College Students With Anorexia example essay topic

Final Paper April 30th 2003 Topic: Anorexia Nervosa and the college student It takes a lot of courage to release the familiar and seemingly secure, to embrace the new. But there is no real security in what is no longer meaningful. There is more security in adventurous and exciting, for in movement there is life, and in change there is power. -Alan Cohen Each year, Anorexia Nervosa continues to rise among college students. High stress levels brought on from academics, peer pressure and insecurities about the future, compounded with the decrease in physical activity due to longer study hours and less time for physical exertion, leads to the "freshman 15", or in many instances, an increase of 10 to 20 percent of normal body weight.

Anorexia Nervosa, perhaps the most deadly of all eating disorders comes from the Latin words meaning "nervous loss of appetite", and is characterized by a severe revulsion toward eating that results in extreme thinness, intense fear of gaining weight, a severely abnormal perception of shape and size of the body and sometimes in death from self-inflicted starvation. The causes of anorexia nervosa are poorly understood, and its treatment is therefore difficult. In addition, Anorexia has the highest rate of death in any psychiatric illness among college students- leading to death by cardiac arrest, starvation, or suicide. For some college students's uc cess is not a goal-it is expected. And with high expectations comes pressures to be perfect. With statistics showing that one out of every four-college student knowing someone suffering from this disease or have been exposed to it in some form.

Experts say that there is something about higher learning that increases that risk with an estimated 1000 women dying each year... In addition, approximately 90 percent - 95 percent of college students suffering from Anorexia are young women while men account for the remaining 5 - 10 percent. Studies suggest that some of these students may be genetically predisposed to this eating disorder, which often comes from a mother dominated home, with possible drug addictions in that family. In essence, abnormal dieters may progress to pathological anorexia with between 5-20 percent of the students struggling with this disease dying. Beyond food-related behaviors, such as obsessive exercising, counting calories and food restrictions, most college students with anorexia may display a wide range of cognitive and emotional problems. Which includes an intense fear of gaining weight, depression, moodiness, dichotomous thinking, low self-esteem and perfectionism; with the mortality rates not accurately reflecting the number of students who die from anorexia since there are long-term effects on the body, because even after a person no longer suffers from the disease, the damage to the body may persist.

Some of the effects are as follows: Cardiac irregularities, the most common cause of death. Amenorrhea, resulting in temporary or permanent infertility, severe dehydration, Nutritional deficiencies, Osteoporosis, easy bruising, sensitivity to cold, dry cracked skin, brittle nails, thin dry hair and eventually death. Nevertheless, the chances of recovery increases the earlier anorexia is detected. Therefore it is imperative to be aware of some of the signs mentioned above. For those college students that do realize they have a problem with anorexia, it can be very difficult for them to seek help.

Many of them tend to fell that their peers will consider them crazy. Therefore many avoid telling someone for the fear that they will be thrown out of college or placed in a mental institution. Many of the changes of anorexia nervosa can be reversed, but treatment almost always requires professional help, and the sooner it is started the better the chances for reversibility and cure. Many colleges provide health-counseling services for students who desire help, but there is still room for improvement. Most Colleges have physicians that provide psychological, medical and nutritional counseling, but there are still many college campuses that do not provide their students with any treatment, and this is could determine the life or death of students that are from out of town and don't have families to turn to for help.

The treatment of an anorexic student on many college campuses begins with restoring nutrition immediately. If starvation has reached a dangerous point, the student is hospitalized and fed by stomach tube or through a vein. Because the illness is basically psychological, the help of a psychiatrist or other trained counselor is also necessary. The student needs to understand why he or she is starving himself or herself and to recognize their value. Long-term psychotherapy, for both mental and physical recovery, is often necessary. Since there are a high number of college students suffering from this disorder, it is also extremely important for the students afflicted with anorexia to have a support group to attend.

Being with others that know and understand how they feel can help to show them that they are not alone. The more services that colleges provide for students suffering with anorexia nervosa, the better their chances are for recovery and to learn to adjust and deal with all the pressures that go along with college life. In conclusion, anorexia nervosa is not a gender-designated disorder. It is a disorder that affects everyone involved. Therefore, it should not be treated as only an individual problem, but as a societal one, and it is our society, with it's obsession with thinness and obtaining the perfect body that has cultivated the development of this eating disorder. We must remember that diets don't work- eating three healthy meals a day with moderate exercise will allow our bodies to go into it's natural set point.

No number on a scale and fitting into a smaller dress size will mke you happy. Happiness can only come from within.