Assignment 9 - NOVA Documentary Dying to be Thin PDF

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Assignment from Professor Matthew Giobbi's class....

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Please watch the NOVA documentary, Dying to be Thin. Explain how the information provided in  this film compares to the DSM diagnostic information presented in the chapter. (500 words).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2-uBZk89qM0 The film highlighted many of the key characteristics that are present in individuals with eating disorders. For instance, it was stated that some common features of anorexic and bulimic individuals include being obsessed with perfectionism, excessively worrying about the consequences of their behavior, not wanting to do things wrong, and feeling the need to control everything. The diagnostic information in the textbook for anorexia nervosa included similar signs and symptoms such as the individual being fearful of gaining weight, which would relate to the excessive worrying about the consequences of their eating behaviors. In addition, the textbook states that the diagnostic checklist for bulimia nervosa includes the repeated performance of ill-advised compensatory behaviors such as forced vomiting, which would compare to the film’s explanation of feeling the need to control everything such as the person’s food intake and their appearance. Additionally, the textbook points out that eating disorders tend to run in families because there is a genetic component. Interestingly, the film went into detail about how people with eating disorders have a problem with the serotonin in their brain in which dieting and starvation lower their excessive serotonin levels which causes the brain to create more. They also discussed that it is common to see disordered eating in families along the spectrum, where different members have varying levels of disorders. The information from the DSM and the film both referenced how eating disorders also coexist with anxiety disorders, which is also related to the imbalance of serotonin levels. Some of the individuals in the film described that they had anxiety before they developed their eating disorder, and that over exercising or binging and purging were what helped to take the anxiety away. In the textbook, the diagnostic checklist states that a common symptom is “feelings of self-disgust, depression, or severe guilt” as well as placing “inappropriate emphasis on weight or shape in judgments of herself or himself.” According to the film, these feelings are mostly stemming from the anxiety that person is feeling and that is what exacerbates the disordered thinking. The major difference between the information presented in the film and that presented in the textbook is that both sources are attempting to reach different audiences and for different reasons. The film focused on case studies and information that is more relevant to individuals

struggling with these disorders, whereas the textbook relied more on the statistical and analytical information from the DSM to reach a more psychologically-relevant audience. I thought that the film was on a much more personal level, but the textbook was more fact-based and it centered around the diagnostic requirements for each disorder. The film also highlighted an important point that there are cultural and ethnic differences when it comes to eating disorder prevalence and symptoms. The textbook states that, “the eating behaviors, values, and goals of young African American women were considerably healthier than those of young white American women.” At one point towards the end of the film, a young black woman describes that she never felt pressured to lose weight or worry about her figure until she moved to the United States. She emphasized that she never worried much about her appearance until she was surrounded by white culture. This is similar to what the textbook states as far as white women focusing more on body type than personality traits than African American women when it comes to the “perfect girl.”

Diagnostic checklist for Anorexia Nervosa: a disorder marked by the pursuit of extreme thinness and by extreme weight loss ● Individual purposely takes in too little nourishment, resulting in body weight that is very low and below that of other people of similar age and gender. ● Individual is very fearful of gaining weight, or repeatedly seeks to prevent weight gain despite low body weight. ● Individual has a distorted body perception, places inappropriate emphasis on weight or shape in judgments of herself or himself, or fails to appreciate the serious implications of her or his low weight. Diagnostic checklist for Bulimia Nervosa: a disorder marked by frequent eating binges that are followed by forced vomiting or other extreme compensatory behaviors to avoid gaining weight. Also known as binge-purge syndrome ● Repeated binge eating episodes ● Repeated performance of ill-advised compensatory behaviors (e.g., forced vomiting) to prevent weight gain ● Symptoms take place at least weekly for a period of 3 months ● Inappropriate influence of weight and shape on appraisal of oneself Diagnostic checklist for binge-eating disorder: a disorder marked by frequent binges but not extreme compensatory behaviors ● Recurrent binge-eating episodes ● Binge-eating episodes include at least three of these features: ○ Unusually fast eating ○ Absence of hunger

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○ Uncomfortable fullness ○ Secret eating due to sense of shame ○ Subsequent feelings of self-disgust, depression, or severe guilt Significant distress Binge-eating episodes take place at least weekly over the course of 3 months Absence of excessive compensatory behaviors

Film characteristics: ● Obsessively perfectionist, worry about consequences of their behavior, don’t want to do things wrong, everything needs to be controlled ● Eating disorders common in families (spectrum of eating disorders, some variant) ● High levels of serotonin (mood/appetite) ○ Has to do with having obsessive, anxious behavior ○ Dieting/starvation may lower serotonin levels ○ But the brain adapts and adds more serotonin receptors ● Majority of patients developed anxiety disorders before their eating disorder ○ Exercise was a way to take the anxiety away...