At just 10 years old, Cedar walked into her doctor's office asking for weight loss recommendations, despite being dangerously underweight. Her perception of herself, together with her desperate need for control, marked the beginning of a decade-long battle with anorexia nervosa.

In this episode of PSYCHEDUP, Dr. Diane McIntosh pulls back the curtain on eating disorders, exposing how these devastating illnesses have little to do with food and everything to do with control and trauma.

Dr. McIntosh teams up with psychologist Dr. Randy Mackoff to explore the complex treatment landscape for anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge eating disorder. They debunk myths around eating disorders, examine social media's role in exacerbating body image issues, and explain why psychological inflexibility and rigid thoughts about self-worth create dangerous patterns. This episode offers hope for those trapped in any cycle involving food restriction, over exercising, and binging and purging, while providing essential guidance for the families desperately trying to support them.

You'll Discover:

• How eating disorders are rooted in control and trauma, rather than diet or appearance, and why the thoughts feel "almost abusive" to those experiencing them.
• Why anorexia has the second-highest death rate of any mental illness due to heart complications and suicide, and how individuals can be at risk of sudden death.
• How eating disorders thrive on secrecy and dishonesty, destroying trust with parents, friends and partners, while affecting every aspect of their lives.
• Why managing co-existing depression, anxiety, OCD, or ADHD is essential in finding a path to recovery.
• Why eating disorders have been wrongly considered female illnesses, and why family therapy and support systems are absolutely critical, especially when disorders start in childhood.

Resources:

Additional information and support resources are available here.