Eating Disorder Resource centre of Ireland
Dieting Syndrome
Dieting Syndrome is a set of values, ideas, beliefs and attitudes which are created by dieting and which afflict most of the people who come for treatment for eating disorders, especially those who are overweight and who have tried several diets. It is partly created by ignorance, by getting the wrong information, and is a natural consequence in psychological terms to the behavioural restraints caused by imposing deprivation on the self.
The Beliefs associated with Dieting Syndrome can be ...
* Weight is under environmental control - all you need is the right diet and willpower and you can lose weight.
* The body is a perfect calorie machine. (Natural outcome - if you always eat just 10 calories less than you
actually need, then you will eventually fade away.)
* Dieting is the only way to lose weight.
* You have to be hungry in order to lose weight. (Opposite view - you cannot lose weight if you are not hungry.)
* Food is an enemy.
* There are good foods and bad foods. Good foods are usually seen as boring.
* Fat people shouldn't have to eat because they carry around their own larder with them.
* Thin people are lucky. They have willpower.
* You should not be hungry if you have eaten more than you need.
The Self Beliefs associated with Dieting Syndrome can beÉÉ
* I am not entitled to eat - others are
* I lack willpower, I am weak and greedy.
* If I were thin / thinner I would be happier. (True in some senses)
* If I eat in front of others, people will say no wonder she is fat.
* I gain weight if I just look at food.
* Ive blown it. If I start I have to finish the lot.
The Behaviours associated with Dieting Syndrome can be ......
* Always on or off a diet.
* Cannot maintain a happy medium, goes to pieces when not on a diet. This is actually motivational. The
collapse is an unconscious attempt to get one back on-track by making oneself feel so bad that one will
have to diet. This is why being normal has no appeal - it represents going nowhere.
TO DIET OR NOT TO DIET ?
Dieting doesnt work and long term yo-yo dieting makes the problem worse. 97% of dieters are as big if not
bigger one year after starting a diet, irrespective of emotional history. Dieting has harmful emotional and
physical side effects. Many make incorrect assumptions about the causes and consequences of overweight
and dieting therefore is the wrong solution. Most dieters associate not dieting with being on a binge or all
over the place with food until their next diet.
So what works?
1. Education works .. Educate people about the dangers of dieting, the emotional and physical
effects of dieting.
2. Teach people about the biological basis of body weight using the failure of behaviour
modification programmes as a proof that weight is biologically determined.
3. Modify peoples eating in several different ways - teach people to recognise internal
hunger cues; or abandon all dieting and eat what you like (then your eating will settle down when
you stop being deprived of certain foods); or teaching healthy eating (which many know already) or
do other strange things 'eat what you like but only on a certain size of plate (the Orgasmic Diet!).
4. Improve self esteem and body image through self acceptance rather than weight loss - To help
people stop endorsing the cultural norm that thinness equals acceptance. One way of doing this is
to get people to engage in behaviour that they have put on hold until weight has been lost. This
should in theory lead to the reduction of cravings.
5. Get people exercising instead!
META PICTURE – TYPE OF EATER
Different styles of eating difficulty may provide a clue to the therapist about the internal world and concerns of your client
With this information a more effective treatment plan , and a more effective way of working with your client may become evident
The following are examples of possible types of eaters and therapeutic interventions to deal with.
TYPE OF EATER AND INTERVENTIONS
The Angry Eater demands instant gratification. Client could be approaching life from a negative/victim position or could have real sources of anger.
Interventions :
Develop assertion and communication skills
Decriminalise anger
Explore the anger. ( module 3)
The Bored Eater sees good or healthy food as boring ! It is not that life is boring but they lack the receptors which bring pleasure, stimulation and interest.
Interventions :
Challenge the client if life is boring you can change it but they cannot escape from themselves !
The Dissatisfied Eater is hungry all the time despite the fact that they eat sufficiently.
Interventions :
Explore possibility of dissatisfaction in other areas but being played out in relationship with food (wants more ? Intellectually frustrated ? Needs not being met ?)
The Disorganised Eater are all over the place with food
Interventions :
Teaching Planning skills is crucial
Teaching Time Management Skills is also essential.
The Food Lover as it sounds has a love affair with food and is out of touch with his/her feelings.
Interventions :
Challenge what food means to the person
Develop awareness of other areas in life that the person can gain excitement.
The Fearful Eater is an almost universal state with people experiencing anorexia, as fear is quite dominant in the anorexics life prior to the illness.
Interventions :
Develop assertiveness skills
Do yes/no exercise to increase awareness
Empower client by challenging fear
Look out for social phobia. (module 3)
The Giver Eater is emotionally tuned to the needs of others and not themselves. They are needy and emotionally drained gives and gets nothing back but giving is from a position of weakness – not being able to say no and thus being taken advantage of in many cases. Giving is done to gain approval
Intervention :
Develop awareness of owns needs, assertiveness skills, communication skills and
Self Esteem work.
