WEIGHT LOSS: ROLE OF GROUP THERAPY
Group therapy is tailor-made to address some of the problems eating disorders cause—loneliness, isolation, hopelessness. As someone found, just seeing other patients in the room shows a patient she is not alone and bolsters her confidence that therapy will be worthwhile. Patients gain hope by meeting others who have gotten better. Hearing other patient express feelings gives her the strength to speak out for herself. If two heads are better than one, imagine having half a dozen heads all working on the same problem!
After group sessions, patients lose the attitude that “nobody understands me,” because they’ve just encountered a lot of people who do understand. Another benefit is a rise in self-esteem. Patients begin to feel useful to other people. Their experience is respected, their advice is welcome. They sense they are helping one another, and thus begin to feel more effective and worthwhile as human beings.
In group therapy, a patient sees that others who are ñ about her health and who challenge her self-destructive behavior aren’t enemies. What a discovery! Ideally, she comes to realize that friends, loved ones, and other patients can be her allies in the struggle to get better.
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