Anorexia Nervosa is a serious eating disorder that is characterized by an intense fear of gaining weight, a distorted body image, and a severe restriction of food intake it is a relentless pursuit of thinness. People struggling with anorexia will go to any lengths to lose weight, such as through extreme dieting, exercising to excess, self-induced vomiting, or misusing diuretics, laxatives, or enemas. This disorder although primarily affecting young women, can affect people of all ages, genders, sexual orientations, races, and ethnicities. It is important to note that you cannot always tell by looking at someone if they are struggling with this disorder. A person does not need to be emaciated or underweight in order to be battling the illness. Anorexia can have devastating long-term effects on an individual’s physical and mental health, and research confirms it has the highest mortality rate of all psychiatric disorders.
The warning signs and symptoms of anorexia may vary, but can include drastic weight loss, obsessive calorie counting, food rituals, weighing oneself repeatedly, avoidance of social situations that involve food, and excessive exercise. Other behaviors that can be present include hiding or hoarding food, wearing loose clothing to hide weight loss, and being overly preoccupied with their appearance and weight. Physical symptoms also may present such as irregular menstrual periods “amenorrhea”, fatigue, dizziness, feeling cold all the time, fine hair on the body “lanugo”, sleep problems, and impaired immune functioning.
The health consequences of anorexia can be severe and potentially life-threatening. Due to inadequate calorie intake and malnutrition individuals with anorexia may experience a variety of health problems such as anemia, osteoporosis, and even organ failure. Anorexia can also take a massive toll on cardiovascular function and cause damage to the heart which can lead to an abnormally slow heartrate “bradycardia”, low blood pressure, and an increase risk of heart failure. The most common complications that lead to death are typically cardiac arrest and severe fluid and electrolyte imbalances. The psychological effects can also be catastrophic including depression, anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder, body dysmorphia, and social isolation.
Statistically mortality rates from anorexia are not only deeply concerning but also alarming. According to American neuroscientist Thomas Insel, a former director of the National Institute of Mental Health, anorexia nervosa has an estimated mortality rate of around 10 percent. Additionally, individuals struggling with anorexia are at an increased risk for suicide, patients are two to nine times more likely then peers to attempt suicide. A particular study showed that patients with anorexia were eighteen times more likely to die by suicide than in a comparison group. These statistics prove the importance of getting treatment with early intervention being a key factor.
Preferred treatment for anorexia is a combination of both medical and psychological interventions, including therapy, medication, and nutritional counseling. There are multiple levels of care available depending on how far an individual’s illness has progressed ranging from outpatient treatment to inpatient hospitalizations. Treatment focuses on addressing both the physical and psychological aspects of the disorder, and really diving deep to working on the underlying core issues. A few evidenced based types of psychotherapy that have been shown to be highly effective are cognitive behavioral therapy, “CBT”, dialectical behavior therapy, “DBT”, and family-based treatment, “FBT”. Treatment aims to help individuals with the disorder to develop healthier attitudes and behaviors surrounding food and weight. The good news is with proper treatment individuals struggling with anorexia can recover and go on to lead both healthy and rewarding lives.
There are Social Security disability benefits available for anorexia if symptoms progress to the point that the individual’s ability to work is affected. Given that anorexia is not a listed condition medical criteria based upon both physical and psychological symptoms must be met, and then federally funded disability insurance programs will provide financial assistance. In addition, relative to anorexia before approval for disability benefits medical proof must be provided indicating that treatment has been ongoing.
The link below is direct access to apply online for social security benefits:
https://www.ssa.gov/applyfordisability/
The link below is a helpful resource for finding treatment options:
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