Eating
Disorders
Remuda Ranch, Nation's Leading Treatment Center for Eating Disorders, Finds
Eating Disorder Lead Women to Lives of Isolation and Secrecy
(September 27, 2004) -- As an
eating disorder progresses,
so do the
isolation and secrecy that accompany it. Both adult women and teenage girls
with eating disorders evidence a need to isolate from their friends and loved
ones. Adult women, if unmarried, tend to isolate from everyone. Women with
eating disorders become uncomfortable in social situations and many times opt
for solitude. Many choose to isolate themselves because of interpersonal
difficulties such as
social anxiety disorder, problems knowing how to relate to others and
conflicted relationships, said Kari Anderson, program director at Remuda Ranch
Programs for Anorexia and
Bulimia, http://www.remudaranch.com
. "Eating disorders become the person's primary focus, and interest in real
relationships fades into the background," said Anderson. "The main reason for
the isolation is to practice the eating disorder without interruption." Women
suffering from anorexia isolate themselves more and more as their anorexia
becomes visually apparent and they look more emaciated. They avoid social
interaction because it no longer garners positive feedback. "In the early stages
of anorexia, the woman often receives positive comments about her weight loss
and thin appearance," adds Anderson. "Then at some point as the disorder
progresses, comments turn negative as friends and relatives begin to tell her
she should eat more and that the dieting has gone too far. Because of the need
to protect her eating disorder, these words are unwelcome." Many avoid social
gatherings because they involve food but do not allow for
self-imposed
food rituals, rules and guidelines to be practiced in front of others. Women
suffering from bulimia require a great deal of time alone. A lot of time is
spent acquiring tremendous amounts of food, ingesting it, purging it through
vomiting or exercise, and then getting rid of the evidence such as food
wrappers, containers and bags. Additionally, women with bulimia may avoid social
gatherings because they fear negative comments about their weight, since they
often believe they are overweight even when they are not. "Isolation intensifies
the eating disorder," adds Anderson. "Alone in the world of her eating disorder,
a woman can become consumed with her obsessive thoughts about food, calories,
weight, and
self-hatred."
Source: Remuda Ranch, Programs for Anorexia and Bulimia
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