S u m m a r y

 

Juntunen P & Seikkula J (2002)

Day-patient care as part of the recovery process: Eating disorder patients' experiences of themselves, their problem, friendships and depression and anxiety

Psykologia 37:403 411. Vammala ISSN 0355-1067.

 

The purpose of this study was to find out how cognitive-behavioral day-patient treatment changes eating disorder patients' experiences of themselves, their problem, friendships and depression and anxiety. The participants of this case study were young women, four of them diagnosed as suffering from anorexia nervosa and one from bulimia nervosa. The participants were interviewed with semi-structured interviews at the beginning of their treatment and after its termination. In addition to the interviews, the participants filled in four questionnaires: the Eating Disorder Inventory (EDI), the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) and the Social Adjustment Scale - Self Report (SAS-SR).

The participants clearly benefited from the day-patient treatment as far as the four themes studied are concerned. However, the longer the illness has persisted and the more severe the symptoms have been, the more difficult it is to recover. Social problems, depression, suicidality, anxiety and substance abuse increase and get worse. Self-evaluations become more negative and identity disappears. Day-patient care combined with psychotherapeutic treatment is profitable after a more intensive hospital treatment, but it should not be started too early. The treatment should be developed further to take more into account the individuality of patients and their symptoms. Psychological factors, especially identity construction should be addressed more during the treatment. Careful consideration should also be given to whether the treatment methods used support normal eating behavior or whether they actually support disordered behavior.

 

Key words: Eating disorders, day-patient care, case study.

 

Pauliina Juntunen, psychologist, Lipparinne 7 B 15, FIN-02720 Espoo, Finland. Tel: +358-50-3487 677. Jaakko Seikkula, Ph.D., Department of Psychology, University of Jyväskylä, P.O.Box 35, FIN-40351 Jyväskylä. Tel: +358-14-2602 842.