Anorexia Help
It can be really hard to cope with an eating problem or disorder on your own. Talking to someone might help you feel more able to cope. Try and talk to someone you like and trust, such as:
- Friend
- Brother or sister Grandparents
- Parent or carer
- Aunt or uncle
- Friend’s parent
- Teacher or College
- Tutor
- School/Youth/Student counsellor
- School nurse
- Youth worker
You should also go and see your doctor. GPs usually ask you the following questions in a questionnaire:
1) Do you make yourself sick?
2) Do you worry that you’ve lost control over how much you eat?
3) Have you lost more than a stone in three months?
4) Do you think you’re fat even if other people tell you that you are thin?
5) Does food dominate your life?
If you answer “yes” to two or more of these questions, you may have a problem with your eating.
What you talk to your doctor about is confidential and they are not allowed to tell anyone else unless they think your health or safety is a serious risk and only then they would tell your parent or carer. Nice is the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence and they make recommendations for health professionals. The Nice guidelines on treating eating disorders say the right to confidentiality of children and adolescents with eating disorders should be respected.
If you go and see your GP and want help, they may prescribe you some medicine or refer you to a specialist such as a psychiatrist or counsellor.
Nice says that most people with anorexia nervosa should be managed on an out-patient basis, with psychological treatment provided by a healthcare professional and psychological treatment for anorexia should be for at least six months. Being an out-patient means you go in to hospital for the treatment or therapy session and then go home again afterwards so you don’t have to stay in hospital overnight or for a length of time.
Seeing a psychiatrist or expert
A specialist will talk to you about how you are feeling to see if they can help. It is likely that you would see the specialist on a regular basis and in most cases you will do this as an out-patient. If your weight was dangerously low and it posed a real problem to your health then it is likely you would be admitted to stay in hospital for you to be treated.
As an out-patient, the psychiatrist will ask you how long you have had a problem with food, when it started and how it developed. You will be weighed and may have a physical health examination to see if the eating disorder has affected your health at all and they may take blood tests. With your permission, the psychiatrist may want to talk to your family to see if they can help with the problem at all. If you don’t want your family involved then tell the psychiatrist this and maybe they could talk to a friend instead.
Nice suggest that family interventions that directly address the eating disorder should be offered to children and adolescents with anorexia. If you are happy for the psychiatrist to talk to your family and if you live at home, he or she may then want your family to keep an eye on what you are eating and to make sure that you are getting enough calories. You will see your therapist (psychiatrist/counsellor) regularly for ongoing support and to keep checking your weight.
You will be able to discuss anything that is concerning you at the sessions with the therapist or counsellor.
It will be hard for you to think about getting back to a healthy weight as you have spent so long trying to be thin but you will want to get better and in order to do that you will need to know what your healthy weight is and how many calories you need to eat to get to that weight. You will also need to know how to control your eating.
The therapist may suggest you see a dietician who will explain the impact of not eating on your body and how it can affect your health. The dietician can help you regain a healthy eating pattern.
Hospital treatment
Most people would be treated as an out-patient in a hospital but if you were treated in hospital it would be similar to seeing a therapist as above but in a more structured way with regular blood tests and you will be regularly weighed. Nice says that healthcare professionals need to balance whether a child or adolescent with anorexia nervosa needs to be treated in hospital alongside their educational and social needs.
Compulsory treatment
If you are seriously ill and you cannot make decisions for yourself or you need to be protected from harm, then doctors would carry out compulsory treatment. This is unusual and would be if your weight was so low that it was putting your life in danger. Nice says that feeding against the will of the patient should be a last resort and should only be done in the context of the Mental Health Act 1983 or Children Act 1989.
The Nice guidelines on eating disorders are available here.
There is further information about anorexia in the next section.