UCSC
IN CASE OF EMERGENCY CALL 911
 
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In This Section:
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•  Psychiatric Services at UCSC
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•  Answers to Questions about Psychiatry
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•  Psychiatrists on Staff at the Health Center
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•  ADHD Information
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•  Transfer of Care Guidelines
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•  Depression and Suicide
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•  Anxiety Disorders
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•  Eating Disorders
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•  Links to Other Sites
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•  Other Health Center Services
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UCSC Health Center
1156 High Street
University of California
Santa Cruz, CA 95064
Phone: (831) 459-2211
Email: healthcenter@ucsc.edu

To Schedule a Health Center Appointment
By Phone: (831) 459-2500

Water on LeafCAPS: Psychiatric Services

EATING DISORDERS

Table of Contents

What are Eating Disorders?

Eating disorders are characterized by severe disturbances in:

  • attitudes and feelings about food, weight and body shape
  • eating behaviors
  • weight management practices

The term "Eating Disorder" may be used for three different conditions: Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa, and Binge Eating Disorder.

According to the National Eating Disorder Association, 5-10 million girls and women and 1 million boys and men are suffering from full-blown eating disorders or borderline variants of these disorders.

Signs and Symptoms of Eating Disorders

Anorexia Nervosa is characterized by very restricted eating, self-starvation and excessive weight loss.

Symptoms include:

  • Inability to maintain weight at or above the minimal normal weight for age and height
  • Intense fear of gaining weight or becoming fat
  • Extreme concern with body weight and shape
  • Distorted body image
  • In women, the absence of three consecutive menstrual periods
  • Possibly, self-induced vomiting, misuse of laxatives or diuretics, or intense exercise to lose or control weight
Bulimia Nervosa is characterized by recurrent episodes of eating large amounts of food in a short period of time (binge eating) followed by purging (by self-induced vomiting, misuse of laxatives or diuretics, fasting, diet pills, or excessive exercise) to prevent weight gain.

Symptoms include:

  • Binge eating
  • A sense of lack of control over eating during the binge
  • Purging after a binge
  • Extreme concern with body weight and shape
Binge Eating Disorder is characterized by recurrent episodes of binge eating that are not followed by any compensatory behaviors (purging) to prevent weight gain.

Symptoms include:

  • Eating large amounts of food in a short period of time (binge eating)
  • A sense of lack of control over eating during the binge
  • Eating alone because of being embarrassed by how much one is eating
  • Feeling disgusted with oneself, depressed or very guilty after overeating

Medical Complications of Eating Disorders

Sometimes people don't realize how serious and potentially debilitating or life threatening an eating disorder can be. Specific complications include:

Anorexia Nervosa:

  • Emaciation, weakness and fatigue
  • Amenorrhea (loss of periods)
  • Estrogen deficiency
  • Osteoporosis (loss of bone density)
  • Abnormal temperature regulation
  • Depressed immune system
  • Heart arrhythmias
  • Thinning of left ventricle (wall of the heart) and decreased cardiac chamber size (life threatening)
  • Abnormal slowing of heart rate
  • Anemia

Bulimia Nervosa:

  • Menstrual irregularities
  • Heart arrhythmias
  • Electrolyte abnormalities
  • Swelling of the legs
  • Diarrhea
  • Constipation
  • Esophageal tears and rupture
  • Stomach rupture
  • Dental cavities

What Causes an Eating Disorder?

There is no single cause of eating disorders. Sociocultural, psychological, and genetic factors all play a part. An eating disorder may begin as a way to lose weight or get in shape. Such behavior is encouraged and reinforced by our cultural idealization of thinness. Women and girls, and increasingly men and boys, are taught from an early age that their self-worth is dependent on their physical appearance, and that their appearance must fit the ideal of Western culture. Such beliefs may lead to feelings of depression, anxiety, inadequacy and loneliness. Troubled family and personal relationships also have a role in the development of eating disorders. The symptoms of an eating disorder may start out as a person's attempt to cope with painful feelings or stay in control of her or his life. Although the symptoms may begin as a way to cope or control, these behaviors eventually reduce the person's self-esteem and sense of competence. Ultimately the symptoms of eating disorders undermine psychological stability and physical health, with long-lasting negative effects and a potentially fatal outcome.

Mental symptoms related to and caused by eating disorders include:

  • Depression
  • Anxiety
  • Mood swings
  • Ideas of suicide
  • Impaired concentration
  • Sleep disturbance

What does Treatment Involve?

The eating disorders described in this brochure require the care of an experienced professional, preferably someone who specializes in treating them. Treatment that is effective and produces long-lasting results involves a multidisciplinary approach, including some combination of individual and group psychotherapy, psychiatric treatment, nutritional counseling, and medical care. Medication may be part of the overall treatment plan. Ideally, each person's treatment program is individually tailored to fit that person's strengths and resources, as well as past experiences, specific problems and severity of symptoms.

Optimal treatment addresses the individual's psychological, sociocultural, and interpersonal concerns as well as the specific symptoms of the eating disorder.

Most treatment is on an outpatient basis. However, hospitalization or more intensive residential treatment programs are recommended when eating disorder symptoms have led to physical problems that may be life threatening. In addition, in some situations problems are so severe that the person is unable to effectively change symptomatic behaviors without the close supervision and treatment that hospitalization and residential treatment can provide.

Treatment of Eating Disorders at UCSC

The Student Health Psychiatry Services, the Student Health Center, and Counseling & Psychological Services (CPS) on campus have established an Eating Disorder Treatment Program and Team at UCSC. Students with eating disorders may enter the program through self-referral or by referral from Psychiatry, CPS, or a clinician at the Student Health Center. Students who participate in this program receive coordinated treatment including medical evaluation and on-going care, possible psychiatric evaluation and follow up, nutritional counseling, and psychotherapy. Some students choose to start treatment with on-campus brief individual psychotherapy offered through CPS. Other students may benefit from more open-ended, longer-term individual therapy, which CPS does not offer. These students are referred off campus for therapy. There are a number of psychotherapists, who practice in the community, who have expertise in eating disorders, and are available for referrals. With the student's permission, these therapists work closely with the Student Health Center, Psychiatry and CPS to coordinate treatment. A list of these psychotherapists is made available to students who are referred to and participate in the Eating Disorder Treatment Program. In addition, CPS provides group treatment in the form of an ongoing Eating Awareness Group. Other group treatment options are available in the community.

UCSC Resources

Appointments and Referral for Eating Disorder Treatment

Assistance for Psychological Crisis

After Hours Psychological Crisis or Suicidal Concern

  • Suicide Prevention Service of Santa Cruz County 458-5300
  • UC Police (for emergency response and/or transportation) 911

Psychiatric Emergencies

  • Dominican Hospital Behavioral Health Unit 462-7644

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