User:M.froehlich001/sandbox

Although the prevalence rates vary greatly, between 37% and 100%, there appears to be a link between traumatic events and eating disorder diagnosis. Approximately 72% of individuals with anorexia report experiencing a traumatic event prior to the onset of eating disorder symptoms, with binge-purge subtype reporting the highest rates ;. There are many traumatic events that may be risk factors for development of anorexia, the first identified traumatic event predicting anorexia was childhood sexual abuse. However, other traumatic events, such as physical and emotional abuse have also been found to be risk factors. Interpersonal, as opposed to non-interpersonal trauma, has been seen as the most common type of traumatic event, which can encompass sexual, physical, and emotional abuse. Individuals who experience repeated trauma, like those who experience trauma perpetrated by a caregiver or loved one, have increased symptom severity of anorexia and a greater prevalence of comorbid psychiatric diagnoses. In individuals with anorexia, the prevalence rates for those who also qualify for a PTSD diagnosis ranges from 4% to 52% in non-clinical samples to 10% to 47% in clinical samples ;. A complicated symptom profile develops when trauma and anorexia meld; the bodily experience of the individual is changed and intrusive thoughts and sensations may be experienced. Traumatic events can lead to intrusive and obsessive thoughts, and the symptom of anorexia that has been most closely linked to a PTSD diagnosis is increased obsessive thoughts pertaining to food. Similarly, impulsivity is linked to the purge and binge-purge subtypes of anorexia, trauma, and PTSD. Emotional trauma (e.g., invalidation, chaotic family environment in childhood) may lead to difficulty with emotions, particularly the identification of and how physical sensations contribute to the emotional response. Trauma and traumatic events can disturb an individual’s sense of self and affect their ability to thrive, especially within their bodies ;. When trauma is perpetrated on an individual, it can lead to feelings of not being safe within their own body; that their body is for others to use and not theirs alone ;. Individuals may experience a feeling of disconnection from their body after a traumatic experience, leading to a desire to distance themselves from the body. Trauma overwhelms individuals emotionally, physically, and psychologically. . Both physical and sexual abuse can lead to an individual seeing their body as belonging to an “other” and not to the “self”. Individuals who feel as though they have no control over their bodies due to trauma may use food as a means of control because the choice to eat is an unmatched expression of control. By exerting control over food, individuals can choose when to eat and how much to eat. Individuals, particularly children experiencing abuse, may feel a loss of control over their life, circumstances, and their own bodies. Particularly sexual abuse, but also physical abuse, individuals may feel that the body is not a safe place and an object over which another has control. Starvation, in the case of anorexia, may also lead to reduction in the body as a sexual object, making starvation a solution. Restriction may also be a means by which the pain an individual is experiencing can be communicated.