Eating Disorders Blog

People who receive therapy for issues such as depression, eating disorders or post-traumatic stress disorder typically meet face-to-face with their counselors. But a new study has found that teletherapy -- therapy via teleconference -- can be just as effective.

As part of this study, 17 post-traumatic stress victims & underwent 16 to 25 sessions via teleconference with Montreal therapists. A control group consisted of patients receiving face-to-face therapy. &

The teletherapy group and the control group equally benefited from their therapy. "The same number of patients in both groups saw a significant decrease in their post-traumatic stress, depression and anxiety symptoms," says Dr. [Stephane] Guay. [Source: ScienceDaily]

None of the patients expressed discomfort with the teleconference, and some like the idea that their therapist was farther away. As it expands, teletherapy could provide people around the world access to therapy from specialists who aren't available in their own city or state.

Labels: therapy

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A new study by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) indicates that interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT) may help teen girls who are at risk for obesity to avoid weight gain. Study author Marian Tanofsky-Kraff, Ph.D., and colleagues at the NIH conducted a pilot study that included 38 girls ages 12 to 17.

Participating teens had body mass indices (BMIs) in the 75th to 97th percentile as well as loss-of-control (LOC) eating habits. Participants were divided into two groups: One group received standard health education classes, while the other group received 12 sessions of IPT over 12 weeks. All participants were followed for six months; 35 were followed for one year.

The researchers discovered that girls who received IPT were less likely to report an increase in BMI than those in the health education group. In addition, researchers noted that girls at risk for excessive weight gain in the IPT group had fewer episodes of LOC eating than their counterparts in the health education group.

The authors wrote about the results: "In this pilot study for the prevention of excess weight gain in adolescent girls, we found both IPT and a standard-of-care health education program to be feasible and acceptable to participants. In a pre-specified secondary analysis, we found very preliminary support that IPT-WG may reduce LOC eating and prevent excess BMI gain."

(Source: www.modernmedicine.com)

Labels: therapy, obesity, teen

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Recent research suggests that a few months of a specific type of talk therapy may help bulimia sufferers stop their unhealthy behaviors.

A multi-study review by Dr. Phillipa P.J. Hay at the University of Western Sydney in Australia found that bulimia-specific talk therapy (a form of cognitive behavioral therapy [CBT]) led to cessation of symptoms in approximately 37 percent of those treated.

By contrast, among bulimics on a waiting list for treatment, only 3 percent stopped binge-eating and purging.

The review included data on 3,054 adults living in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom who participated in weekly sessions of CBT for an average of 16 weeks.

Bulimia-specific CBT focuses on an individual's dietary habits and weight-related fears, and works to identify and deconstruct distorted thinking patterns. Patients learn to replace these unhealthy patterns with healthy coping strategies.

(Source: abcnews.go.com)

Labels: binge-eating, treatment, bulimia, therapy

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Researchers at the University of North Carolina (UNC) are working to develop a new treatment program for anorexics that engages spouses to help with recovery. Anorexia, a form of disordered eating in which individuals severely restrict caloric intake over a prolonged period of time, has the highest fatality rate of any psychiatric disorder - approximately one in five anorexic individuals die due to malnourishment and related complications.

Anorexia is thought to be between three and five times more common in women than men, though the number of men suffering from the disorder has grown in recent years. Typically, adult men and women with anorexia go through therapy alone. Spouses or significant others of anorexics are most often baffled by the illness and unsure of how to help.

Cynthia Bulik, director of the UNC Eating Disorders Center, commented on the need for a structured program that includes spouses, saying, "Partners of patients with anorexia nervosa really want to help and don't know what to do." (Source: www.wral.com)

Labels: treatment, therapy, spouses

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