ADissertation
Entitled
TheBenefitsofCounselingPsychologyon
AnorexiaNervosaSufferers
ByAlfredBiggen
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Abstract
About14millionwomenalloverUSAarecurrentlyfightingwith
anorexianervosa(AN).Thisdisorderisoftenconsideredasamong
“themostintractableandleastunderstoodmentalillness”(Sanderson
andSellman,2005,p.138).Mostofthevictimsofthisillnesswillbe
fightingwiththisdiseasefortherestoftheirentirelives.Ontheother
hand,ifthisillnessisdiagnosedatanearliertime,duringteenage
yearsforinstance,itishighlypossibletotreatitusingtheright
trtreatmentmethod.Thus,womenwhoarestrugglingwithanorexia
nervosaalsoneedcomprehensivetreatment.Thesedays,afterabout
fortyyearsofstudyandresearch,therehasbeenanimprovementon
thetreatmentoptionsthatrangefrom counselingtomedication.
ChapterOne
Introduction
UponrecognizingthesymptomsofAnorexiaNervosa,whichoften
includesweightloss,strictdieting,bingeeatingandfasting,depression
andweakness,membersofthefamilyshouldalreadystartseekingout
thecounselingofahealthcareprovider,startingwiththeassistanceof
apsychologist.Thepsychologistwillstartwithtakingamedicalhistory,
alongsideaphysicalexamination(Camer,2003).Aftercompletingthe
process,thephysiciancanstartthetreatmentforAnorexiaNervosa,
whwhichmayalsoincludecertainreferralstoagoodpsychologistfor
counseling,aswellasothermedicalfields.
Counseling
Oneofthestandardtypesoftreatmentcomeintheform of
counseling,oftenreferredtoaspsychotherapy.Theaim ofthisprocess
istoworktogetherwithpatientssothatthroughthisprocess,shecan
controlherdietandmaintainherweighteventually.Therearetwo
typesofcounselingavailable:individualandfamilytherapy.
IndividualTherapy
Thistypeoftherapyinvolvesoneononecounselingwith
tthepatient.Attimes,thereisagroupofspecialists.However,the
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ResearchinCounselingPsychology
sessionoftenhappenbetweenthedoctorandthepatient.Individual
therapyoftencomeswithmixedresults.Asexplainedbyanarticle
foundintheJournalofAdolescentPsychiatry(2001),thistypeof
therapyisgenerallysuperiorespeciallywhentheyareusedin
providingtreatmentforolderpatients,aswellasthosewhoare
sufferingfrom alate-onsetofAnorexiaNervosa.
FamilyTherapy
Whilethefactremainsthatindividualtherapymaynotbeeffective
onyoungadolescents,aswellasthosewhoarestillontheearlyphase
ofAnorexiaNervosa,familytherapyisoftenconsideredassignificant
whenitcomestohelpingthisparticulargroup.Asamatteroffact,
accordingtothePsychiatryJournalofCanada,“withoutthefamily’s
involvementservingasallies,thegoalofweightmaintenancemaybe
challengingtoachieve”(StevensonandKatzmen,2002).Atthesame
titime,familytherapymaynotjustavailoftheassistanceofthe
patients,aswellasothermembersofthefamily,butitcanalsowork
togetherwithfriendsandtheschool,aspartofthestrategy.
NutritionalTherapy
Whilebothindividual,aswellasfamilytherapyaremoreofthe
traditionalmethodsinprovidingtreatmenttoAnorexiaNervosa,
nutritionaltherapy,whichoftenreferredtoaspsychoeducational
therapy,canalsobeusedcommonly.Thegoalofthistypeoftherapy
involvesprovidingcounselingonthenatureoftheillnesswiththehope
ofcultivatingbothattitudinalandbehavioralchangesonthepatient.
References
Camer,P.A.(2003).AnorexiaNervosa.ReferenceonClinical
Systems,2003,109.
Sanderson,M.A.,&Sellman,B.W (2005).Eatingdisordersamong
childrenandadolescents:therapiesavailable.Child&AdultsPsychiatry,
11,110-118.
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Counseling Psychology Dissertation Example