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COPING WITH AN ANOREXIC OR BULIMIC PERSON
Provided Courtesy
of EDAP, Seattle, Washington
- Be patient- eating disorders
can be long-term problems. You cannot expect over-night recovery even if the
person is in therapy.
- Encourage the anorexic or
bulimic person to seek professional help. If the person is truly endangering
his/her life by their eating habits, be insistent.
- Seek outside help for
yourself. Campus resources include the Counseling and Wellness Center, and
University Health Services. Free community resources are also widely
available.
- When discussing the problem
with a person you suspect has an eating disorder, (especially if it is for
the first time), don't be surprised if the reaction is one of denial or
perhaps even hostility.
- Don't lay blame. This only
reinforces the person's feelings of failure.
- Try to ensure that you don't
allow the person's problems to interfere with your normal functioning. Let
the person know that he/she is important but you have a life too.
- Don't dwell on food-related
discussions.
- Encourage the person to get
involved with non-food related activities.
- Avoid commenting on the
person's weight or appearance- your comments may not be taken in the proper
context anyway.
- The person with an eating
disorder must feel that he/she has control over his/her daily routine. This
can be very frustrating for those around the individual, but the situation
often only becomes worse when it is perceived that someone else is trying to
take that control away.
- Be aware that low self-esteem
is often a problem for those with eating disorders. Be careful not to make
comparisons.Learn everything you can about eating disorders. The more you
know, the more you can understand. Understanding is a key to coping. Pass
the material onto the person you are concerned about.
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