Dialectical Behavior Therapy Group for Eating Disorders
Every year, 30 million people in the United States of America suffer from an eating disorder (National Eating Disorder Association, 2014). Due to the complex nature of the disease, eating disorders are notoriously difficult to treat. New research suggests that DBT could provide qualities that other therapies lack. This paper will explore the diagnoses of various eating disorders, components of DBT, and the function of a DBT group in the treatment of eating disorders. Professionals in the field of eating disorders began exploring DBT, which was not previously used for eating disorders, and may have discovered an effective alternative.
Eating Disorders
Eating disorders are a nondiscriminatory disease that takes the lives of millions of people each year. As of 2014, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 5 (5th ed.; DSM–5; American Psychiatric Association, 2013) changed the criteria for eating disorders and included binge eating disorder as its own category instead of group it as an eating disorder not otherwise specified. The three main eating disorders include anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge eating disorder and without intervention and proper treatment, individuals suffering from an eating disorder are faced with years of struggling, which may end in death.
Anorexia Nervosa
Popular culture glorifies anorexia as a fad diet or as an idealized body; however, anorexia does not equate to success, it is a deadly disease. In fact, anorexia has the highest mortality rate of any other psychiatric illness (Arcelus, Mitchell, Wales, & Nielsen, 2011). Individuals will go to any extreme in order to lose weight. According to the DSM-5, the foll...
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Palmer, R. L. (2002). Dialectical behaviour therapy for borderline personality disorder. Advances in Psychiatric Treatment, 8, 10-16. doi:10.1192/apt.8.1.10
Safer, D. L., Telch, C. F., & Agras, W. S. (2001). Dialectical behavior therapy for bulimia nervosa. The American Journal of Psychiatry, 158, 632-634. doi:10.1176/appi.ajp.158.4.632
Salbach-Andrae, H., Bohnekamp, I., Pfeiffer, E., Lehmkuhl, U., & Miller, A. L. (2008). Dialectical behavior therapy of anorexia and bulimia nervosa among adolescents: A case series. Cognitive and Behavioral Practice, 15(4), 415-425. doi:http://dx.doi.org.library3.webster.edu/10.1016/j.cbpra.2008.04.001
Telch, C. F., Agras, W. S., & Linehan, M. M. (2001). Dialectical behavior therapy for binge eating disorder. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 69, 1061-1065. doi:10.1037//0022-006X.69.6.1061
Anorexic: this word is an adjective, a label, and to some, a lifestyle. Medically speaking, it is someone who suffers from the deadly and heartbreaking disease, Anorexia Nervosa. This term translates to “nervous loss of appetite”, but anyone who has battled through this sickness is aware how that is anything but true. Eating disorder patients do not, in fact, lose their appetite; there is more to it than that. Many perceive eating disorders as a choice to be thin, a diet, or a cry for attention; they do not see the mental destruction going on inside of the mind. Eating disorders have the highest mortality rate of any mental illness, yet only 30% of people fully recover (ANAD). The general mindset that society has about eating disorders walks hand in hand with these statistics, slowing down any advances patients may be able to make. Eating disorder patients are not getting proper treatment because of ignorant misconceptions about the illness.
This article aims to prove that Acceptance and Commitment is the best method for treating eating disorders. Although Cognitive Behavior Therapy has shown some promising results. It supports this claim by stating that Cognitive Therapy is an effective treatment for bulimia and was given a grade A by the National Institute for Clinical Effectiveness Guidelines. The authors are aiming to determine which is an effective method, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) or Cognitive Behavior Treatment (CBT). Although, it is a new theory it has proven very effective. Scientific studies of CBT have confirmed its effectiveness for a wide variety of mental illnesses including mood disorders, anxiety disorders, personality disorders, eating disorders, substance abuse disorders, sleep disorders and psychotic disorders. Studies have shown that CBT actually changes brain activity in people with mental illnesses who receive this treatment, suggestin...
Treasure, Janet., Schmidt, Ulrike. Sequential Treatment for Bulimia Nervosa Incorporating a Self-Care Manual. The British Journal of Psychiatry. 1996; 168: 94-98.
