Expert: Jeanne Rust, PhD - 7/21/2009

Question
Hi Dr. Rust,
It's Steph again. I'm very sorry to bother you again but I came across something you wrote and it made me think a lot about recovery, etc.

"The sad truth is that only 32% of all people who have had eating disorder treatment are still in recovery after one year.  Many people spend thousands of dollars and months of their lives on treatment and still don’t recover.   As soon as one of those pesky, high-risk situations comes along, the person has a setback and soon is in full relapse"

You wrote that on June 28th. If that's the case... then why bother trying? The odds are definitely not in my favour.

Also, i was wondering: if i did want to get better for those who love me and care about me, how do i motivate myself to do it? Will it still work if i do it for others?

Thank you very much for your answers.
Steph

Answer
Dear Steph,

Most of these people who are not getting well are ones who are not getting the right kind of treatment!  Sad but true.  Most eating disorder therapy has been cognitive-behavioral therapy and nutritional education for years and years.  It works in some cases -- and there are people who can be in talk therapy until they're blue in the face and they don't get better!  Usually this is because there is some kind of physiological condition that is in play.

It isn't appropriate for me to talk about my treatment center here, but a kind of treatment that involves neurofeedback and other effective alternative therapies can work wonders -- along with a whole food diet and proper relapse prevention support and training.

I hope this helps you!

Warmly,
Jeannie
www.mirasol.net