About Eating Disorders

"We punish the self through our intake of energy."

Eating disorders are created by the self and usually begin when we suffer emotional trauma. Eating disorders are a form of self-punishment. We punish the self, we suffer guilt, we punish the self and the cycle continues, becoming an instinctive and natural behaviour.

Eating disorders are situations that begin to grow and become deeper in influence. Small changes in behaviour that affect our eating habits can lead to one of a vast array of eating disorders.

Anorexia
Bulimia
Irritable bowel syndrome
Obesity.

Eating disorders are common and are widespread.

Priorities of preserving the self diminish, or are disregarded, and self-punishment and suffering dominate. We under-eat, over-eat and abuse our bodies, forcing them to misbehave. This turns the whole process into an addiction.

Causes of Eating Disorders

Eating disorders do not relate to healthy or unhealthy eating. Eating disorders are the reason behind whether we eat, and how much we eat.

There are so many rules and regulations governing our food and what we should and should not eat that it is easy to become restricted.

What we once found comforting to eat when we were growing up has now been labelled as unhealthy.

Allergies to food have escalated. We believe that we are allergic to certain products and so avoid them totally.

We overeat to feel comfort or to compensate for emotional weaknesses. We under-eat in response to minor depressions that block our appetite, influencing the body to reject the intake of food.

The whole process of eating is under our control - our state of mind, our beliefs and our reactions. Eating disorders are controlled by emotions and not through the need to eat in order to preserve the self.

When we are unhappy about our physical appearance we assume that our appearance is inadequate. We become detached from the truth. This process is based on our expectations or the expectations of others. Therefore we fail to recognise our true physical state and believe instead that our appearance is inadequate or threatening.

Everyone suffering from an eating disorder is fully aware of the situation and what is happening mentally and emotionally. Yet the feelings of inadequacy about the self are so deep that the process turns into a habit which in turn becomes an eating disorder where all rational thought is forgotten.

When there is a slight discomfort that creates change in our life we tend to react with our emotions.

Understanding Eating Disorders

At The Mind Clinic all cases of eating disorders are resolved through guidance and counselling. Once full understanding is reached by way of education about the mechanics of these situations, the condition subsides.

Anorexia and obesity are two extremes that people suffer with, which turns into an addiction: an addiction to under-eating (anorexia) or an addiction to over-eating (obesity).

Situations of anorexia, alcohol abuse and obesity are complex because they contain addictive influences that require determination and commitment to overcome.

Learn how to redirect attention to other areas of life.

Benefits

Understand emotional influences
Stop ritualistic behaviour
Thought processes that restrict will be alleviated
Learn about the self
Guilt- and fear-free
Restore normal sleep patterns
Medication reduction programme (in conjunction with medical care)

Questions and Answers for Eating Disorders

Q. How do you keep your mind off eating?

A. We eat for all sorts of different reasons. But we must first identify the motive behind our eating habits. By identifying the cause of the thought of wanting to eat, you are highly likely to reach an understanding that it is purely an emotional need, rather than a requirement to satisfy hunger.

During emotional highs and lows our energy intake is disrupted and we begin to abuse our regular eating habits. Eating easily becomes a substitute for dealing with the stresses or elation that we feel.

One must remember that our need to eat becomes prominent when we react to any form of failure. This triggers self-punishment.

It is important that you question the reasons for your eating behaviour.

Once you reach your conclusions, be absolutely certain to overcome the difficulty, not by denying it, but by accepting the true facts.

We may disagree with the rest of the world, but within ourselves we all know the truth behind our eating habits.

You must always strive to restore balance.

Q. I suffer with bulimia. How can you help me to overcome this?

A. Bulimia is like any other eating disorder. Once you understand the mechanics of bulimia it is possible to eliminate the habit that has become normal behaviour for you.

We will teach you how to understand yourself and you will learn how to accept yourself.

By applying mind instruction you begin to identify the pressures and anxieties that are behind the onset of bulimia and learn to control them.