

Often – but not always – a person with an eating disorder does not recognise that they are unwell. They act as though they are oblivious to there being any kind of issue with their mindset toward nutrition and their eating habits. This is usually the case in the early stages of developing an eating disorder. 

 

Once the illness becomes more established and serious, the sufferer may resist accepting or admitting that they are suffering from a disorder. In these cases, they may also be secretive about their eating habits. Many people with eating disorders develop ways to avoid situations they are not comfortable with, such as those involving eating with other people. This allows them to carry out their negative behaviours ‘behind closed doors’.

Support

 

It is extremely difficult (and rare) for people with eating disorders to get better on their own. So it is really important that you or the person you know finds professional help and support as soon as possible. Realisation and acknowledgement of the fact that they are unwell can be a very significant and positive step towards their recovery. But the recovery process does not end there. After all, if it was as straightforward as saying to themselves, “The amount of nutrition I’m consuming is not healthy for me, I should change that,” no one would need professional help for eating disorders and they would not be classified as mental illnesses. 

 

As with other disorders such as addiction, it is very hard to shake the negative thought patterns and habits once these become engrained. The compulsion to avoid calories, overeat or purge in order to avoid weight gain can become too strong to ‘snap out of’ before the behaviour is carried out.

The process 

A person with an eating disorder may be diagnosed by a doctor, for example when attending an appointment with their GP. Or they may have found the courage and foresight to diagnose themselves, following support and encouragement from those close to them. Once diagnosed, they can be referred to an expert in the treatment of eating disorders. 

 

The best treatment plan typically includes a combination of psychotherapy, nutrition education, medical monitoring and sometimes medications. Psychological therapy is the most important component of eating disorder treatment because it enables the person to understand their illness. Psychotherapy tackles the underlying root causes of the eating disorder. Through psychotherapy, patients learn how to recognise why and when their eating disorder causes negative behaviours and habits and how to avoid these. As a result, it can form part of a long-term treatment plan and be therapeutic and relieving as well as preventative. It involves seeing a psychologist or another mental health professional on a regular basis.

 

At Psytherapy we pride ourselves on providing a treatment plans for eating disorders that are adapted and lead by the individual, with guidance from our qualified psychotherapist. Get in touch to find out more or alternatively, view our therapy pages for more information.