Eating Disorders

People who live with an eating disorder maintain a life of secrecy, shame, self-loathing, and desperation. People sometimes stigmatize eating disorders, viewing people with these conditions as weak or just followers of a trend. If you have an eating disorder, understand that you suffer from a real and treatable condition caused by deeply rooted pain. At Tacoma Christian Counseling, we are dedicated to helping people like you overcome. Christian counseling for eating disorders will give you the support and guidance you need to move away from this bonage, towards the freedom promised by Jesus Christ.

Anorexia Nervosa

Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder that causes a person to equate their self worth with being thin. The intense fear of gaining weight can cause extreme behaviors such as refusing food, exercising excessively, or controlling calorie intake by consuming diuretics, laxatives, or by vomiting after meals. People with anorexia generally have a distorted perception of their weight, feeling that they are overweight even when others tell them that they are thin. Christian counseling for eating disorders is very successful at treating anorexia.

Symptoms of Anorexia

Signs and symptoms of anorexia can be seen as both physical symptoms related to extreme weight loss, and emotional and behavioral symptoms caused by an overwhelming need to control body weight.
Physical signs and symptoms of anorexia include:

• Extreme weight loss
• Fatigue
• Dizziness or fainting
• Hair loss or breakage
• Constipation
• Low blood pressure
• Irregular heart rhythm
• Intolerance to cold

Emotional and behavioral symptoms of anorexia include:

• Severely reducing calorie intake by fasting, dieting, and excessive exercise
• Preoccupation with food
• Frequent denial of feeling hungry
• Irritability
• Depression
• Intense fear of gaining weight

The Dangers of Anorexia

Anorexia nervosa is a potentially life-threatening condition that affects your physical and mental health. Refusing food causes a severe lack of necessary nutrition to keep the body and mind healthy.

• Anorexia damages your heart. Starvation greatly weakens the heart, leading to dizziness, fainting, and irregular heart rhythms. This also causes an abnormally slow heart rate and low blood pressure, putting you at risk for heart failure.
• Anorexia decreases your bone and muscle health. Anorexia lessens bone density, leading to brittle fragile bones, a condition called osteoporosis. Muscles deteriorate and weaken.
• Anorexia weakens your hair and skin. Low nutrition causes hair breakage and loss as well as dry, fragile skin.
• Anorexia depletes your energy levels. People with anorexia have less energy, and are easily fatigued.
• Anorexia lowers your body temperature. The lack of necessary body fat causes an inability to regulate body temperature. This results in sensitivity to the cold, and can lead to growth of downy hair called lanugo all over the body and face in effort to keep the body warm.

Anorexia is a serious condition. Often those who suffer from this disorder are in denial of how dangerous their behavior can be, and roughly half of those with anorexia will develop bulimia. If you or a loved one might struggle with anorexia, seek help right away. Christian counseling for eating disorders along with necessary medical intervention can help you gain control, regain your physical and emotional health, and heal the underlying causes of your disorder.

Bulimia Nervosa

Bulimia is an eating disorder characterized by consuming large amounts of food (binging), then ridding the body of extra calories by induced vomiting, use of diuretics, enemas, or laxatives (purging). Like anorexia, those with bulimia have a preoccupation with keeping thin. However, people with bulimia usually maintain a healthy weight. Their normal appearance, combined with no obvious issues with refusal of food can make bulimics successful at hiding their condition for many years before seeking help. If you suspect you or a loved one might be bulimic, Christian counseling for eating disorders can offer you hope.

Symptoms of Bulimia

Bulimia nervosa is a serious condition that can pose serious health risks. The act of binge eating, followed by compensatory behaviors such as vomiting produces physical and psychological symptoms.
Physical signs and symptoms of bulimia include:

• Frequent episodes of consuming large amounts of food followed by measures to prevent weight gain such as induced vomiting
• Swelling in the cheeks and jaw
• Calluses on the back of hands and knuckles
• Stained or discolored teeth
• Irregular bowel movements

Emotional and behavioral symptoms of bulimia include:

• Self-esteem overly dependant on body image
• Frequent trips to the bathroom after meals
• Excessive, strict exercise routine
• Lifestyle rituals involving binging and purging
• Feeling out of control during binging sessions
• Depression

The Dangers of Bulimia

People who suffer from bulimia are at risk for dangerous physical and emotional damage. Your body cannot function properly without adequate nutrition. Poor nutrition combined with behaviors associated with bulimia such as induced vomiting, abuse of laxatives, and binge eating create a wide-variety of problems for those who suffer from this condition.

