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Eating Disorders

Life Works – the leading specialist in eating disorder treatment.

It is sometimes difficult for people with an eating disorder to acknowledge their problems and seek help, but eating disorders can ruin the physical and mental health of those who do not seek treatment. Eating disorders, such as anorexia nervosa, binge eating disorder, bulimia nervosa, and obesity, result from physical, emotional, or social issues, and can be successfully treated through holistic therapy. The number of people affected by some type of eating disorder is thought to be greater than ten million, and professional help is necessary for most of these patients to overcome these serious conditions.

• Anorexia
• Bulimia
• Overeating
• Atypical

Because the issues causing an unhealthy relationship with food can be complicated, treatment for eating disorders must focus on finding the right approach for individual patients. A treatment plan may include psychological counseling, adjustments to the diet and nutritional counseling, and medications when needed. Without professional care, eating disorders can leave a patient with dental problems, intestinal issues, weaker bones, muscle loss, high blood pressure, heart problems, and other serious health issues. To prevent these dangerous complications, it is vital for eating disorders to be identified early and treated as soon as possible. With proper treatment, our professionals can equip patients with the necessary coping skills to help them actively manage their problems and work toward recovery.

Anorexia

Anorexia Nervosa is an Eating Disorder characterised by the refusal to maintain a healthy body weight and an obsessive fear of gaining weight. The diagnostic criteria for Anorexia Nervosa are a BMI of 17.5 or below and amenorrhea (absence of the menstrual cycle) for up to 3 months. While Eating Disorders affect both sexes Anorexia is more common in girls who communicate via their body that all is not well. While Anorexia is a less frequent Eating Disorder it has the highest mortality rate and is therefore a serious condition. Residential anorexia treatment and early detection greatly enhance the chances for successful eating disorder recovery.

Bulimia

Bulimia is an eating disorder which results in a deep sense of shame and low self-esteem marked by the highly secretive behaviour that accompanies it. Bulimia is the process of restricting food, followed by a binging period where the sufferer will attempt to purge the over intake of food. The first step for Bulimia treatment is to identifying the secretive behaviour, as there are often very few outward physical signs. Bulimia treatment is best addressed at a residential treatment facility, where under-lying issues can be addressed whilst helping introduce a healthy relationship with food. Without Bulimia treatment the consequences are psychologically and physically severe for sufferers. It is important to note that the behaviour can be used as a coping mechanism; therefore it may indicate underlying emotional or behavioural problems.

Overeating

Compulsive Eating Disorder is often misdiagnosed as obesity. Whilst obesity is a possible symptom, not all obese individuals have Compulsive Eating Disorder and often people in a normal weight range can suffer from Compulsive Eating Disorder. Essentially the behaviour consists of frequent episodes of binge eating, often in an uncontrolled or frenzied manner, where the sufferer will eat beyond the point of being comfortably full. The emotional impacts of this behaviour are often significant feelings of guilt and depression. The obvious overeating symptoms are weight gain, unhealthy eating patterns or health issues such as high cholesterol. Treatment for Compulsive Eating Disorder works to address the behavioural or emotional mechanisms behind the relationship with food.

Atypical

Life Works is a leading private residential Eating Disorder clinic with a bespoke treatment programme for Atypical Eating Disorder recovery. Atypical Eating Disorder refers to behaviours or eating patterns that are characteristic of some, or a combination of, the other main eating disorders. For example, an atypical sufferer may rid themselves of food, and therefore calories they have consumed, through vomiting or using laxatives, however unlike a bulimic, they do not binge eat. As a specialist Eating Disorder clinic we know that Atypical Eating Disorder is a disease often suffered in silence however through our Eating Disorder recovery programme individuals are able to leave Life Works with a positive future.

Testimonials

The decision to work on myself

I went to Life Works to address my bulimia and issues around codependency that arose in my personal therapy.  I was certainly not in the darkest place that bulimia had taken me in the past, but, after sixteen years of and off treatment for the disorder, I felt stuck and knew that I needed to do some serious work on myself. On a practical level, I also desperately wanted to experience four weeks of a normal eating regime because I realised , as an adult, I had never had that and this contributed to the bulimia.