Anorexia Nervosa: Symptoms, Signs & Treatment

Anorexia Nervosa: Signs, Symptoms, & Treatment

Anorexia nervosa is an extremely serious eating disorder that makes people severely restrict the calories they eat. It’s also often accompanied by intense fears of gaining weight.

A person who is experiencing anorexia will often engage in extreme forms of dieting to make and keep their body weight as low as possible. This results in one of the most devastating symptoms of anorexia: malnutrition.

Fortunately, like other eating disorders, anorexia is treatable. With more than 25 years of successfully treating anorexia and other eating disorders, Center for Discovery will help you rediscover joy in your life through our evidence-based eating disorder treatment programs.

What is Anorexia Nervosa?

Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder that revolves around obsessive behaviors involving food and body image. It is a serious medical condition, and not a lifestyle choice.

People with anorexia often see themselves as being overweight. While some people from time to time can have concerns about their weight, BMI or appearance, these concerns can be extremely intense for a person with anorexia. It’s worth pointing out that anorexia, like other eating disorders, doesn’t discriminate. People with every kind of body type can develop anorexia.

To avoid gaining weight (or to lose weight), people with anorexia often strongly limit the number of calories they take in. Unfortunately, this method is often dangerous, leading to malnutrition and, in some cases, death. According to the American Psychiatric Association, the mortality rate of anorexia is second only to opioid overdose.

What Are the Types of Anorexia Nervosa?

Anorexia has a number of subtypes:

Restricting type anorexia: This type of anorexia makes people severely restrict the amount and types of food they eat.
Bulimic type anorexia: This type of anorexia is very similar to bulimia nervosa. A person with this subtype of anorexia engages in binge eating and then vomits or uses medication to get rid of the food they ate.

What Is Atypical Anorexia Nervosa?

Most people assume that a person with anorexia is dangerously thin. While there’s some truth to this assumption, anorexia can affect people of every body type. A person who is struggling with atypical anorexia may appear like they don’t fit the traditional image of anorexia, but still engage in the same dangerous practices of anorexia.

What Are the Symptoms of Anorexia Nervosa?

Anorexia has physical, mental and behavioral symptoms. Like other eating disorders, anorexia can affect a person’s brain due to the effects of malnutrition. Studies have shown that anorexia can actually cause physical changes in the brain, including loss of brain material in the areas of the brain that help us process information.

Knowing the symptoms of anorexia is critical. Anorexia symptoms are not always easy to notice, especially for the person struggling with anorexia. Additionally, people with anorexia sometimes go to great lengths to hide their food habits, body changes and the physical problems anorexia causes.

What Are the Behavioral Symptoms of Anorexia Nervosa?

Many symptoms of anorexia revolve around behaviors concerning self-image and food:

Excessive exercise, including exercising while injured or exercising with an unusual amount of intensity
Intense focus on appearance, such as constantly checking oneself in the mirror or using clothes to cover up perceived flaws
A preoccupation with body weight, size and shape
A fixation on dietary information, eating practices and food
Continually talking about weight, dieting and losing weight
Social withdrawal

What Are the Mental Symptoms of Anorexia Nervosa?

Anorexia’s mental symptoms can be devastating to live with:

Severe mood swings
Withdrawing socially
Intense fear of gaining weight
Mental fog and memory issues
Being extremely self-critical about one’s weight and appearance
A distorted body image, typically seeing oneself as being overweight
Depression
Self-harming behaviors

What Are the Physical Symptoms of Anorexia Nervosa?

Anorexia causes people to starve themselves, which has terrible effects on the body:

Sudden weight loss
Anemia, a condition caused by not having enough red blood cells
Heart problems
A weakened immune system
Gastrointestinal problems
Bone and muscle loss
The appearance of lanugo, soft body hair that may help the body retain heat
Yellow or blotchy skin
Dry skin
Intense sensitivity to cold
Osteoporosis
Hair loss

What Are “Anorexia Teeth”?

Anorexia can damage the teeth and mouth. When a person doesn’t get nutrients like calcium and vitamin D, they often experience tooth erosion, tooth decay, and problems with the soft palate and tongue.

Also, a person with bulimic type anorexia can also receive oral damage from repeated vomiting.

What Are Eating Disorders?

Eating disorders are a serious but treatable class of medical conditions that have both mental and physical symptoms. Eating disorders include:

Left untreated, eating disorders can be very destructive, and in the case of anorexia, life-threatening. However, they’re also treatable conditions. With the right help, anyone can rebuild their relationship with food, their self-image, and the world around them.

What Causes Anorexia Nervosa?

The exact cause of anorexia isn’t known. Like other eating disorders, anorexia seems to be caused by multiple factors, which include:

Genetics

This is an area where more research needs to be done. However, genes seem to play a role in how anorexia develops. If someone has a personality that makes them feel like they need to be perfect, they might be at greater risk of developing anorexia.

Also, having a family member or relative who experienced anorexia may put someone at a higher risk.