• Bulimia destroys your digestive system. The effects of bulimia goes far beyond a sore throat and stomach pain. The effects it has on your digestive system can be very dangerous including, damage to your teeth, an irritated or torn esophagus, heartburn, and constipation to name a few.
• Bulimia weakens your heart. People with bulimia experience issues with low blood pressure, irregular heart rhythms, and are at high risk for heart failure. The force caused by induced vomiting can rupture blood vessels in the eyes and face.
• Bulimia damages your muscles and skin. Poor nutrition leads to dehydration and weakens your muscles. The act of inducing vomiting can scar the hands due to exposure to stomach acid.
• Bulimia interferes with healthy reproduction. Women with bulimia have irregular menstrual cycles, and can have difficulty becoming pregnant. If pregnant, bulimia can cause serious health risks for mother and baby.

An estimated four percent of American women have battled bulimia at some point in their lives. Of those, nearly four percent die from complications related to the condition. Don’t continue to fight alone. Tacoma Christian counseling for eating disorders can help pull you out of the darkness and hopelessness towards the light and mercy of Jesus Christ.

Binge Eating Disorder

Binge eating is when a person consumes food in amounts much longer than is normal in a given amount of time. Binge eating disorder is characterised by chronic binge eating episodes, at least once per week for three consecutive months. People who suffer from this eating disorder feel immense shame for these behaviors, and usually keep their disorder secret. People with binge eating disorder have shown great improvement with Christian counseling for eating disorders.

Symptoms of Binge Eating Disorder

If you experience recurring episodes of binge eating, followed by feelings of depression and shame, you might have binge eating disorder. As with all eating disorders, those who struggle with this condition experience many physical, mental, and emotional side-effects.
Signs and symptoms of binge eating disorder include:

• Eating large amounts of food in a specific time-frame (usually 2 hours)
• Eating in secret due to feelings of shame
• Feeling your eating behaviors are out of control
• Frequently eating until you’re uncomfortably full or when you’re not hungry
• Feeling depressed, ashamed, and disgusted with your eating behaviors
• Frequent dieting, typically without much weight loss
• Weight gain and chronic obesity

Dangers of Binge Eating Disorder

Overeating causes a variety of health issues. Those with binge eating disorder struggle with overeating on a grand-scale, causing a high risk life-threatening conditions.

• Binge eating disorder can cause obesity. Two thirds of those who suffer from binge eating disorder are obese. Severe weight gain can lead to many serious health issues like high blood pressure, sleep apnea, heart disease, and diabetes.
• Binge eating disorder leads to heart disease. When a person is overweight, their heart has to work harder to pump blood to the lungs and body, making you high risk for a heart attack or stroke.
• Binge eating can cause diabetes. People who binge eat are at risk for type 2 diabetes, a serious medical condition that affects all body systems if not properly treated.

Binge eating disorder leads to serious health problems. Approximately three percent of adults in the U.S. live with this disorder, and about half of them require professional treatment. If you live with binge eating disorder, Tacoma Christian counseling for eating disorders might provide you with the solutions you need.

In some cases, those who suffer from an eating disorder are aware that they have a problem, but they are unable to control their unhealthy behaviors. Many are in denial, and some think their behavior is perfectly healthy. Sometimes however, it can be hard to know whether your habits are indicative of an eating disorder. To help determine if you have an eating disorder, your Christian counselor might ask you questions like:

• Do you often make yourself sick because you feel uncomfortable after eating?
• Do you worry you have lost control over how much you eat?
• Have you lost more than 15 pounds in the last three months?
• Do you see yourself as overweight when others say you are too thin?
• Would you say that food controls your life?

Realizing that you have a problem takes courage and is a great first step towards recovery. At Tacoma Christian Counseling, we can offer you the support, guidance, and resources you need to beat your disorder through faith-based Christian counseling for eating disorders. We provide excellent Christian counseling for all kind of eating disorders, with the goal of helping you gain control of your life.

