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What is food addiction and how is it different than an eating disorder?
Food addiction has been viewed as a concept yet to be fully recognized and accepted by most people. It’s been described as follows by a group of professionals identified with it’s being a bona fide addiction:
“Food ... Views: 281
What is food addiction and how is it different than an eating disorder?
Food addiction has yet to be acknowledged as a legitimate phenomenon the way drug addiction has. There is, however, a growing number of folks who do indeed see it as a bona fide addiction. Among these are a group of ... Views: 1172
WHAT ARE EATING DISORDERS?
Eating disorders are typically associated with various maladaptive patterns of behavior related to food, it’s consumption, and the ensuing effects on a person’s emotional and physical wellbeing. It may, or may not, include attempts to offset the “consequences” of ... Views: 1708
A colleague and good friend of mine, Molly Carmel, LCSW who directs an eating disorder clinic in NYC [The Beacon Program] introduced me to the concept of “dialectical abstinence.” Although I don't know of any source the concept appears, I will credit Molly with adding this to my understanding of ... Views: 4746
Let’s begin this article with an important “disclaimer” – namely no one has a definitive answer as to what causes an eating disorder and, more importantly, one definitive approach to treatment that offers a cure or is “superior” to another. Although I tend to subscribe to the belief a blend of ... Views: 1722
“Hedonic Eating” literally translates to “pleasure eating.” It refers to eating in the absence of biological need or hunger. From my standpoint it describes a pattern of disordered eating that contributes to the current rise with eating disorders and obesity. With few exceptions it involves ... Views: 1808
Although eating disorders are often accompanied by a variety of physical and emotional complications, perhaps the most painful are those leading to severe dental problems. To be sure, there is some overlap with respect to the specific impact each type of eating disorder has on our teeth and ... Views: 1928
SMART* Recovery and 12-Step Programs
In the world of addiction treatment there are several choices one has in the way of utilizing and attending a community based support group. Should one look more closely at what is offered to those with an eating disorder the choices are somewhat more ... Views: 4409
A frequently overlooked phenomenon within the recovering community, aka 12-step oriented fellowships, is a true understanding of the difference between compliance and acceptance with respect to one’s addiction[s]. As most professionals and addicts themselves have come to understand, addiction is ... Views: 7511
There is a prevailing assumption within the public arena as well as within the population of those suffering with an eating disorder, that Binge Eating Disorder, aka Food Addiction, is less "serious" than the other eating disorders - namely anorexia and bulimia. In addition, as if to make ... Views: 1846
Internal vrs. External Cues of Hunger
Eating disorders almost uniformly involve a broken thermostat-like mechanism that governs internal cues [symptoms] of hunger and fullness. In other words, unlike our “normal eating” contemporaries, we are often confused when to eat, what to eat, how much ... Views: 1778
Rather than a specific therapy, there is a philosophy that appears to hold the key to binding all this treatment and recovery stuff together, Interestingly enough, an anthropologist named David Reynolds introduced me to this “philosophy” several years ago. Dr. Reynolds, who last I heard lives in ... Views: 2073
The most recent evidence of the brain chemistry and mechanisms playing a role in the negative experiences associated with eating among those suffering with the restricting forms of eating disorders has explored the role of the neurotransmitter dopamine.
There are two divergent groups of brain ... Views: 2134
What follows is a list of common traits and characteristics among all forms of eating disorders - anorexia, bulimia, binge eating, and related addictive relationships with food and weight. As alcoholism and drug dependency share more common ground than differences, so too do the different ... Views: 2283
In August of 2010 Overeaters Anonymous celebrated its Golden Anniversary at its world convention in Los Angeles. As someone who has treated compulsive overeaters for more than three decades, I was privileged to be an invited guest to join in the celebration. As a point of reference my ... Views: 2571
Here’s a brief story from a few years ago. Ok, a couple of decades ago. Anyway, I was a student [intern] at a fairly renowned psychiatric hospital and the chief of the psychiatry division, a rather charismatic and bright fellow, was taking us on rounds. All of the sudden, out of nowhere comes ... Views: 2398
A clear and concise understanding of your insurance benefits and what will or won’t be covered for an eating disorder [or a related diagnosis] can be both confusing and overwhelming. As an example, your insurance may list mental health as a covered benefit [eating disorders fall within that ... Views: 2592
Treating Eating Disorders: The Second Assumption
In a previous article I suggested we consider a few basic assumptions that seem to apply when speaking about eating disorders. Before moving on, I’d recommend looking at what all the various forms of eating disorders have in common rather than ... Views: 1661
Let’s be clear from the get go, when it comes to getting help for an eating disorder there are a couple of assumptions to consider. Let’s look at a one of these and consider if this might “ring true” for you.
When it comes to best place to get help, people differ with respect to their own ... Views: 1964
Despite some disparity estimating the number of people who seek treatment for an eating disorder, there is an ever increasing body of evidence to suggest an eating disorder diagnosis rarely is unaccompanied by at least one other bona fide illness. Those most often identified as “primary ... Views: 1916
I’ve always been fascinated by the “disconnect” between how I experienced [perceived] my speaking voice and how it sounded when I heard it from a recorded device. Likewise, there’s the discrepancy between several photographs of us, even taken at the same place and around the same time frame. How ... Views: 1990
The American Psychiatric Association's selected criteria for substance dependency [aka addiction] appears below. The author speculates the same criteria may be used to determine whether an individual suffering from Anorexia, Bulimia, or Binge Eating Disorder displays the same characteristics. ... Views: 1629
One of the more challenging aspects of recovery from an eating disorder is learning to “navigate” through our relationships with family, friends, and co-workers. One certainty that exists for people regarding their ongoing relationships prior to entering recovery is that no relationship will ... Views: 4476
There are a few “implied” assumptions I have regarding the basic building blocks to recovering from any addiction – of which I consider most eating disorders to be. Let me be candid and put out there one of the most important assumptions I have – recovering from an eating disorder begins with a ... Views: 2057
Although there has been some controversy as to whether anyone can be "addicted to food" (AKA food addict) or manifest the symptoms of addiction with respect to the other eating disorders such as anorexia, bulimia, and binge eating disorders - the following is a list of the criteria appearing in ... Views: 1855
Cross addiction or multiple addictions are a fact of life inherent within the eating disordered community. Many of us come to the rooms of a 12-step program, treatment facility, or related support group intending to tackle our "primary problem" such as alcoholism, drug dependency, or an eating ... Views: 2005
From a professional perspective, it has been my experience that when people come into treatment for an eating disorder they often bring with them concomitant issues with either depression and/or substance abuse. An educated guess with respect to the prevalence of these “dual diagnoses” would ... Views: 1383
There a few “implied” assumptions I have regarding the basic building blocks to recovering from any addiction – of which I consider most eating disorders to be. Let me be candid and put out there one of the most important assumptions I have – recovering from an eating disorder begins with a ... Views: 1701
Those of us who have been in and around the “recovery community” are all too aware of the prevalence of eating disorders among the chemically dependent. The purpose of this article is to heighten awareness of both the nature and prevalence of eating disorders particular to the community of ... Views: 2532
For well over the past two decades, I have had the privilege of being professionally involved with people who suffer from many types of eating disorders - compulsive overeating, bulimia, binge eating disorders, as well as some forms of anorexia. Very often I’m asked whether joining OA and ... Views: 2905