The Counseling Center's events for Body Image Awareness Week address eating, acceptance and more.
By C. SPENCER BEGGS
Staff Writer
Can you spot the eating disorder?
Tim is your average freshman. He is involved in a few clubs and likes to play basketball with his hallmates during the weekend. Tim also lifts weights regularly. Lately, Tim has been using creatine, a bodybuilding supplement, to increase his performance and help him bulk up. He regiments himself to an extremely low carbohydrate diet and eats almost twice the amount of protein than before he began his diet. Tim's workout regime has been taking up more of his time. He often finds himself working out instead of going to social activities.
Molly prefers to eat alone and often eats late at night. Although she does not exercise regularly, she meticulously counts the number of calories in her food and tries to limit her caloric intake to 85 percent of the recommended daily value for her height and body weight. To help regulate her hunger she takes appetite-suppressing pills. Occasionally, if Molly feels she has eaten too much she will make herself vomit.
Laura weighs herself on a scale everyday. She feels that her body is not acceptable to others. When she eats in mixed company, she picks at her food and generally eats only a salad or a piece of fruit. Laura is ashamed of how she looks when she eats. She quickly lost eight pounds since the beginning of the semester.
So, which scenario — Tim, Molly or Laura — represents an eating disorder? Trick question. In fact, none of these situations accurately represents an eating disorder. All of them show signs of high-risk eating behaviors; however, the classification of an eating disorder is a little more complicated.
Dr. Rita Donley Ph.D., the assistant director of the University Counseling Center, sees this as a growing problem for Notre Dame and other campuses around the country. Last year, she and other colleagues conducted a study on eating practices at Notre Dame.
"One of the things we've proven with the 2000 [eating disorder] study is that there are more [Notre Dame students] engaging in high-risk eating," says Donley, a specialist in eating disorders and body image. According to Donley's results, Notre Dame has slightly elevated levels of diagnosable and symptomatic eating disorders. The study, which took a sample of 1,484 Notre Dame students — approximately 21 percent of the student body — was compared to a similar study conducted in 1988. It should be noted, however, that the more recent study was done on a volunteer survey basis, which may skew the results with a pre-selection factor. In other words, people may have chosen whether to respond because of the questionnaire's subject matter.
Why do eating disorders occur? Like many psychological and medical problems there is no one cause. "I don't think anyone wakes up one day and says, `Gee, I want an eating disorder,'" Donley remarks. "It's a progressive chain of events."
Nutritionists and psychologists have generally viewed eating disorders in two ways: as an addiction and as a behavior. Donley, however, sees eating disorders as a combination of the two, but moreover, she sees them as a control issue.
"If you look at people with eating disorders you'll see that they feel out of control in their lives, and eating is a way for them to try to take control of something." Unfortunately, it is a vicious cycle and eventually people with eating disorders define themselves in terms of eating habits.
"People with eating disorders want to defy [their body images] but we're finding out more and more that for whatever reason, genetically or physically, we just can't do that."
Who develops an eating disorder? One stereotype is that intelligent and successful people, such as the average Notre Dame student, would not engage in this type of destructive behavior. "It has nothing to do with being smart. In fact, we see a lot of highly intelligent people with these disorders," Donley replies.
"Getting help is the key issue here. It's very rare that someone comes in [to the Counseling Center] on their own and says, `Look, I've got a problem.' More often it is an RA, coach, friend or family member," Donley adds.
The hardest thing about helping those with eating disorders is knowing when to actively seek outside assistance and when to limit one's involvement. A person may engage in high-risk behaviors for long periods of time and may even have a serious eating disorder but not be ready to accept help.
The most important step in recovery, according to psychologists, is the person's acknowledgement that he or she has a problem. Donley agrees, pointing out that "forcing someone to get help hardly ever works."
Donley recommends confronting the person in a caring way about the perceived problem, a technique called intervention. Generally, the response is either denial or anger. At that point, most experts recommend backing away.
"An intervention is a social awakening because so often people with eating disorders think that what they're doing is a secret," Donley adds. By bringing the issue to the surface, you plant the seeds of doubt that, when combined with failing under physical and mental pressures, will eventually lead to an acknowledgement of the situation and acceptance of help.
On the other hand, one should not keep an entirely detached perspective. If a person is suicidal, not able to perform day-to-day functions, is vomiting blood or hallucinating, it is important to get psychological and/or medical help immediately.
Dr. Luis Manzo, a Counseling Center staff psychologist and addiction specialist, thinks that Notre Dame has elevated instances of eating disorders and binge drinking because the campus atmosphere is conducive to destructive behaviors.
"There's more [pressure to fit in] at Notre Dame than other places … possibly because there's not as much acceptance of differences," Manzo says. Manzo sees the breaking down of stereotypes and clarifying misinterpretations of social behaviors, a process known as social norming, as an important step to correcting these problems.
Donley agrees, saying that people should not to be too quick to judge others. "We run the risk of running [eating disorders] underground if we engage in the witch-hunt or throw diagnoses on people." The most important thing a person with an eating disorder needs is a friend. Someone who can help them help himself or herself.
The first thing a person should do if he or she is concerned about a student's eating habits is consult the Counseling Center, located on the third floor of the Health Services building behind the Dome. Often times, counselors will advise and even role-play a confrontation with concerned parties, namely friends and relatives. The Counseling Center has found this to be a very effective approach; it is much more personal than a confrontation with a strange authority.
"Awareness is the first step," says Donley. Once you let somebody know that you are aware of his or her problem, he or she must constantly justify the "mental gymnastics" that accompany eating disorders. After the initial confrontation, it is up to the person with the eating disorder to actively seek help.
This week is National Body Image Awareness Week. The University Counseling Center is co-sponsoring a series of events including: a Body Image Awareness Fair in LaFortune Student Center Monday, Feb. 26 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., a presentation on talking to friends about eating disorders in the Montgomery Theater, Feb. 28 starting at 5:30 p.m. and a talk by Judy Molnar, Rosie O'Donnell's fitness guru and founder of the "Chub Club," in 155 DeBartolo, March 1 starting at 7 p.m. For a full schedule of events and information of individual and group counseling visit the Counseling Center's Web site at www.nd.edu/~ucc.
The Counseling Center is, of course, always open to students who wish to discuss these issues with health professionals. To schedule an appointment call 631-7336. Students in crisis are always welcome as walk-ins and are urged to call the counseling center after-hours in emergencies.
All Scene Stories for Monday, February 26, 2001
