Anorexia

Symptoms of anorexia

Anorexia is often associated with both mental and physical consequences and symptoms, such as depression, anxiety or compulsive behaviour.

Typical physical symptoms of anorexia include:

• Tiredness and feeling cold
• Absence of menstruation or menstrual cycle abnormalities
• Reduced bone density and osteoporosis
• Weight and height development problems in adolescents
• Abdominal symptoms

Anorexia often starts with restrictive eating and attempts to lose weight. People with anorexia usually have a distorted perception of their own body: they see themselves as being overweight and are afraid of gaining weight.

Malnutrition is a serious condition for the body. Malnutrition can cause heart problems, such as a slow heart rhythm, problems with the body’s salt balance, and susceptibility to infections due to low levels of white blood cells.

Treatment of anorexia

It is possible to recover from anorexia, and the symptoms can be alleviated with help available in various stages of the disorder. Early intervention, access to treatment and correcting eating behaviour are important. Proper anorexia treatment involves competent multidisciplinary cooperation and a simultaneous focus on mental health, physical well-being and nutritional state, as well as correcting eating behaviour.

Psychosocial and psychotherapeutic treatments, as well as nutritional therapy, are key forms of treatment for anorexia. The eating disorder team’s psychologists, family therapists and psychotherapists offer support discussion sessions as well as short-term psychosocial treatment and long-term psychotherapy. The treatment of anorexia simultaneously focuses on the reduction of symptoms, the correction of eating behaviour and psychological work.

In the treatment of anorexia, it is important to strengthen one’s courage to change, recognise the root causes of the symptoms in one’s life, find healthy ways to regulate emotions, strengthen one’s self-esteem and body image, work on one’s own beliefs and thinking patterns, and treat possible co-occurring psychological symptoms.

In adolescents with anorexia, it is important to support the whole family, correct the patient’s nutritional state and normalise their eating behaviour as soon as possible.

When to see a specialist?

If you would like to discuss your situation with our professionals, our multidisciplinary eating disorder team is here to help you in the Helsinki metropolitan area. The treatment is performed as outpatient treatment. If the symptoms are severe and the patient is underweight, has lost a lot of weight or has other physical symptoms, a physician’s assessment is important. Our physicians can plan the treatment and the appropriate way to implement it.

• The eating disorder team’s psychiatrists can plan the treatment and assess the need for treatment and the appropriate way to implement it.
• The eating disorder team’s psychologists and psychotherapists offer support discussion sessions as well as short-term psychosocial treatment and long-term psychotherapy. The treatment focuses simultaneously on reducing the symptoms, establishing a healthy and regular diet, and psychological work.
• The eating disorder team’s dietitians provide nutritional therapy and help to normalise eating behaviour.
• The eating disorder team’s general practitioners and paediatricians assess the physical symptoms of anorexia and the need for blood tests and other examinations.