CONCLUSIONAs with any addictive behavior, progress must be evaluated on a day by day basis. The patient will be un-learning thought processes, behaviors and coping mechanisms that she learned at a young age and which may have been in place for many years. Not only is it an interpersonal struggle, but a battle against society’s demands and prejudices as well. Genetic and biological factors also enter into the overall recovery process. As well informed and sensitive health care professionals, we can do much towards helping eating disorder patients recover. Moreover, through education and information about body size as it relates to health we are better prepared to assist the general population of patients we deal with toward optimum health, physiologically and psychologically, without contributing to our society’s pressure to be thin. Next:REFERENCES |