Anorexia Information
How We Rescued Our Child from Anorexia, Effecting a Complete Recovery in Just Six Months
Anorexia Info! Do a search on the Internet for anorexia nervosa if you are
concerned about anyone displaying these symptoms or if you are experiencing them yourself. Continuing in this pattern can lead to
death, please don't delay.
In March 2003 our then 13 year old daughter, Helen, was diagnosed with anorexia nervosa, at which point she was on the verge
of being emaciated. Her BMI was approximately 15.
My initial reluctance to accept this diagnosis was dispelled towards the end of the month when Helen became severely
dehydrated and suffered a complete nervous breakdown as the anorexia finally took total control of both her mind and body. It may
sound melodramatic, but it was as if she had become possessed. Helen's reaction, when encouraged to drink a glass water in order
to ease the stomach cramps caused by the dehydration, was uncharacteristically aggressive and resulted in an hysterical screaming
fit which unnerved both myself and Fiona, my ex-wife. Helen flew into a rage and began to scream: "IT'S WEIGHT, IT'S WEIGHT, IT'S
WEIGHT!"
At this point, we realised that we had no control over Helen whatsoever. However, by June 2003, only three months later, Fiona
and myself had broken the illness and Helen was able to return to school. By September 2003 Helen had attained her perfect weight
and the illness had been completely eradicated from her psyche. By January 2004, Helen was signed off by the adolescent mental
health unit, her psychiatrist commenting that it was "one of the quickest recoveries" from mental illness that he had ever
seen.
Anorexia Info! First of all, we need to understand how low self-esteem and
anorexia are related.
In order to break the anorexia, my ex-wife and myself devised a radical treatment programme which was contrary to the advice
of the medical specialists and which, for a number of weeks, put us in direct confrontation with them. Throughout this period, I
rigorously maintained the validity of our approach and predicted that the anorexia would be "done and dusted" by Christmas.
Helen's psychiatrist was extremely sceptical and was clearly concerned by what he must have perceived as my over-confidence. The
very next day, Fiona received a phone call (May 2003) in which it was suggested that I was actively perpetuating the illness and
we were both summarily summoned to an emergency meeting set for the following week. However, before the meeting could take place,
our approach finally started to show results and Helen put on two pounds, thus attaining her highest weight in two months. As a
result, the meeting became a rather muted affair and it was agreed that we would be monitored but essentially left to continue
Helen's recovery via our own methods.
Anorexia Info! Life becomes a problem to be solved for anorexia nervosa
sufferers. They are constantly caught up in doing' rather than being' content, restful and enjoying life.
In the various sections of our website: www.escape-from-anorexia.com we have set out to explain exactly how we rescued Helen
from this dreadful illness using a combination of diet, exercise and confidence building measures. Helen also contributes,
providing invaluable testimony as to what it felt like to be anorexic and explaining how we, her parents, were able to break the
iron grip that the anorexic mindset had upon her.
We are not necessarily advocating our strategies to anybody else but we do sincerely hope that our account of Helen's
record-breaking recovery may present some useful insights which might make a difference to you and your child.
Peter Morrisson http://www.escape-from-anorexia.com
|
