Disordered Eating manifests as a range of symptoms and diagnoses, including anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, compulsive overeating, severely picky eating, or binge eating disorder.

What makes Disordered Eating difficult to identify is that we live in a society preoccupied with food and eating. What seems like relatively harmless dietary restrictions or weight fluctuations could be the beginnings of a much more serious condition.

Unhealthy patterns of eating are often some of the first indicators of a deeper, more serious emotional issue. Things like extremely restricted eating or overeating during times of stress, anxiety or repressed feelings can lead to serious disordered and self-harming behavior, and it’s important to recognize them when they begin.

Join us, today, as we explore the symptoms of disordered eating and core underlying issues.

Disordered Eating: A Closer Look

Some of (but not all) symptoms associated with disordered eating include:

• • Frequent yo-yo dieting and weight fluctuations
  • An obsessive and unreasonable food and exercise schedule
  • A sense of shame associated with failures to maintain diet or exercise routines
  • A negative obsession with body image and low self-esteem

• Emotional eating to repress feelings and avoid life

• Not listening to the body and instead using compulsive exercise, food restriction, fasting, or purging.

The Risks

People suffering from Disordered Eating run the risk of developing physical illnesses, as a result of improper nutrition and an obsessive focus on weight and body image. Risks associated with this can range from severe weight gain or loss, fatigue and impaired sleep to a severe Eating Disorder, Osteoporosis, Amenorrhea, and associated hormonal and electrolyte imbalances.

Treatment Approaches

One of the most direct ways to make an impact on a Disordered Eating condition is through mindful eating. This is a life skill that adjusts the way you approach hunger to include an understanding of the scale of your hunger. This helps you to break down your ideas of “hunger rules” and learn how to eat naturally by listening to your body.

If you are interested in Disordered Eating services, get in touch with us today and ask about our Transitional Outpatient Program (TOP). Our treatment approach focuses on the following areas of improvement:

• Mindful Eating: reconnecting to your natural eating cues, in order to better understand when your body wants to be fed. Learning to listen to your body for when next to eat.

• Letting Go: Learning that food rituals and traditions don’t have to dictate what you do from day to day.

• Meal Support: Specialized support helps clients account for their own eating behaviors. Treatment options can differ and are tailored to your own needs.

• Individual Therapy: Building resiliency, self-esteem and coping skills. Identifying emotional needs and learning to express feelings.

• Family Therapy: Restoring healthy family support structures and encouraging communication and dealing with underlying issues.

• Group Therapy: Learning to express feelings, build trust and support system. Encouraging socialization and acceptance with a healthy outlook on food, body image and self-care.

• Nutrition Therapy: Learning intuitive, balanced eating while separating food from feelings. Identifying physical and emotional needs to foster daily self-care.

For expert counseling services in Virginia and Maryland, Total Health Concepts offers everything from individual, couple and family counseling to support groups and expressive therapies.