Anorexia nervosa isa disease that manifests itself in a conscious refusal to eat. The main goal of girls is to lose weight. Against this background, various dystrophic changes in the body develop, which lead to hormonal disruptions. So, first of all, you should understand that nervous anorexia is a psychosomatic disorder. This disease requires specialized care. This disease is inextricably linked with nervous bulimia, which is characterized by a constant feeling of hunger, prompting women to consume very large amounts of food, followed by artificial vomiting. Most often, young girls who want to lose weight significantly suffer from this disease. Moreover, young beauties want to get rid of extra pounds as quickly as possible, without making any effort. Anorexia is much less common in young men. And if you do not pay attention to the changes that have begun in time, such experiments on your body can lead to sad consequences. Up to death. Therefore, it is so important to know what anorexia is, its symptoms and the most common methods of treatment.
The causes of the appearance of anorexia nervosa
- Genetic predisposition
As it has been established, many mentaldiseases are inherited. Unfortunately, anorexia is no exception. It usually manifests itself as a result of some emotional impact: stress, troubles at work, problems with family, etc.
- Personal factors
If a lady has low self-esteem, problems withopposite sex, there is a slight excess weight, in this case the risk of anorexia will be quite high. It is worse when family members do not support the woman, but begin to abuse her morally or physically.
- mass media
In fact, in the 21st century, the problem of anorexia isespecially acute. The fact is that the media not only promote thinness, but impose dystrophy on women. Moreover, even one extra kilogram is perceived by modern society as a disease that should be gotten rid of. Remember the film "The Devil Wears Prada", where everyone reproached the main character for her sixth size. In fact, the girl was of normal build. But in the world of fashion, where painfully thin ladies are valued, it was hard for her.
Anorexia: Symptoms and Consequences
At first, patients consciously limit themselves infood, and then it becomes a habit that is not so easy to get rid of. At some point, a breakdown in the functioning of the body of the sick representative of the fair sex is observed. Often, at the initial stages, an insatiable hunger appears, which makes you eat everything in sight. Usually, the food consumed is not digested, and then vomiting appears. If this does not happen, some girls artificially try to cleanse their stomachs from what they have just eaten. Despite its widespread prevalence, the causes of this disease have not been definitively established. It has been proven that excessive neatness, the desire to be first in everything, excessive attachment to the mother, etc. play a major role in the development of nervous anorexia. If any of your family members suddenly stopped eating normally, constantly monitors their weight and worries about every kilogram, consult a psychologist. And do not mock such a person. The disease poses a serious danger to human life, as it can lead to death. Gradually, the body becomes exhausted, the stomach and cardiovascular system are disrupted. By the way, patients remain able to work and active until death. Therefore, the mobility of patients should not confuse you.
How to recognize anorexia nervosa
As a rule, nervous anorexia develops inas a result of dysmorphomania, that is, a negative perception of one's own body. Sick people consider themselves too fat, almost the fattest on this planet. This idea haunts them. They try in every possible way to lose weight, even if their body weight is below normal. The thought gradually becomes obsessive. In addition, it is reinforced by the ridicule of girlfriends, boyfriends, acquaintances. These comments are perceived very painfully, sometimes to the point of panic. Often, people suffering from nervous anorexia, even in childhood, had some problems with obesity. However, at that time they were not embarrassed, even if they had to listen to the ridicule of boys. But at puberty, these statements begin to be perceived very painfully. And when a representative of the fair sex reaches the age when she should already have a boyfriend, but does not, the lady begins to blame her figure. As a result, all life's troubles are attributed to excess weight. This makes such people give up food in order to achieve ideal forms. However, they try to hide such behavior. Ladies reduce the amount of food they eat in every possible way, but they do it unnoticed by others. For example, girls suffering from anorexia put food on a neighbor's plate, in a dog's or cat's bowl, or flush it down the toilet. By the way, they get a pet for the same purpose. In this way, they get rid of food, while justifying such behavior with their love for the pet. Representatives of the weaker sex, suffering from nervous anorexia, carefully study the table of calorie content of dishes. They know it almost by heart. Women exclude all the so-called harmful products from their diet. They eat only salads, low-fat dairy products. Meat, flour products and other high-calorie ingredients are unacceptable for them. By the way, in order to lose weight faster, such ladies not only refuse food. These people begin to exercise intensively, take laxatives and diuretics, which can lead to an upset stomach, exhaustion. Fasting and dehydration are a double blow to our health. Many people are mistaken when they think that a sick person will criticize the diet of other people. The most interesting thing is that a typical feature of anorexics is the desire to feed everyone around them. To do this, they study cookbooks, cuisines of different countries of the world, learn to cook various dishes that they themselves do not eat. For people suffering from nervous anorexia, the only problem is their excess weight. It is like a red rag to a bull. Therefore, after eating, if the ladies cannot resist, they try to induce vomiting. It seems to them that this method is very effective. In severe cases, women resort to very strange and dangerous methods and techniques. It looks creepy when young beauties insert a probe into the gastrointestinal tract themselves (for "deep cleansing"). Such measures are taken to ensure that nothing remains in the stomach. After all, the main task is to get rid of what could be absorbed, digested and cause weight gain.
What is the danger of anorexia for a woman?
