Clinical Key Question - Issues surrounding mental health in the home Flashcards
When does AN develop
Early childhood or adolescence
What is anorexia
Obsession with dieting and become fearful of weight gain
WHich can result in purging and excessive exercise
Death rate of disorder and relapse rate
1/5 deaths from suicide
50% relapse rate
Prevalence in females and males
1.7-3.6% for females
0.1% males
Death rate for females compared to healthy females
6x more death for females than healthy females
What is the BMi of someone with AN
17.5 or below
What are western cultures ideal body type
Slim is beautiful
Helpful information for someone who has to support somebody with anorexia
1) Statistics
2) Culture
3) CBT-E (changing the way you feel by changing the way you think)
Unhelpful information for someone who has to support somebody with anorexia
1) Guardia et al
2) Biological explanation
CBT-E
People with AN experience intense fear of becoming fat and their perception of fat is distorted
So improvement creates anxiety for them (gaining weight)
Successful therapy represents a step towards something theya re frightened of
Biological explanation
Knowing someones genetic profile could mean prevention and treatment (of new drugs) are targeted more effectively at people most vulnerable to developing AN
May help improve current treatments
Shows value of genetic explanation because treatments based on it may improve quality of life, reduce distress and avoid needless deaths
Guardia et al (2012)
Findings imply that a cognitive impairment underlies AN (disrupted self-body schema)
Forms of cognitive therapy could be more effective
i.e. virtual reality could be used to counter distorted cognitions by demonstrating own and other body sizes passing through doorways
Valuable because such treatment would address an underlying cause of AN
