Anorexia is a severe mental health condition that is generally characterized by a life-threatening eating disorder. A person suffering from anorexia intentionally avoids eating food to help them manage their emotional challenges. They experience fear of gaining weight or have a desire to lose weight.
People who suffer from anorexia need to seek medical treatment. Chances of positive results with self-treatment for an anorexia patient are slim or none at all. Professional help is beneficial through a counselor or a rehabilitation center.
Psychological and medical treatment often works perfectly for anorexia patients. Some recover very well with only one episode of anorexia medical treatment, while others may experience a relapse that may require more therapy sessions.
Treatment plans are often tailored to the patients depending on the seriousness of the patient's condition. The following are some of the anorexia treatments that may be advised to an anorexic patient.
Health Issues Stabilization
The first thing that an anorexia patient will need is to stabilize their health issues. Patients could require hospitalization if the patient's condition is extreme, especially if their weight is meager. However, patients that have less danger may have the option of going through outpatient treatment.
Weight Restoration
A weight restoration program should be the next step of administering the patient's treatment. Anorexia patients usually have low weights, and therefore it is essential to work on regaining their weight. Meanwhile, getting back to average weight isn't an easy task and especially for patients undergoing treatment against their will. The patient may require a lot of counseling to accept that gaining weight is the healthiest thing for them.
Nutritional Counseling
The patient is taken through a diet program by the nutritionist or dietitian. Healthy eating is vital in anorexia treatment. Therefore, the nutritionist must help the patient develop and follow a healthy meal plan that contains enough calories to assist the patient in maintaining an average healthy weight.
Therapy
Therapy plays a very vital role in anorexia treatment. Its main goal is to identify negative feelings and self-thoughts about weight and replace these negative feelings with healthier attitudes. Therapy also helps the patient deal with difficult emotions, stress, and relationship problems in a productive way rather than a self-destructive way.
Family therapy treatment is critical as it helps to identify if the eating disorder runs in the family genes. In this particular treatment, parents are advised to monitor their children's food intake to solve this anorexic problem.
