Eating disorders can be extremely destructive health conditions, capable of destroying both your mental and physical health. These issues affect the way you see and think about eating, food and your weight. In severe cases, eating disorders like anorexia can be life-threatening, underlining the importance of seeking out effective treatment.
Thankfully, there are many effective treatments that can help you manage your symptoms, including nutritional education, medication (when needed) and multiple types of therapy.
Here we’ll go over the different types of therapy, covering the pros and cons of each and explaining how they can help you overcome an eating disorder.
Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
Although there can be different factors that cause eating disorders, when it comes to bulimia and anorexia these are usually caused by an obsession over weight/body image. Other eating disorders such as binge-eating disorder which causes people to eat large amounts of food in a short space of time are linked to body image and psychological conditions.
Although overcoming eating disorders can be a long and challenging journey, CBT therapy is a well-established approach and has proven itself to be effective. By focusing on identifying and challenging negative thought patterns related to food and body image, CBT can gradually start to alter the patient’s perspective.
Its proven efficacy, practical skills, and personalised approach make it a reliable choice, although this treatment requires commitment from the patient otherwise relapse can occur.
Dialectical Behaviour Therapy
(DBT) combines elements of cognitive-behavioural therapy with mindfulness and acceptance strategies to help individuals who struggle with emotion regulation, self-destructive behaviours and difficulty in forming or maintaining interpersonal relationships.
DBT can help individuals with eating disorders by teaching them effective emotion regulation skills, reducing impulsive behaviours and promoting mindfulness to improve their relationship with food and their bodies.
Group Therapy
As well as the one-to-one approach of CBT, another option is group therapy sessions. Here, patients are encouraged to share their experiences with others who are experiencing similar issues.
For some, group therapy is preferable as it reduces feelings of isolation and provides a sense of community. For those paying privately, it’s also a cost-effective option as it’s more affordable than private therapy.
Conversely, others may be put off by the lack of privacy which can prevent some individuals from opening up fully, which is crucial for getting the best chance of success.
With everything considered, group therapy is by no means for everyone. But depending on your circumstances and preferences, for others it may be worth considering.
Family-Based Approach
Another option that may or may not appeal is family-based approach therapy. This approach attempts to get to the root causes of eating disorders and involves the patient’s family in the process.
Although some would certainly benefit from the involvement and support of their loved ones, for others, in particular those who struggle to open up or connect with their family members, this type of therapy could prove ineffective.
Again, the suitability of this therapeutic approach will depend on your needs, preferences and circumstances. So while FBA might not be the best option for some, for others it can prove to be an effective treatment for eating disorders.
Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT)
Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT) focuses on improving an individual’s interpersonal relationships and addressing interpersonal issues that may contribute to psychological distress.
Although the link to eating disorders isn’t immediately obvious, interpersonal issues can often underlie and exacerbate this disordered behaviour. But By resolving interpersonal challenges and enhancing emotional connections, IPT can help individuals develop healthier coping strategies and reduce the need for disordered eating behaviours as a way of managing emotional distress.
When it comes to eating disorders, there’s no one-size-fits-all solution. These are complex issues that are caused by a range of factors, from biological to genetic to environmental. This is why it’s important to have many therapy options to choose from, and thankfully there are a number of methods that each take a slightly different approach.
So whether you’re keen on the privacy and personalised nature of CBT, you prefer the collaborative nature of group therapy, or you’d like to involve your family in the treatment, the various options should cover all these bases.