The Hungry Eater goes too long between meals, or does not eat enough. Not being nourished.
Interventions :
Challenge is she/he afraid of being full or of not being hungry ?
Challenge possible thought distortions…
‘If I am not hungry then I am gaining weight’ or
‘If I am not hungry then I have been greedy’.
The Hungry Eater goes too long between meals, or does not eat enough. Not being nourished.
Interventions :
Challenge is she/he afraid of being full or of not being hungry ?
Challenge possible thought distortions…
‘If I am not hungry then I am gaining weight’ or
‘If I am not hungry then I have been greedy’.
The I won’t take responsibility for myself Eater is common with young people and people who may have a background of anorexia. They adopt the ‘enemy’ approach to food.
Interventions :
Develop self care, self esteem and values.
Challenge ‘victim’ state.
The I am going to do it my way Eater can’t see the point in keeping a food diary or making little changes. They don’t want you to tell them how to eat, but to find out why they have no willpower.
Interventions :
Explore possible hidden agenda ?
Explore resistance ?
The Lonely Eater is seeking a comfort response from food.
Intervention :
Don’t rush in with solutions
Develop self esteem
Explore the significance of the loss or loneliness the person is experiencing
Uncover the meaning of being alone.
The Malnourished Eater does not eat enough, may have faddy eating high protein, low carb, and may be deficient in vitamins and minerals.
Interventions :
Challenge reasons for not eating enough ?
Explore lack of nourishment in life
The Pre-Menstrual Eater eats more 7 to 10 days before her period.
Interventions :
Reassurance that the body needs more carbs around this time to increase low levels of serotonin. Also metabolic rate is higher so body can deal with increase
Challenge anxiety around food cravings.
The Rebellious Eater or the ‘why shouldn’t I eater’ is using food as a form of rebellion.
Intervention :
Challenge who in the past or present is she/he rebelling against ?
Challenge why should you ?.
The Social Drinker as stated drinks frequently without necessarily getting drunk. Not an alcoholic .
Person has trouble controlling her intake of food and is convinced there is no connection between food and drink consumed.
Intervention :
Complex interventions as drinking and dealing with the eating problem will be incompatible.
The Shift worker Eater has irregular hours and this disrupts the body’s natural cycles.
Interventions :
Client needs to eat little and often during shift hours and have a breakfast whenever he/she wakes up, otherwise blood sugar levels will be imbalanced and this will result in cravings.
The Stressed Eater is anxious, preoccupied, and stressed and nibbles or goes for bouts of continuous eating.
Interventions :
Explore stress – real, perceived or self induced ? Mental, emotional, physical, Nutritional ?
Teach stress management skills and assertion training also helps.
Overweight?
Do you yo-yo diet, overeat, binge eat, or get food cravings ?
Does eating rule your life ?
Do you open the fridge knowing you're not really hungry ?
Have you embarked on countless diets that promised you weight loss, only to end up putting back on the weight plus another half stone?
Well then this program is for you…..
Many of you will be thinking, here we go again, another weight loss
program that promises success, why should this be any different to the previous one's.
This program is different as it explores "what's eating you'' as
opposed to what you are eating !!
Many of you reading this will have experienced several attempts at losing weight, only to end up heavier, more depressed, and more obsessed with your food and your body that you were before.
The reason for this is because up to now you have tackled the problem on a conscious level or a level on everyday awareness. You have used calorie counting, logic, dieting, discipline, denial, and willpower to change your eating patterns.
This could not result in permanent weight loss as the problem lies on an unconscious level or a level below everyday awareness. Here lies your beliefs, thoughts, feelings, behaviour, and body image. This is where the root of the problem lies, so how could you have successfully tackled it on a conscious level ?
This should make you feel better about your previous attempts. They were doomed to fail, not you. You are not a failure, your approach failed you.
It is at an unconscious level that internal processes which were unaware of most of the time lie, but which greatly influence the part food plays in our lives.
The conscious mind instructs the unconscious mind and then the unconscious mind connects with the mental, emotional,physical and spiritual aspects of a person. If the conscious mind is only dealing with food and weight through dieting, etc.. then nothing will change on any level except physical. The physical aspect is only the symptom and not the problem, hence the cause of the excess weight remains unaddressed.
This program addresses a full range of aspects in relation to your eating patterns at an unconscious level, firstly on your ….
mental level which houses your beliefs and thoughts, on your
emotional level which houses your feelings, on your
physical level where we deal with body image, and behaviour and on your
spiritual level where we tap into your inner strength to help you address the above aspects on all levels.