Each year millions of people in the United States develop serious and often fatal eating disorders. More than ninety percent of those are adolescent and young women. The consequences of eating disorders are often severe--one in ten end in death from either starvation, cardiac arrest, or suicide. Due to the recent awareness of this topic, much time and money has been attributed to eating disorders. Many measures have been taken to discover leading causes and eventual treatment for those suffering from anorexia. (http://www.kidsource.com/kidsource ...er.html#Causes of Eating Disorders) )
Some of the most common actions or responses for individuals with borderline personality disorder are suicidal. Incorporating the teaching of problem-solving skills will hopefully, again, reduce the number of suicidal thoughts or behaviors an individual has that could result in serious self-injury (Van Goethem, A., et al.). Lastly, arguably the most important component of the dialectical behavior therapy is allowing those who have undergone the treatment to test what they have learned. The final stage of this therapy involves having the patients visualize themselves in certain scenarios and creating a response to what they are envisioning. The most important part of this process is having patients trust their responses without utilizing the help and opinions of other individuals (Van Goethem, A., et al.). Though there are several different components that make up the dialectical behavioral therapy, they are each crucial to the treatment for individuals with, not only borderline personality disorder, but many other psychological disorders as well. Some of the effects of how this treatment has worked can be observed in a couple of different
Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) is a form of cognitive behavioral therapy, specifically developed for borderline personality disorder (BPD), in which the clinician attempts to motivate the client towards change in behavior while simultaneously validating existing thoughts and feelings. (DeVylder) The goal of dialectical behavior therapy is to minimize maladaptive behaviors related to impulse control and emotion regulation, especially those that may result in self-injury or death. (DeVylder) The desired outcome of DBT is a resolution of maladaptive behaviors related to impulse control and emotion regulation, especially those behaviors that may result in self-injury or death. (DeVylder)
In conclusion, I believe that this study is very important to the medical and mental health fields because it shows that the standard treatment used currently isn’t the most effective way of treating such disorders. Society and medical professionals should know and no longer assume if someone has an eating disorder it doesn’t mean it was caused by a psychiatric disorder. According to the findings of this study, the treatment should be changed to dealing with the physical signs of an eating disorder. It has high remission rate and a 0% mortality rate, which proves that it is very effective and more studies could be carried out to further prove this hypotheses.
...f dialectical behavior therapy for patients with borderline personality disorder on inpatient units . Psychiatric Quarterly .
According to the National Eating Disorder Association or NEDA, an eating disorder consists of extreme emotions, attitudes, and behaviors surrounding weight and food issues. There are three major types of eating disorders: Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa, and Binge Eating Disorder (BED). Anorexia Nervosa is characterized by self-starvation and excessive weight loss. Bulimia Nervosa is characterized by a cycle of bingeing and compensatory behaviors such as self-induced vomiting designed to undo or compensate for the effects of binge eating. Binge Eating Disorder is characterized by recurrent binge eating without the regular use of compensatory measures to counter the binge eating.
Anorexia is a mental illness that can be identified by its victims starving themselves in order to drop weight to dangerous levels. Most often, anorexics will restrict their food or exercise excessively in order to decrease their body weight. Anorexia has the highest mortality rate of any mental illness. This is mainly due to suicide and the complications that occur consequently from starvation. These complications include heart and kidney failure as well as osteoporosis and muscle atrophy. Females may also stop menstruating. The gastrointestinal, cardiovascular, and endocrine systems may also be affected. Thus, Anorexia has detrimental effects on a person’s physical and mental health.
Eating Disorders (EDs) are a series of often life-threatening mental health disorders which are commonly used as coping mechanisms or as ways to mask one’s problems. The causes of these illnesses are still being researched, and the effects they have on a person’s physical, mental, and emotional wellbeing can often be as long as the sufferer’s life.
In 1978, Brunch called anorexia nervosa a 'new disease' and noted that the condition seemed to overtake ?the daughters of the well-to-do, educated and successful families.? Today it is acknowledged and accepted that anorexia affects more than just one gender or socio-economic class; however, much of the current research is focused on the female gender. ?Anorexia nervosa is characterized by extreme dieting, intense fear of gaining weight, and obsessive exercising. The weight loss eventually produces a variety of physical symptoms associated with starvation: sleep disturbance, cessation of menstruation, insensitivity to pain, loss of hair on the head, low blood pressure, a variety of cardiovascular problems and reduced body temperature. Between 10% and 15% of anorexics literally starve themselves to death; others die because of some type of cardiovascular dysfunction (Bee and Boyd, 2001).?
An eating disorder is a serious health condition involving extremely unhealthy dietary habits. There are a number of accepted eating disorder treatments that depend on the symptoms and severity of the illness. The most effective treatments involve both psychological as well as physical issues with the ultimate goal being a healthy dietary lifestyle. The team approach to treatment involves professionals with experience in eating disorders that usually includes a medical provider, mental health workers, registered dieticians and case managers. These individuals work together in hopes of avoiding a life threatening situation.
...l, D. M., & Willard, S. G. (2003). When dieting becomes dangerous: A guide to understanding and treating anorexia and bulimia [Ebrary version]. Retrieved from http://libproxy.utdallas.edu/login?url=http://site.ebrary.com/lib/utdallas/Doc?id=10170079&ppg=4
Anorexia nervosa and Bulimia nervosa are described as psychological eating disorders (Keel and Levitt, 1). They are both characterized by an over evaluation of weight. Despite being primarily eating disorders, the manifestations of bulimia and anorexia are different. They both present a very conspicuous example of dangerous psychological disorders, as according to the South Carolina Department of Health, “Eating disorders have the highest mortality rate of any mental illness” (Eating Order Statistics, 1). While Bulimia and anorexia both psychological disorders primarily prevalent in women, anorexia tend to have different diagnostic complexities, symptoms and physiological effects as compared to bulimia.