Article Analysis Holidays bring challanges for eating disorder sufferers by Judy Fortin - Term Paper Example

Fortin initiates the article with the current status of Shock and her recovering phase of life. Shock who is 36 years old and resident of Kennesaw, Georgia has been suffering from bulimia nervosa for a major part of younger years and also in her early adult years. She also had a strong addiction to diet pills which explains her insecurities about her weight and the extreme measures she took to keep it under control. Shock explains about the holiday season that was a difficult part of her life.

Thinking about Thanksgiving and Christmas with her family made her anxious and gave her mental stress. With all the stress and the extreme measures she took to control her excessive eating habits, she felt both physically and emotionally drained after the end of the holiday events like New Year. She remembers taking large dosages of diet pills, laxatives and other medications to get rid of all the food she had taken. She also ended up many times on restrictive behavior as a last straw. After a whole season of severe emotional and physical drill, she was left with memories of only anxiety, frustrations, physical and mental distress. . Cynthia Bulik who is on the post of the director of the University of North Carolina Eating Disorders Programs shares some advice and recommendations for eating disorder sufferers.

She explains that in family gatherings an individual is surrounded by a huge crowd and tempting delicacies as well. Hence it takes a lot of will power to control oneself. Bulik suggests that individuals with anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa should keep a “wingman” with them at such gatherings that listens to their emotions, problems and supports them in their tough decision-making procedure. In anorexia nervosa, individuals are so conscious about their weight that they abstain themselves from food intake and lose extreme amounts of weight (Fortin 2008).

Shock shares another problem in the article that is actually her own family members who she had to face every time at the dinner table. She faced anxiety and depression at such challenging and uncomfortable situations. Bulik states that going to party hungry increases the risk of binge, hence it is always recommended that an individual goes after a small meal. Shock also relied on a same routine of eating first with her own family and then going out to a party to control her eating outbreak. Bulik also encourages the family members of the sufferers to be as supportive and understanding as much as possible because this is the highly desired backing any eating disorder sufferer requires.

They should not comment on their physical appearance, keep a check on their food intake or persuade them into taking decisions. The best help they can provide is encouragement and optimistic attitude. Bulik also suggests that making food for a large crowd is