Important For Girls With Anorexia example essay topic

Anorexia Anorexia Nervosa Anorexia Nervosa Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder in which a pre-occupation with dieting associated with a fixation for appearing thin leads to dramatic weight loss. Thousands of women from ages 15-35 suffer from this disease every year. In fact, recent studies show that over the last 10 years, the disease has increased enormously, especially among teenage girls. It is estimated that 1 out of every 250 girls is affected by this disease. The disease has also been found to be connected with another psychological dilemma, depression.

Anorexia can be detected at very early stages if the warning signs are noticed. In some cases anorexia starts out as an innocent diet. As time progresses, weight loss turns into an obsession. There are signs that are visible when a girl is on her way to an eating disorder. One of the first indications is a constant obsessing with their own weight.

In their head, they see themselves as fat, and this frightens them. Girls feel as though they need to take control of the situation before they get any heavier. This is the point where a harmless diet becomes something much worse. At this early stage, girls do not think that they could possibly develop a problem. How wrong they are. People applaud weight loss, (Sweeney, 1995) instead of worrying.

In our society women are always praised for being thin. It does not even matter whether one is healthy or not. In the early stages of anorexia, girls tend to frequently stare at themselves in the mirror. When they stare into the mirror they tend to zero in on their fat immediately.

As time goes on they become so disgusted that they do not even want to look into the mirror anymore. Another obvious sign of a problem is when a girl cuts up her food into smaller portions. This mechanism is employed to make it seem as though they are eating more Anorexia Nervosa 4 food then they actually are consuming. If all these signs are picked up on early enough, one can save a person from having to go through a tremendous amount of physical and emotional pain. Counseling can also help to prevent long-term damage.

When signs are not picked up on early enough, the victim of anorexia could be headed for a painful life. In a worst case scenario, the victim may not receive the treatment they need to improve their health, which could ultimately result in death. 5-20 percent of women die from (Sweeney 1995) complications. When a teenage girl has anorexia nervosa, there are many obvious physical signs that stand out.

A girl could diet down to a size 2, but she could still think that she is fat and can lose more weight. A girl's hipbones jut out because all that is covering them is a thin layer of skin. Her ribs stick out and look like washboards. This occurs because her stomach has shrunk so much that it is hardly visible. Girls facial features are altered.

Their necks look long and bony. They also develop dark circles under their eyes. Not every girl has all of these physical signs. Much of the time it depends on how much weight a girl losses and how long the problem continues. Some incidents are longer and more severe than other incidents. In the case of Terry Sweeney, she dropped to an all time low of 55 pounds at age 19.

In her case, she had all the above mentioned physical signs and more. As a result of not eating, the hair on her head began to fall out. She had no body fat so her body had to compensate by growing a massive amount of hair all over her body. Not all cases are this extreme, but any form of this disease has consequences. There are other physical aspects that we do not see on the outside. Teenage girls who have anorexia nervosa suffer from frequent headaches due to lowered blood pressure Anorexia Nervosa 5 and a decrease in oxygen supply to the brain.

Some anorexic girls are always cold. This occurs because they are loosing an insulated layer of fat. Some girls also suffer from a slow heart rate. Heart rate can be lowered by sustaining frequently low blood pressure. This disease creeps into one's life (Sweeney, 1995) and takes them over.

This is just one teenager's observation. Many teenagers around the country express the pain they deal with each day. Anorexia is much more than simply an eating disorder. Anorexics are starving in every area of their lives, says Judith Rus kay Rabin or, Ph. D, the director of the American Eating Disorder Center in Lido Beach, New York. Anorexia has also been linked with other kinds of emotional and psychological disorders, the most frequent being depression. There are many different causes that can trigger depression.

A death of a loved one or maybe the loss of a friendship can lead to feelings of helplessness and sorrow. As a result of the depression, one may begin other ways of coping with the problem. Anorexia is one of these ways. Not eating is a way of escaping any problems that a person cannot handle. Depression, however, is not the only emotional problem that girls feel as though they need to control. The need for power is very important as well.

Power is used to control physical and emotional surroundings. In this way, anorexia is a negative coping mechanism, employed to control emotions. Girls think that it is easier to focus on not eating food rather than dealing with feelings and emotions. Anorexia can also be used as a punishment for having any feelings at all. Anorexia in itself has a very numbing effect on a person. It is as if all one's feelings are drained and one does not have the capability to feel anymore.

Girls tend to have feelings Anorexia Nervosa 6 of power when they know that they have control over their bodies. The feel as though they hold the power, when in reality, they do not have any control over their bodies, and they do not understand that they are in fact destroying themselves. Girls who have anorexia tend to lie to their families and friends so that it does not look like they have a problem. When people ask if they have eaten lunch, they say yes, but they really have not. Girls often say they are not hungry, when if fact they are starving. Sometimes, the feeling of not eating comes from being scared.

Being scared is one of the biggest emotional problems that girls have. They posses many fears. They are mostly scared of their own bodies. They fear that they could lose control and not know what to do about it. A girl might also be scared because she knows deep down that she is destroying her body but she cannot stop the problem. It can be hard for a teenager who realizes she has a problem to come out and ask for help to put a stop to the problem.

Hopefully, by the time the girl realizes she needs help, it will not be too late. It is very important for girls with anorexia to know that there is help available to them. There are medical centers that are designed to help girls who cannot help themselves. In these centers, doctors are there to make sure that patients have a balanced food intake. Patients are not released until the doctors feel that they are capable of staying on track. This process is not easy for the teens.

They undergo a series of medical exams and observations. They are given a diet, which they must follow. If they fail to do so, privileges are taken away. This means no phone calls, no visits from friends, and no television. This is a very difficult and painful process to have to go through as a teenager, but it is necessary for any anorexic to get better. Anorexia Nervosa 7 After all the treatment is finished, some teenagers fail to regain a normal existence.

Some girls remain fragile and weak for the rest of their lives. In some cases it hurts to sit for too long because bones protrude from their hips and buttocks. Their scalp may sometimes remain visible due to excessive hair loss. Anorexia is no joke and should not be taken lightly.

It is a disease that can be brought about by a spectrum of different causes. Food is a fuel for life, (Sweeney, 1995) not an escape.