Hypnotherapy for help with eating disorders.

Eating disorders can affect anyone, are commoner than you may imagine and affect millions of people each year.

The main characteristic of an eating disorder is the individual’s obsession with their weight. It's these obsessive thoughts that can lead to severe consequences in both their behaviour and their health.

Research has shown that females are much more likely to develop anorexia and bulimia than males, although males can suffer from both eating disorders too.

Anorexia Nervosa

Anorexia affects approximately 60,000 to 200,000 people, and it’s estimated that 1% of people aged between 10 and 20 suffer from anorexia each year. The condition can be characterised by an obsession with weight loss resulting in refusal to eat or irregularity in eating patterns.

Sufferers may become obsessive about eating rituals and develop an unusual way of eating, e.g. skipping meals and avoiding certain food, selecting a small variety of foods and only eating them in very small quantities.

This is all usually done secretly. Sufferers may also go to great lengths to pretend that everything is OK, such as gathering and saving food crumbs to leave on plates, to give the impression they are eating

Bulimia Nervosa

Approximately 4% of people aged 16 - 25 suffer from bulimia, and like anorexia, bulimia is a serious psychological eating disorder that can be life threatening if left untreated.

Bulimia nervosa can be characterised by the constant fear of putting on weight. Sufferers use what may be considered unnatural ways to get rid of the food (e.g. forced vomiting, taking laxatives or excessive exercise).

Someone suffering with bulimia will usually binge eat (often comfort foods with high levels of sugar and calories,) this may be followed by feelings of guilt, which if strong enough can force them to get rid of the food.

Some sufferers may force themselves to get rid of the food even if they haven’t binge eaten, but feel they have eaten more than they should have. As many sufferers are deeply ashamed of their behaviour, they almost always relieve themselves by forced vomiting in secret.

Binge eating

Although binge-eating disorder is not as well known as anorexia or bulimia, it still affects millions of people around the world and research suggests it affects about 2% of all adults.

Binge-eating disorder is characterised by eating large amounts of food and being unable to control the habit. Unlike bulimia, individuals suffering from this disorder do not vomit or use laxatives to relieve themselves, and are therefore usually very likely to gain weight.

Many sufferers eat secretly and then feel guilty and shameful about what they are doing, which then fuels the negative feelings they may have, creating a vicious spiral.

How does Hypnotherapy help me?

Hypnotherapy can often be a last resort for many people. They may have already been through their GP and quite possibly been in and out of clinics over many years. Most conventional treatments for eating disorders focus on changing their behaviours around food. However this doesn't always deal with the emotional drivers.

The good news is that hypnotherapy really can help make a difference.

Every issue has a starting point, you weren't born with an eating disorder, something happened to create it.

Hypnosis is used to identify and uncover the root cause behind the behaviour, so that the emotional aspect can be dealt with. Additionally, Hypnotherapy can help to improve self confidence and self image so that the individual is able to view themselves differently and clear any limiting beliefs they may have about themselves.

How many sessions of Hypnotherapy will I need?

The number of sessions required varies from 3 to 10, with a session typically lasting for approx 2 hours, and are weekly or fortnightly.

What's the cost per session?

The cost per session is £60.00

How can I pay for treatment?

Payment is per session and can be paid in cash, cheque, debit card, Visa or MasterCard at the end of each session.

What's the next step?

If you are worried that you, or someone you know may be suffering from an eating disorder, the call me on 01772 499046 or email me by clicking "here" to discuss different ways in which i can help.