Eating disorders
Some people who develop eating problems may have a distorted relationship with food. This can become a way of trying to cope with another underlying problem, such as anxiety, emotional distress or a sense of having lost control over one or more areas of life.
For you, it can also lead to your attitude towards food, and the way you see yourself, being skewed. Over time, your thoughts can become focused on food, how it makes you feel, what or how much you eat, and what you do after you've eaten.
Eating-related problems can manifest themselves in many different ways. For some, it may mean eating less than their body needs, to have enough energy, and to function properly. For others, it may mean eating more than they need, over a short or long period, and making themselves sick or not to "purge" what they've eaten. You may even be confronted with food types, varieties, textures and smells which, although often considered "difficult foods", can have a significant impact on your diet and general well-being.
There is no single solution when it comes to an eating problem. While some people worry about their body, their appearance or their weight, others focus on the sensations they feel when they eat: whether it's to give them a sense of control, help them numb other feelings, create a temporary sense of comfort or happiness
Anyone can develop an eating problem at any stage of life, regardless of gender, age, ethnic origin or socio-economic background. Feelings of guilt, shame or even denial that you have a problem are common reactions, but help is available.
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Do I have an eating disorder?
Eating disorders are serious conditions where an unhealthy attitude towards food can take over your life, affecting your health and your physical, mental and emotional well-being. Although they most often affect young women aged 13 to 17, they can affect anyone, at any time. Seeking early intervention and diagnosis can greatly increase your chances of recovery.
The most common eating disorders are :
Anorexia nervosa - restriction of food intake to keep weight as low as possible. These disorders are often accompanied by excessive physical exercise.
Bulimia - eating a lot of food in a short time, binge-eating, and then getting rid of it, purging, by being sick, making oneself vomit, or using laxatives. It can also be accompanied by excessive exercise.
Binge-eating - eating large portions of food at once until you feel uncomfortable, or painfully full. This can often be followed by feelings of guilt, annoyance or shame.
Other Specific Eating Disorder (OSFED)* - a general term used to designate people whose eating disorder does not fully correspond to anorexia, bulimia or binge eating. Although not as explicitly described, it is an equally serious condition.
Understanding feeding problems
It can be difficult to fully understand food issues. But there's no escaping it: food is something we deal with every day. We need it to survive. However, many of us have a complicated relationship with food. When this relationship becomes distorted, the way we interact with food can turn into an unhealthy coping mechanism, which we use to deal with difficult, upsetting or troubling emotions or situations.
Developing a problem with food can mean that you think about food differently from other people. This can lead you to think about yourself, food or food in general, and how others may do so, which can change your behavior with food. The reasons why some of us develop a complex relationship with food, and others don't, are not always understood.
Contributing factors can include low self-esteem, an increased need for control, or a desire to bury difficult emotions. Other influences range from genetics to societal pressure, and vary according to personality type.
If you're worried about your relationship with food, you can start looking for support. Try talking to someone you trust. If you feel unable to talk to someone you know, like and trust, it may help to turn to a support and helpline. Once you've spoken to someone, talking and asking for help can seem a lot less daunting. If you're worried about someone else, support them, offer them a space to talk, and try to encourage them to seek professional support.
If you're concerned that your eating problem is an eating disorder, treatments such as counseling are often recommended, and can be very effective. However, everyone is different, and for some people a different, even multidisciplinary and holistic, approach is needed.
Signs and symptoms of an eating disorder
There may be various signs that you, or someone you care about, may have an eating disorder. Among these signs, you should look out for:
you spend a lot of time worrying about your weight, shape, size or appearance.
you change your social plans or avoid situations where food might be involved.
you restrict what or how much you eat. For example, you cut out certain "bad" food groups or stick to a very low calorie count.
make yourself ill or take laxatives after eating, whether you've eaten a little, or felt you've eaten too much, or "stuffed yourself".
you exercise excessively, either in terms of number of sessions or intensity.
you have very strict eating habits or routines.
you notice significant changes in your weight, increase or decrease.
mood swings.
you feel cold, tired or dizzy.
your periods have stopped or become infrequent.
If you're worried about a loved one, warning signs of an eating problem may include the following:
Notice a significant change in weight.
Avoid situations where he may have to eat in front of others, or frequently give excuses for not eating.
Lying about what he ate or how much he ate.
Eat a lot of food in a short time.
Go to the toilet soon after eating, especially if he appears flushed or has a red face.
He developed an obsession with exercise.
He seems to eat very slowly, cut his food into small pieces or try to hide food instead of eating it.
They wear much looser or baggier-than-normal clothing to hide their bodies.
Hypnosis for eating disorders
Hypnosis can be very useful for those who find it hard to eat too much in a short space of time. Often called "binge-eating", it involves eating until you feel uncomfortable, or painfully full. For some people, it can feel like a compulsion to keep eating, or as if they can't stop until all the food on their plate is gone. Uncovering past events that may have triggered or influenced this relationship with food can be done using analytical hypnotherapy or regression techniques.
Reducing stress and anxiety is another essential way in which hypnotherapy can help people who overeat. Often, sufferers find that symptoms are exacerbated by stress. Ideally, this stress should be reduced. Relaxation techniques can also help people to continue this work outside their sessions.
Hypnosis can help identify the root causes of what you're experiencing. Certain types of hypnotherapy, such as regression hypnotherapy, can be used to uncover specific events, which may have led to eating problems. Suggestion hypnotherapy can be used to encourage more positive ways of thinking, particularly about how the person perceives themselves, and about food. In some cases, neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) can also be used.
Hypnosis can help improve self-esteem, reduce food-related anxiety and boost self-confidence. In addition, hypnotherapists often teach self-hypnosis techniques that can be used throughout the healing process.
If your eating difficulties are closely linked to your behavior, you may feel trapped in a cycle of bingeing and purging. Hypnosis can be used to make positive suggestions to the subconscious mind, to help break this cycle. By helping to build confidence and improve self-esteem, the aim of hypnosis for bulimia is to improve your relationship with food and with yourself.