Environmental Factors

Society’s expectations about appearance play a role in how anorexia develops in people, especially on social media. Advertising images, Tik Tok videos, and more can make people feel like they can’t be thin enough.

Mental Health

Anorexia is often accompanied by co-occurring conditions. Some of the behaviors around food can resemble those of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), and for some, obsessions with food can be a way to deal with difficult or painful emotions and feelings.

Neurotransmitters

Some research seems to indicate that neurotransmitters like dopamine may play a role in how anorexia develops.

Past Trauma

Past trauma appears to play a role in anorexia.

How Is Anorexia Nervosa Diagnosed?

Like other eating disorders, only a medical professional can diagnose a person with anorexia. Typically, a diagnosis of anorexia involves both mental and physical health assessments.

One of the signs doctors look for when diagnosing anorexia is a body weight that’s 15 percent below average, due to either weight loss or an inability to gain weight. Doctors also examine if a person appears to have an unrealistic body image or is disturbed at the idea of gaining weight, particularly if they’re not overweight.

Here are the types of tests most people will have by a physician when being diagnosed with anorexia:

Physical tests – Height, weight and vital signs such as heart rate and blood pressure; skin and nail examination; listening to breathing; X-ray test for fractures; bone density; and electrocardiogram to check the heart.
Mental health tests – Asked about eating habits, thoughts and emotions.
Lab work – Blood tests to check performance of liver, kidneys and other organs.

How Is Anorexia Nervosa Treated?

At Center for Discovery, we find that a team approach – anchored by evidence-based and personalized programming – is the best way to treat anorexia. In our eating disorder treatment programs, we involve both family and experts in your journey to a happy, healthy life. It’s the best way to heal you, both mind and body.

While everyone’s treatment journey is a little different, your time at Center for Discovery will involve:

Your doctor
Your loved ones
Mental health professionals
Other experts, like dietitians

Levels of Care

Everybody experiences anorexia differently. Different levels of care help address your needs, no matter where you are on your journey to recovery.

Residential Care: Residential care allows for greater patient safety. In a residential setting, professionals are able to keep a close eye on patients and their vital signs, ensuring that they stay safe and healthy during the critical early stages of anorexia treatment.
Partial Hospitalization: Partial hospitalization (PHP) is the ideal step down from our residential care program. Similar to residential care but with a more flexible approach, PHP acts as your safety net early in recovery, allowing you to put into practice what you’ve learned in treatment.
Intensive Outpatient: Intensive outpatient (IOP) care is the most flexible care offered at Center for Discovery. Offering the chance to continue attending school or work while receiving care, IOP is often best for those who have completed residential or PHP programs.

Dietary Program

A dietary program is one of the best possible ways to treat anorexia, helping people to redevelop a healthy relationship with food. At Center for Discovery, we use a model called CARE-CFD, or consistent attuned relational eating, which helps curate an individual eating plan that adapts to your life.

Talk Therapy

Talk therapy – also known as psychotherapy – plays a major role in recovery from anorexia. A talk therapy session consists of sitting with a trained medical professional and safely exploring the roots of a person’s eating disorder, past trauma, emotions, thoughts and more.

Psychotherapy can help a person change their entire mindset, giving them insights into their behaviors, the issues that drive them, and how they can completely turn them around in someone’s favor.

We make use of several forms of talk therapy here at Center for Discovery, including:

An Inclusive Approach

Inclusivity isn’t a buzzword when treating anorexia. For years, it was assumed that only certain kinds of people were affected by eating disorders. Inclusive programming acknowledges that anyone can develop an eating disorder.

Gender Affirmative Care

Gender affirmative care recognizes that some groups may be more susceptible to eating disorders like anorexia. This form of care allows us to tailor our programs to everyone’s needs, ensuring everybody receives the treatment they need.

How Can I Help a Loved One with Anorexia?

Eating disorders like anorexia are family diseases – they affect everyone around the person struggling with these conditions. Anorexia is especially hard to deal with, due to the devastating effects it has on a person’s health.

However, that doesn’t mean you’re hopeless. You can help your loved one with their struggle and encourage them to seek treatment for anorexia by doing the following:

Learn all you can about anorexia.
Seek help by calling professionals, talking to family members or getting trusted friends involved.
Talk with, not at, your loved one.
Practice self-care by getting regular sleep, eating regular meals and setting boundaries.

What Happens if Anorexia Isn’t Treated?

The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) warns that anorexia has a high death rate. Unfortunately, there is also a high suicide rate associated with anorexia. The malnutrition caused by anorexia can also cause long-term damage like osteoporosis, blood pressure issues and heart damage.

It is critically important that a person receive treatment for anorexia. It can be literally life-saving.

Anorexia, like other eating disorders, tells you that you’re alone, hopeless and misunderstood. Here’s the thing: you’re not. With the right help, you can manage and regain control over your life.

At Center for Discovery, we offer evidence-based, expertly tailored care for anorexia and any co-occurring conditions in a safe and welcoming, non-judgmental space.

Reach out today.

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