What Hinders Recovery from an Eating Disorder The Sufferers Perspective

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What Hinders Recovery from an Eating Disorder?
The Sufferers Perspective

• Bridie Hellings Terry Bowles
• Australian Catholic University

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• Knowledge about recovery help increase
  chances of recovery
• Factors associated with poor outcome
• From clinical trials
• From the perspectives of eating disorder
  sufferers

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Literature Review

• Cockell, Zaitsoff, and Geller (2004)
• 32 women previously treated for AN/EDNOS
• Three factors hindering recovery
• Losses
• Self-defeating beliefs
• Dealing with real life

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Literature Review

• Federici and Kaplan (2008)
• 15 sufferers of AN discharged from treatment
• 8 participants relapsed following discharge
• Four factors hindering recovery
• Ambivalence about recovery
• Dissatisfaction with treatment
• Lack of supportive relationships
• Difficulty tolerating negative emotions

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Method

• 179 participants
• 173 female, 6 male
• Age range 18-54 years
• 129 (72.1) currently suffering from an ED
• 50 (27.9) recovered from an ED
• 67 (37.4)- AN
• 47 (26.3)- BN
• 42 (23.5)- EDNOS

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Results

• What makes recovery from an eating disorder more
  difficult?
• 439 response units
• Content analysis
• Group similar responses
• Similar groups combined
• Naturally emerging categories

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Results

• Unhelpful relationships with others (25.6)
• Treatment (19.2)
• Daily living (14.2)
• Difficulties with food, weight, and shape (12.0)
• Difficult thoughts and emotions (11.5)
• Compounding/maintaining factors (10.1)
• Valued and habitual aspects of ED (7.4)

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Discussion

• Unhelpful relationships with others
• Lack of support and understanding
• Unhelpful comments
• Unhelpful behaviours
• Treatment
• Unable to access/finance treatment
• Forced into treatment/no voice
• Lack of specialist treatment

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Discussion

• Daily living
• Daily life events
• Features of society/media
• Difficulties with food, weight, and shape
• Food part of everyday life
• Ongoing fears of weight gain
• Difficult thoughts and emotions
• Intrusive self-talk
• Negative emotions

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Discussion

• Compounding/maintaining factors
• Underlying issues
• Co-morbid/dual diagnoses
• Valued and habitual aspects of ED
• Comfort and means of coping provided by ED
• ED behaviours have become addictive and habitual

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Where to from here?

• Adequate support
• More information and training for family and
  friends
• Access to adequate treatment (including financial
  access)
• Lobby for more training of treatment providers
  and funding for treatment
• Ongoing difficulties associated with ED (e.g.
  self-talk)
• Areas can focus on with clients to help avoid
  relapse