Understanding Eating Disorders
What Are Eating Disorders?
Eating disorders are complex mental health conditions that involve persistent disturbances in eating behaviours and related thoughts and emotions. These disorders can have serious physical and emotional impacts and often stem from a combination of genetic, psychological, and social factors.
At Live Life Happy Therapy, our therapists offer compassionate support for individuals struggling with various eating disorders, such as anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder, and other specified feeding or eating disorders (OSFED).
Common Types of Eating Disorders
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Anorexia Nervosa: Characterised by an intense fear of gaining weight, distorted body image, and significant food restriction.
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Bulimia Nervosa: Involves cycles of binge eating followed by compensatory behaviours such as vomiting, excessive exercise, or misuse of laxatives.
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Binge Eating Disorder (BED): Recurrent episodes of eating large quantities of food, often quickly and to the point of discomfort, accompanied by feelings of shame and distress.
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OSFED (Other Specified Feeding or Eating Disorders): Eating disorders that don't fit the exact criteria of other disorders but still cause significant distress.
How Therapy Can Help
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Develop healthier relationships with food and body image.
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Identify and address underlying emotional and psychological factors.
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Build effective coping strategies to manage triggers and distress.
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Foster self-compassion and challenge harmful beliefs about food and body image.
Next Steps
At Live Life Happy Therapy, we offer therapy for eating disorders using a range of approaches designed to explore, challenge, and support change around long-standing or maladaptive patterns. Our team draws on diverse, evidence-based methods to help you better understand yourself, improve emotional regulation, and build more secure ways of relating.
Helpful Resources:
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Beat Eating Disorders: www.beateatingdisorders.org.uk
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Mind: www.mind.org.uk
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NHS Eating Disorders Support: www.nhs.uk
Recovery is possible, and you don't have to face this alone.