Important Factors in the Process of Recovery According to Patients with Anorexia Nervosa

Abstract

According to Theander (1985 p. 493) “when assessing the total impact of a disease not only is the final outcome of importance, but also the course of the illness over time: the total duration of the illness; the suffering and discomfort it inflicts on the patient and family; whether the course over time is stable or fluctuating; which complications may be encountered; and whether relapses are apt to occur”. Stipulating the precise moment when it can be said that a patient with anorexia nervosa has recovered is difficult, because different opinions are possible. Can we say that a patient with anorexia nervosa has recovered when (s)he eats normally and has a normal weight? Or can we only talk about recovery when the patient has a more positive image of herself and her body, which reduces the likelihood of relapses? According to Theander (1985 p. 496) the following criteria are the most important for a favourable outcome in an eating disorder: “spontaneous and regular menstruation, a stable body weight within 15% of the average body weight for height, normal eating habits without bulimic episodes or undue dieting, and a reasonably normal conception of the body without unrealistic overestimation of the body size”.

Parts of this chapter have been published in the British Review of Bulimia and Anorexia Nervosa (1989 and 1990).