Mindful Medical Practice Enabling the Management of Anorexia Nervosa, Alcohol Use Disorder and Separation Anxiety Disorder
Main Article Content
Abstract
This is a case report of comorbidity involving psychiatric disorders. The case could only be understood and managed effectively due to the combination of the therapeutic alliance as the cornerstone of mindful medical practice, psychotherapeutic approaches, and medication.
A 27-year-old woman started a psychiatric treatment because of her alcohol problem. She drank daily until she passed out. After assessment, she was admitted into a detoxification facility for a month. As an outpatient, she remained abstinent for periods of time (1-9 months). She also struggled with binge eating, purging and disturbed perception of body image (perceiving herself as obese).
The therapeutic alliance was the main component of treatment. She felt understood and not judged. She kept an open mind to understand her psychopathology.
Psychoeducation was an important tool. It included sessions on addiction and the core symptoms of anorexia nervosa. Behavioural analysis and skills training helped to identify an anxiety disorder at the basis of all clinical presentation. The patient realized how ambivalent she was to change. After several episodes of alcohol use, binge eating and purging, she redefined her life goals. As a result, her motivation to change evolved. She became mindful of triggers and began to have fewer episodes of alcohol use.
She could decrease her binge eating, purging behaviour, and became aware of her distorted perception of her body. She accepted to take medication to control her pathological anxiety, as well as started using paced breathing and muscle relaxation.
Article Details
Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal. Creative Comons 4.0 CC-BY
Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).