Eating Disorders

About 9% of Americans experience an eating disorder during their lifetime. At Cecilia Medical Center in Ellicott City, Maryland, their compassionate team offers treatments that help you overcome such disorders and establish a healthy relationship with food. Schedule an in-person or telehealth evaluation by calling the office or booking online. 

What are eating disorders?

Eating disorders are mental health conditions affecting your relationship with food and often your self-image and/or body weight. An eating disorder might cause you to be overweight, underweight, malnourished, or participate in unhealthy eating behaviors. 

The compassionate specialists at Cecilia Medical Center help restore healthy food habits, improve mental well-being, and enhance your quality of life.

What are the different types of eating disorders?

Examples of eating disorders include:

Anorexia nervosa

People with anorexia often severely restrict food intake (self-starvation) due to a distorted self-image or fear of gaining weight, despite often being underweight.

Bulimia nervosa

Bulimia nervosa is an eating disorder characterized by binging on a large amount of food followed by purging (laxative use, forced vomiting, or excessive exercise).

Rumination disorder

People with rumination disorder return undigested food to their mouths after swallowing it. They then rechew the food and reswallow or spit it out. 

Avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID)

People with ARFID limit the amount or type of foods eaten for reasons other than a distorted body image or weight loss. 

Binge-eating disorder

Individuals with binge-eating disorder consume a lot of calories in a short period and often keep eating after feeling full. They may carry excess weight.

Pica 

Pica is an eating disorder in which individuals eat non-food items like ice chips, paint, dirt, clay, chalk, or soap.

What are the symptoms of eating disorders?

Symptoms of an eating disorder can include:

• Fatigue
• Thinning hair
• Mood swings
• Being underweight or overweight
• Binging with or without purging
• Eating too few calories
• Social isolation
• Irritability
• Dizziness
• Fainting
• Withdrawing from family and friends
• Hiding food
• Food rituals
• Malnutrition 
• Restrictive eating
• Avoiding certain foods

Eating disorders can cause shame, guilt, or a lack of control surrounding food. They might appear with anxiety, depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), or other co-existing mental health concerns.

Risk factors for eating disorders may include brain changes, genetics, stress, trauma, perfectionism, or additional mental health disorders.

How are eating disorders diagnosed?

The Cecilia Medical Center experts can diagnose eating disorders by completing a psychiatric evaluation using DSM-5 criteria. They discuss your behaviors, food relationship, thoughts, emotions, moods, and lifestyle to determine which treatment may be the most appropriate. 

How are eating disorders treated?

Your personalized eating disorder treatment may consist of:

• Nutrition counseling
• Lifestyle modifications 
• Support groups
• Medication management
• Psychotherapy 
• Intensive outpatient therapy
• Referrals to inpatient programs

You might meet with your provider weekly (or as needed) for therapy sessions to help you overcome an eating disorder.

Schedule an in-person or telehealth eating disorder evaluation at Cecilia Medical Center by calling the office or requesting an appointment online today.