If you've been diagnosed with a binge-eating disorder, your doctor may have already talked to you about getting some therapy. While this may not be the only treatment you need, it can play an important role in your recovery.
While there are different types of counselling you can take, you may want to look into cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT). This type of therapy often works well for people with eating disorders. How can it help you?
1. Learn to manage triggers
Generally, you don't simply binge-eat for no reason. There will be a trigger or series of triggers that take you to this point. For example, you might binge-eat when you feel stressed or upset. Food becomes a coping mechanism for you.
During CBT sessions, you will identify your triggers and learn how to deal with them. If you can do this, you can learn strategies that prevent the triggers from reaching the bingeing stage. So, for example, if you usually binge when you're really stressed, then your therapist can help you learn techniques that reduce stress build-up. If you can control the stress, you are less likely to reach the stage where you want to binge.
2. Learn to normalise eating habits
During your counselling sessions, your therapist will also usually talk to you about your current eating habits. This includes both your everyday eating and the things you tend to binge on. You might work together to plan out healthy diet plans. You might discuss how to shop so that you avoid having the kinds of foods at home that you might binge on.
These conversations help normalise your eating habits. You become more actively involved in creating and eating a healthy diet. This may also help you deal with weight or health issues which will make you feel better about yourself.
3. Learn to deal with negative feelings
Some binge-eaters overeat because they are unhappy with their bodies as well as their lives. Others develop a negative body image because of their eating disorder. Your therapist can help you uncover these negative perceptions. They can help you deal with negative thoughts and feelings that might contribute to your binge-eating. If you feel better about yourself, your binge-eating typically becomes more controllable.
To find out more about using CBT as part of your binge-eating disorder treatment plan, contact local therapists. They can explain more about how this counselling works and how it might help you.
Share14 February 2020
Hello! If you have never attended a counselling session before, you may have some questions about the entire process. We hope that this blog will answer some of the questions you may have. Here, you will find articles which explore a number of different types of therapy and counselling. Among others, we will look at CBT, existentialist, and narrative therapy. You will also find articles about what to expect during your first counselling session. Although we aren't trained counsellors, every writer has a passion for talking therapies and mental health. We hope you enjoy checking out this blog. Thank you.
