Understanding The Progression Of Anorexia Nervosa |
Eating disorders like Anorexia Disorders, if left untreated, usually have a very poor outcome. Years of self-starvation leads to massive organ failure; when this occurs, there is but one outcome: death.
According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of the American Psychiatric Association, Version Four, Text Revision, Anorexia Nervosa usually begins in mid to late adolescence. This is the time of life, especially for girls, when peer pressure to be thin is at its peak. Teenage girls can be merciless towards each other; "difference" is not tolerated. Adolescents, who are too smart, not dressed in the latest style, not athletic enough, not attractive enough and especially those who are overweight are shunned, ridiculed and endure endless taunts about their physical appearance. This is the time of life when "belonging" to a peer group is the most important thing in their existence. Adolescence, ages 14-18 years, is when excessive dieting can take over a young girl's life.
Anorexia seldom has an onset among women over age 40. If this does occur, it's usually in response to an excessive life stressor such as divorce, death of a loved one, or loss of a career. Regardless of the age on onset, anorexia begins with a single episode of failure to eat and intense exercise. Sometimes only this single episode occurs; when the precipitating stressor resolves, the sufferer returns to normal eating behavior. In other patients, other episodes occur over the next few years, again in response to stress including child abuse and neglect. As the child reaches adulthood, the disease is so firmly entrenched that it is repetitive rather than episodic.
With the onset of Anorexia Nervosa becoming a dominating factor in a patient's life, the excessive and obsessive exercise as well as lack of nutrition results in a gruesome skeletal appearance that experts have dubbed "the undead". At this stage, the anorexic is threatened by the possibility of a massive stroke or heart attack. Getting the anorexic to the hospital as soon as possible is the only remaining course of action to keep the person alive.
The progressive course of Anorexia Nervosa, if untreated, is as follows: Cessation of menstruation, cold intolerance, lethargy, Osteoporosis (weakening of the bones), Petechiae (bleeding) on the arms and legs, development of lanugo, fine, downy body hair, severe dehydration and electrolyte depletion that is potentially fatal. Other progressive courses of Anorexia Nervosa are: severe anemia, irregular heartbeat, brain aneurism, pancreatitis (pancreas failure), jaundice (yellowing of the skin) due to liver failure (fatal), kidney failure (fatal), massive stroke (fatal), massive heart attack (fatal), and suicide.
Starvation is a long, slow death and not one that many would choose, if indeed they did have a choice of how to die. In effect, the anorexic does have a choice: They can choose to live and listen to the worried protests of their friends and family, or they can choose to remain on the path they've taken and die.
Here are some highly recommended solutions for eating disorders
Quick Tip #1
Its important to learn to identify the different Anorexia Nervosa Symptoms, so it can be prevented |
Quick Tip #2
If she vomits constantly after eating or not eating at all, those are clear signs of Anorexia |
Quick Tip #3
Anorexia is an eating disorder that requires not just medications but psychiatric help |
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