Today, more than ever, teens and even younger tweens feel the pressure to live up to standards which are extremely unrealistic. While interest in staying in shape may be acceptable, when teens have distorted body imagines and see themselves as obese or fat and place an above normal value on becoming “thin” parents need to seek help from a facility offering specialized eating disorder treatment in Los Angeles.
Get Specialized Help
It is important to consider a specialized eating disorder treatment in Los Angeles as opposed to seeing a family doctor. Eating disorders do have significant medical health risks, but there is also a mental health component to consider as well. Treating only the physical symptoms will not address the mental health component, and will not result in a comprehensive treatment.
Signs of Potential Eating Disorders
Websites of facilities offering eating disorder treatment in Los Angeles will typically provide information on signs or behaviors indicating potential eating disorders. These can include:
1. Food hoarding – teens with binge eating disorder will often horde food, typically sugary or high carb foods like chips and chocolates. Parents may find wrappers hidden in the garbage or the room as the teen tries to hide the consumption.
2. Not eating with the family – if the teen is constantly making excuses not to eat with the family or constantly makes excuses not to be home at meal time it may be an issue of concern.
3. Extreme dieting and exercise – teens may become fixated on particular diets, often fad diets, and may become agitated and angry if particular foods aren’t available so they can stay on the diet. A parent may also note extreme exercise routines that cannot be interrupted or the teen becomes increasingly hostile and angry.
4. Obsession with physical appearance – the teen may spend excessive amounts of time trying on different clothing and looking at themselves in a mirror. They may also avoid looking in the mirror completely and be very uncomfortable with the discussion of their size or appearance.
It is very common for kids with eating disorders to also have some of the symptoms of other mental health conditions such as depression or anxiety. They may become very defensive with any talk about their body and may insist they are “fat” even when they have a very healthy body weight. They will not want to talk about going through eating disorder treatment in Los Angeles.
If you believe your teen needs eating disorder treatment in Los Angeles, don’t delay in talking to the staff at a specialized adolescent treatment facility. These professionals can help your child to overcome this disorder and develop a healthy relationship with themselves and the food they eat.
If you think your child or teen needs eating disorder treatment in Los Angeles we can help. Adolescent Growth focuses on both the teen and the family to help create an individualized treatment plan.