Causes for Eating Disorders

In the U.S. roughly ten million women and one million men have an eating disorder, predominantly adolescents and young adults. There is much to consider when determining the cause for a person’s eating disorder. Christian counseling for eating disorders focuses on understanding how you developed an eating disorder in order to help you heal and overcome. Your Christian counselor will take a close look at the psychological, personal, and social issues that might be causing your eating disorder.
Psychological factors that can cause an eating disorder include:

• Anxiety and depression
• Low self-esteem
• Feeling like you aren’t in control of your life

Personal factors that can cause an eating disorder include:

• Unhealthily personal relationships
• Difficulty managing and expressing emotions
• History of being ridiculed about your appearance or weight
• Past trauma or abuse

Social factors that can cause an eating disorder include:

• Cultural pressure to have the “perfect body”
• Definitions of beauty involving specific weights and body shapes
• Society’s tendency to value physical attractiveness before personality and character
• Stress related to racial discrimination and prejudice

Understanding what caused your eating disorder is a fundamental step towards recovery. Christian counseling for eating disorders will help you explore your personal struggles, and help you find healing of those issues so you can beat your disorder.

Successful treatment for eating disorders is a team effort. At Tacoma Christian Counseling, we can partner our Christian counseling with your physician and a dietician to help you work towards a full recovery. Through Christian counseling for eating disorders, you will learn about your disorder, what led you to this point, and how to overcome the disorder so you can live a healthy, fulfilling life.
Goals of Christian counseling for eating disorders include:

• Establishing a healthy body weight
• Discovering the cause of your eating disorder and addressing those issues
• Understanding the impact the eating disorder has on your life
• Building self-esteem and healthy body image

Therapy Methods in Christian Counseling for Eating Disorders

If you live with an eating disorder, there is hope. Together we will gain an understanding of your unique experiences and symptoms, so we can develop a Christian counseling approach that’s tailor fit to your individual needs.

At Tacoma Christian Counseling, we utilize all tools available for helping you overcome your eating disorder. This can include:

Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy: This counseling method is proven to be one of the most effective in treating various eating disorders. Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) focuses on your negative self-talk, self-image, and behaviors that contribute to your disorder. You will be given tools for learning how to control and re-focus your thoughts, while learning healthy behaviors to replace harmful ones.

Family Therapy: Christian counseling for families can help you understand how your eating disorder affects your relationship with family members. It also helps your family to better understand your eating disorder, and offers guidance on how they can help you through the treatment process.

Counseling for Depression: There is a strong relationship between depression and eating disorders. Many with depression develop an eating disorder, and those who didn’t previously suffer from depression often become depressed after an eating disorder arises. Christian counseling for depression can help you understand your symptoms, and offer solutions for managing your depression.

Advances in psychotherapy have provided us with excellent tools for battling eating disorders. Christian counseling for eating disorders can help you heal by finding the right combination of treatments for your individual needs.

Inspiration From God’s Word For Those With An Eating Disorder

At Tacoma Christian Counseling, we hope to help you learn to love yourself as God loves you, so you can find the inner peace, self-worth, and motivation to overcome your eating disorder. If you feel hopeless, worthless, or out of control, consider these scriptures:

…..but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious. – – 1 Peter 3:4

Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised. – – Proverbs 31:30

He heals the broken hearted and binds up their wounds. – – Psalm 147:3

Heal me, O LORD, and I will be healed; save me and I will be saved, for you are the one I praise. – – Jeremiah 17:14

Contact us today to learn more about Christian counseling for eating disorders

If you or someone you love could have an eating disorder, it is important to get help right away. Eating disorders are dangerous, and sometimes deadly. To schedule an appointment, you can contact us online, or give us a call at (253) 777-1997.

Do you treat eating disorders in children and teens?

Yes. At Tacoma Christian Counseling, we help people of all ages overcome a variety of eating disorders. If your child or teen might have an eating disorder, consider Christian counseling for children, or Christian counseling for teens.

How long does treatment last?

Christian counseling for eating disorders is very individualized. Length of treatment varies depending on your personal needs and response to treatment, and is always determined with your best interest in mind.

Do men suffer from eating disorders?

Yes. Although eating disorders are more common in women, we also see many men who struggle with these conditions.

Which eating disorders do you treat?

At Tacoma Christian Counseling, we have excellent Christian counselors who are experienced in treating all kinds of eating disorders including, anorexia, bulimia, binge eating disorder, eating disorder NOS, and other unhealthy eating and exercising behaviors.