I also address healthy nutritional choices - foods that burn fat, foods that crush cravings etc., so as to provide a complete and effective treatment plan to ensure success. I also address certain foods that you may crave as they point to specific emotional imbalances i.e. foods containing fat are calming and foods that contain cream are comforting.
As we explore your eating world, you will become aware of yourself, your faulty thinking, your emotional responses, and the consequences of the above i.e. your behaviour with food and people. You will learn to break free from old habits, obsessions, fixations, and in turn restore your relationship with food, and then your body.
It is what you need to unlearn about your relationship with yourself and food that leads to permanent weight loss and weight maintenance.
Most poor eating habits and cravings are as a result of inner imbalances, and/or sugar imbalances. Some of these eating habits serve to numb, soothe, distract, and comfort from, and are simply ways of preventing you from getting your teeth into the real issue !
They can also be an attempt to deal with an emotion or emotions that are below our everyday level of awareness. Sadly we try to control the 'problem' by dieting, overeating, binge eating, starving, taking slimming pills etc.
this usually makes the situation worse as the underlying problem is not being addressed, hence you are left with the initial problem and then the excess weight as a result of trying to use food to deal with it.
The end result is often rebound weight gain, cravings, feelings of failure, lower self esteem, and blood sugar imbalances which can fuel poor eating habits. Many become trapped in cycles of constant dieting, and this can have far reaching effects on your mental, emotional, physical and spiritual being. This in turn can cause a person to harbour persistent weight and body issues which alternatively lead to increased obsessions and body image issues. I am sure many of you can relate to these patterns.
And now to the good news !!!!
you can restore your relationship with yourself and food.
You can achieve healthier and better eating pattern's.
You can lose weight gained as a result of constant dieting.
You can gain freedom from the ''on/off a diet'' mentality.
You can learn to recognise the emotion or emotions concealed beneath your food cravings and gain emotional discipline.
You can get relief from your addictions to certain foods.
You can learn practical solutions for triggers that cause you to lapse.
You can learn tips on how to deal with the ''I've blown it syndrome''.
You can increase your energy and well being.
The most effective diet is one of..
Self knowledge,
self esteem,
self belief,
self acceptance and
self love.
This program enlightens the person about themselves, and about the nature of the problem. It empowers each person through knowledge, insights, and techniques which serve to enable the person to make necessary changes to their thinking styles, their emotional responses, their body image issues, and their behaviour with food and people.
It reduces stress which has built up in the body and is perpetuating poor eating habits. This frees up energy which can then be use constructively I n dealing with the real issues.
Remember the weight is a signal from your body that there is an imbalance, the food is the coping mechanism you are using to deal with the imbalance , and the imbalance usually lies in the inner self. At this point I would like to add that negative emotions are the body's way of giving you a message pertaining to what the real issue is. Understanding your emotions is an important part of this program as it holds the key to your weight loss, and weight maintenance.
Not all weight problems are as a result of emotional imbalances. Some are due to sugar imbalances and the person is simply eating in response to their body chemistry. This in turn has made them feel depressed and out of control and hence weight gain is the end product. This program will facilitate you to ascertain what the root cause of your weight is and as such you can then rectify it accordingly with the enclosed information.
As your thinking (mental level) creates your feelings, and your feelings (emotional level) create your behaviour (physical level) with food and people, I hope you can now see why this program works. As previously stated it is different as it addresses all your levels so you get to tackle the problem and not the symptom of the problem i.e. your weight.
If you do not address the real issue, you have a very slim chance of losing weight and maintaining your weight loss.
For further information about our 6 week weight loss program please see homepage
Obesity and excess weight
Obesity and excess weight are fast becoming social issues as research shows ….
- over half of all the women in the UK are overweight or obese.
- One in three girls aged 11 are overweight.
- a high fat diet , especially one containing saturated fats, has
been linked to obesity. - Young women who are overweight or obese are more likely
to suffer from low self esteem, and feelings of rejection and
shame. - Obesity is not a disease, but simply a normal biological response
to the way we think and live now. - In 1980 6% of men and 8% of women were overweight.
In 2001 65.5% of men and 55.2% of women are overweight or obese.
(UK figures) - overweight and obesity are influenced by many factors including
hereditary factors,
environmental factors,
behavioural factors,
attitudinal factors,
ageing,
pregnancy,
biological factors - hormones, genetics, stress, and drugs.
Dietary factors,
activity factors, and
these last two - energy dense diets and sedentary lifestyles are
two characteristics most strongly associated with the increased
prevalence of excess weight and obesity world-wide.
Just thought these statistics would enlighten you a little about excess weight.
This is our "5 Commandments" for weight loss
Wishing you love , light and success with your endeavours…..
Suzanne
Suzanne Horgan director & founder Certified Trainer in Practitioner Skills for Eating Disorders and Obesity Contact Us today..........info@eatingdisorders.ie