EATING DISORDERS

Hypnotherapy for Anorexia, Bulimia Nervosa & Binge Eating

How Hypnotherapy can help you with Anorexia Nervosa

The problem with Anorexia is that you don't actually feel you really have a problem. OK, you do like to feel in control of your eating and weight and you might feel quite panicky if it fluctuates too much.  You might feel frustrated at not being able to lose weight and feel very stressed and anxious when you look at your self in the mirror, because all you see is how fat you are.

There's another problem too, the idea of 'being cured' of your 'problem' is probably very undesirable, because the very thought of being 'cured' makes you feel quite uneasy, it implies that you will start to eat more food and put on more weight than ever, and that's the thing you most want to avoid.

However, you are not happy, and that's where hypnosis can help you.  You may feel anxious a lot of the time and your self-esteem may be low.  You probably don't feel that good about yourself and are not really sure which direction to go to find help, if you really need help.

When someone comes to me with Anorexia, I hardly ever mention food or weight, etc. We just concentrate on helping you to de-stress, lose a lot of that anxiety you're carrying around with you, and learn to feel much better about yourself.  The primary objective is to put you back in control of you.....

Your initial consultation is free of charge and without obligation.  Your first treatment session will be 60 to90 minutes and all further sessions will last for 60 - 90 minutes.  The estimated number of sessions required is between 6 & 12, although no guarantees are given because this problem varies greatly in intensity from person to person. Sessions 1 - 6 will be scheduled at weekly intervals and the following sessions are normally scheduled for about every 10 - 14 days.

What is Anorexia Nervosa?  Is an illness characterised by weight loss, an intense fear of gaining weight, even though under weight, a distorted body image and amenorrhea (absence of 3 or more menstrual cycles).  It primarily affects adolescent girls in approximately 1-2% of the population.

Obsessive compulsive disorder is common amongst anorexia clients, also concealing or hoarding food. Clients are often ritualistic; any deviation from the norm can cause anxiety. When suffering from anorexia severe food limitation feels rational, and an inability to see the dangers takes over. Depression is a common manifestation of the illness and is almost always alleviated by nourishment.

Medical Complications of Anorexia:

Attempts by the body to conserve energy can result in the following problems -

• Kidney failure
• Decreased heart size
• Decreased bone marrow
• Decreased oestrogen and testosterone
• Fine hair
• Chronic renal failure
• Cramps, weakness, swollen salivary glands
• Bowel obstruction due to under use
• Dry pale skin
• Orange tinge to skin discoloration due to excessive eating of oranges
• Poor concentration
• Impaired sleep
• Decreased libido

Hypnotherapy or hypnosis helps Anorexia by:

Teaching Self Hypnosis

Goal setting

Accessing true body image

Lowering levels of anxiety

Increasing feelings of confidence and self esteem

Emphasizing feelings of general well being

Exploration of early memories and relationships

Re-accessing body feelings such as hunger

Identifying: secondary gains (reasons for holding onto anorexia)

Identifying triggers: loneliness, boredom, stress, anger, depression, tranquillizing from anxiety, low self esteem, low self worth measured by weight, unhappy or disrupted family life and finding more constructive ways of dealing with these issues.

Bulimia Nervosa:

How Hypnotherapy can help you Bulimia Nervosa?

No more Bingeing, or vomiting, no more feelings of guilt, shame or  just feeling bad inside.  You're peace of mind will increase and you'll feel more relaxed often from your very first session.

Bulimia Nervosa is a disease, often related to control issues, which is characterised by repeated bouts of overeating and an excessive preoccupation with the control of body weight, leading to the person to adopt extreme measures so as to mitigate the fattening effects of ingested food.

Large amounts of food is generally eaten in private with a feeling of a lack of control and inability to stop, so to prevent weight gain one or a number of the following techniques are used: vomiting, laxative, diuretics, enemas, fasting and excessive exercise.

Self evaluation is unduly influenced by body shape and weight, there is persistent preoccupation with food and a client can spend a large proportion of their waking hours thinking about food, planning the next binge, or feeling appalled by the last. The disease is often triggered by dieting, boredom, loneliness, anger, depression, tranquillizing from anxiety, low self esteem, self worth measured by:

• weight/shape
• Physical Complications of Bulimia:
• Dehydration
• Heart disorders (Arrhythmia, cardiomypathe)
• Acute gastric dilation
• Dental erosion
• Aspiration pneumonia (vomit in wind pipe)
• Seizure
• Polycystic Ovary syndrome
• Menstrual irregularities

 Hypnotherapy or hypnosis helps Bulimia by:

• Teaching Self Hypnosis
• Direct suggestions to stop binge/purge cycle
• Lowering levels of anxiety
• Increasing feelings of confidence and self esteem
• Emphasizing feelings of general well being
• Exploration of early memories and relationships
• Re-accessing body feelings such as fullness
• Identifying and secondary gains (reasons for holding onto bulimia)
• Identifying triggers - loneliness, boredom, anger, depression, tranquillizing from anxiety, low self esteem, or self worth measured by weight, unhappy or disrupted personal life - and finding more constructive ways of dealing with these issues.
• Prohibition of certain foods (aversion therapy)
• Increase motivation

Binge Eating Disorder: is a new disorder which looks like bulimia, with recurrent binge episodes but without the compensatory measures seen in bulimia. As a result many binge eaters are over weight, or of normal weight. Sometimes binge eaters might exercise or skip a meal here and there. They are often distressed about their eating and tend to eat very quickly or in response to a cue, i.e. stress, sadness, anger, often feeling disgusted with themselves after a binge.

A person may either overeat without regard to physical cues of hunger or satisfaction, or binge (eating an abnormally large amount of food in a short time) without purging.  This can be for a number of reasons and hypnotherapy can help you find the answers to your problem.  You will learn quickly how to overcome your compulsion to eat and be freed from the burden of knowing you are harming yourself and possibly your relationships and happiness also.

Binge eating, sometimes called compulsive overeating, can act as a comfort for some people and an escape or a way of attempting to control that which cannot be controlled for others, a kind of Obsessive and/or Compulsive Disorder. 

Whatever your particular version of this disorder is, Hypnosis may provide you with the help you need to overcome the disorder for good.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Always consult your GP about any of the above disorders in the first instance.

For your FREE Consultation call Thom NOW Tel: 989 103 47