Counselling for eating disorders. Sara Gilbert.

Includes bibliography and index.

1. What is an eating disorder?:- Recognition of eating disorder--Anorexia nervosa--What happens to people who have anorexia nervosa?--Bulimia nervosa--Definition of a binge--Binge eating in obesity--Binge eating disorder--Other causes of weight loss or gain--2. Causes of the Eating Disorders:- Psychosomatic theories- Stress-induced eating--\'comfort eating\'--The family as a source of eating disorder--Eating disorder and child sexual abuse--Family therapy as a treatment for eating disorder--Eating disorder and other psychiatric diagnoses--Anorexia and bulimia nervosa as sociocultural disorders--Eating disorder as learned behaviour--Eating disorder as a corollary to dieting and food deprivation--The Restraint Hypothesis--Conclusions--3. A Cognitive Behavioural Educational Approach to Eating Disorders:- What is cognitive behaviour therapy?--An outline of the characteristics of cognitive behaviour therapy--The nature of cognitive behaviour therapy as applied to eating disorders--The theoretical basis of cognitive behaviour therapy in relation to eating disorders:- Cognitive therapies and attitude change--Empirical evidence for differences in underlying schemata between people with and without eating disorders--Cognitive therapy and the sociocultural model of eating pathology--Cognitive therapy and individual expression of eating disorders--The structure of cognitive therapy for eating disorders--The acceptability of cognitive therapy for eating disorders--How effective is cognitive behaviour therapy for eating disorders?--Cognitive behaviour therapy and bulimia nervosa--Cognitive behaviour therapy and binge eating disorder in obese people--Cognitive behaviour therapy and anorexia nervosa--Conclusions--4. Beginning the Counselling Process:- The initial stages--Some questions to ask when assessing the person with an eating disorder--The use of questionnaires in the assessment of eating disorder--Presenting the cognitive behavioural view and formulating the problem--Assessment of motivational stage in people with an eating disorder--Self-monitoring by the client--Setting the agenda for therapy--Psychoeducation--5. Nutritional Aspects of Helping the Eating-Disordered Client:- Nutritional knowledge of eating-disordered clients--Nutritional counselling--Knowledge about energy balance and weight regulation--Information about the specific effects of bingeing and purging - vomiting or taking laxatives--Information about optimum ways to achieve and maintain a normal body weight after having an eating disorder--Establishing a normal eating pattern with obese bulimics: to diet or not?--Establishing weight regain with anorexics--Meal planning--6. Behavioural Techniques:- Self-monitoring--Target setting--Self-reward--Scheduling pleasant events--Behavioural techniques for controlling overeating (self-control)--Taking exercise--Practising \'normal\' eating--Exposure--Assertiveness around food--Relaxation and stress management--Conclusion--7. Cognitive Techniques:- Identifying negative thoughts--Answering negative thoughts--Homework--Identifying and dealing with dysfunctional assumptions and core beliefs--Exploring the meaning of eating disorder symptoms--Conclusion--8. Endings and Alternatives:- The end of the counselling relationship--Preventing relapse--Involving family members in the counselling--Working with groups--Working in parallel with other treatments--When cognitive behaviour therapy does not work--Conclusion.

This is a practical guide to the use of cognitive behavioural and educational techniques to help clients with abnormal eating patterns. Gilbert provides an account of eating disorders, their causes and theory and practice of treating them.