How to Treat Binge Eating

Medical professionals treat binge eating with a combination of psychological counseling and medical intervention. Follow these steps for a successful resolution to this common disorder.

Things You'll Need

• Counselor or therapist
• Psychologist or psychiatrist
• Physician
• Support group
• Medication

Instructions

1. Understand the key to a successful maintenance of any binge eating treatment is the resolution of any and all underlying psychological issues which may effect your relationship to food and eating. Emotional issues often play a large role in the development of this disorder.

2. Participate in different levels of psychotherapy as a way to treat the underlying issues of poor self-esteem and poor self image which cause many people to develop binge eating tendencies. Individual psychotherapy can be administered through a number of methods, including Freudian, Jungian and other psychological practices.

3. Plan to work with a behavioral therapist to help modify your eating habits and relationship to food. Among the goals of cognitive behavior modification is the development of a self-awareness regarding food. To that end, you may be asked to keep a food journal or daily log of the food you eat and what thought processes you underwent while eating it.

4. Know that you may also be asked to participate in behavior modifying therapy which acts upon your physical relationship to food. Through a system of rewards and repercussions behaviors such as bingeing and purging are changed. This kind of therapy will help you recognize the actions or situations which trigger your bingeing urges and may help to interrupt this behavior by substituting a more healthy behaviors such as relaxation exercises or meditation.

5. Realize that there are currently no medications designed to treat binge eating specifically. However, drugs such as antidepressants are often used in conjunction with psychotherapy to help reduce the urge to eat while helping to alleviate the feelings of depression, which may be at the root of the disorder.

6. Participate in a support group if your doctor feels it will be beneficial to you. These groups of individuals in similar situations may provide support in maintaining your treatment and behavior modifications for the long term.

Tips & Warnings

• There is no prescription medication or therapy treatment which can cure eating disorders definitively. The success of your recovery is dependent upon your commitment to maintaining the healthy lifestyle prescribed by your physicians.

• It is important to treat binge eating early, as it often leads to secondary health problems such as obesity, heart disease, high cholesterol, high blood pressure and other life threatening conditions.