Slimming representatives of the fair sexvery quickly get rid of excess body weight. However, despite everything, the ladies are not satisfied with the result. Even if their weight becomes lower than the accepted model standards, they still try to lose weight. Over time, this acquires a pathological character. As already mentioned, all this affects not only the nervous system, but also the internal organs. The intestines are the first to react. Insufficient food intake leads to its atrophy. Against the background of complete inactivity, intestinal atony develops, which manifests itself as constipation. In addition, if there were any gastrointestinal diseases initially, they worsen. This leads to additional weight loss. Gastritis, enteritis and colitis are accompanied by pain, nausea, vomiting. Subsequently, an ulcer may appear, which sometimes develops into a cancerous tumor. Dystrophic processes that are observed throughout the body lead to the development of cardiac, renal and hepatic insufficiency. Which sharply worsens the patient's condition, creating a real threat to life. The person should be hospitalized immediately, otherwise he can simply die in a matter of seconds. In the hospital, the first thing they do is prescribe an IV drip to normalize metabolism and cope with dehydration. And only after the crisis has passed, they begin full-fledged treatment.
Clinical stages of anorexia nervosa
The course of nervous anorexia can be conditionallydivided into three stages, which differ from each other in the predominant symptoms. Only a specialist can determine which stage the patient is in. Each has its own functional or organic manifestations. Thus, the dysmorphomanic stage, anorectic, cachectic are distinguished.
- Dysmorphomanic
The dysmorphomanic stage is mainly manifesteddissatisfaction with one's own body, which leads to a panic desire to lose weight. The mood of a sick person becomes depressed, almost depressive. Any remark can cause tears, hysteria.
- Anorectic
In the second stage, changes begin to occur.in the patient's body. Both on the psycho-emotional level and on the physical one. It is during this period that a sharp weight loss and deterioration in health begin. By the way, the first signs of nervous anorexia are unnatural pallor of the skin, bruises under the eyes. Then come the following symptoms: the cycle is disrupted, up to the cessation of menstruation, a failure in the adrenal glands occurs. At the same time, the lady does not stop there, but tries to exclude from the diet all harmful (as she thinks) products. Sometimes women switch to bread and water, and in the literal sense of the word.
- Cachectic
The third stage begins after about an hour and a half.years. Due to constant starvation, exhausting diets, physical exercise, a woman loses about 50 percent of her weight. But even such "achievements" are not satisfactory, it seems to patients that just a little more - and the ideal will be achieved. At the third stage (cachectic) somatoendocrine disorders and a malfunction of the internal organs occur. It is in such cases that they say about girls "only skin and bones". If a representative of the weaker sex has brought herself to complete exhaustion, in this case, you can no longer do without medical help. Unfortunately, the mortality rate at this stage is quite high. It is very rare that patients can be saved. But even if a woman survives, it will be quite difficult for her to continue to eat normally, work. After all, almost all organs either stop functioning or work at a third.
Diagnosis and treatment of anorexia nervosa
In fact, the diagnosis of anorexia nervosa is notвызывает трудностей даже на начальных стадиях. Она основана на тщательном анализе симптомов, осмотре пациентке, беседе с психологом. Главное – вовремя заметить проявление проблемы и обратиться к докторам за помощью. Делать это нужно срочно, если вес девушки резко снизился или составляет на 15 процентов меньше нормы. Когда худеющая особа перестает употреблять любую пищу, а после еды вызывает рвоту. Если дама не может адекватно воспринимать свое тело. А также когда происходят серьезные изменения: нарушается сон, возникают частые перепады настроения, пропадает сексуально влечение и т.д. В запущенных случаях придется проходить комплексное обследование. При этом понадобится делать и УЗИ внутренних органов, чтобы диагностировать изменения оных. Зачастую при анорексии представительницы прекрасного пола даже не могут нормально кушать – организм дам просто перестает воспринимать пищу. Даже выпитая вода приводит к рвоте. В таком случае придется постепенно вводить в рацион небольшие порции жидких блюд, начиная где-то с чайной ложки бульона. При этом не стоит заниматься самолечением, заставляя больную кушать. Лишь только специалист сможет разобраться с тем, как уговорить девушку пересмотреть свой рацион питания. В большинстве случаев такое поведение только навредит, вызвав внутренний протест худеющей дамы. На первой стадии заболевания лечение осуществляется в амбулаторных условиях. Т.е больная находится под наблюдением, посещает психолога и остальных врачей, но при этом ночует дома. Однако на втором и третьем этапах, когда происходит банальное истощение и нарушение в работе органов, показано только стационарное лечение. В данном случае рекомендовано проведение психотерапии и коррекции нарушенной соматоэндокринной функции. Назначаются сердечно-сосудистые, метаболические и витаминные препараты, которые повышают общий тонус организма больного человека. Хорошо себя зарекомендовал карнитин, который помогает справиться многим органам с дистрофическими изменениями. Большая роль в лечении отводится нормализации питания. Оно должно быть сбалансированным по белкам, жирам, углеводам, микро- и макроэлементам. Пищу следует принимать 6-7 раз в сутки, так как более частые приемы могут вызвать появление спастических болей. Плюс, это не будет способствовать нормальному усвоению питательных веществ. Чем обычно заканчивается нервная анорексия? Есть три варианта. Первый – девушка полностью выздоравливает, начинает вести здоровый образ жизни, правильно питаться и раз в квартал посещает специалиста. Остальные два – менее оптимистичны. Либо женщина повторно срывается, перестает кушать и продолжает худеть, либо она вообще не лечится, а ее состояние только ухудшается. В обоих случаях ожидает самое худшее – смерть. Поэтому всем женщинам перед похудением рекомендуется посещать диетологов. Специалисты помогут вычислить лишнюю массу (если таковая имеется), а также разработают безопасный способ борьбы с проблемой. Плюс, они будут контролировать и наблюдать за вами. И если что-то пойдет не так, то это сразу же выявится. Даже самые мелкие симптомы не останутся без внимания. При самостоятельном похудении вы вряд ли поймете, если возникнет проблема.
