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How the coronavirus is driving up eating disorders in Modesto and the Bay Area

Modesto Bee - 11/19/2020

Nov. 19--Isolation at home and the stress of the coronavirus pandemic evidently is driving a large number of referrals for people seeking help for eating disorders.

"Never in my career has the caseload been so full," said Signe Darpinian, a certified specialist who helps these clients.

Darpinian, who has practice offices in Modesto and the Bay Area, said it's happening not only in this region but is a national trend this year. She cited media reports that the National Eating Disorder Association has seen an 80 percent increase in calls to its helpline.

The eating disorder specialists in this part of California are handling the cases by getting multiple families together for Zoom and Telehealth sessions.

In a study published in August in the International Journal of Eating Disorders, a research team contacted people who suffer from anorexia nervosa and found that 70 percent had increased concerns about eating, weight and body image after the pandemic prompted stay-home orders this year.

Those negative emotions can lead to skipping meals and the calorie restriction that makes the disorder dangerous. Fears about contracting COVID-19 might have been to blame for a 40 percent dropoff in patient appointments with therapists and general practitioners to check the patient's status, the study revealed.

Darpinian said collective anxiety lends itself to emotional eating. And the realities of working at home create difficulties for those who have struggled with problems like binge eating or bulimia.

She pointed out that people who are far along or in late stages of recovery were accustomed to work-day routines that included breakfast in the morning, a lunch break at work, and dinner after returning home. The pandemic has either required or convinced many folks to work at home, where it's easy to make trips to the refrigerator and become preoccupied with food.

Darpinian advises people to press the pause button and "create a space between you and the food."

The certified specialist, who co-authored the book "No Weigh! A Teen's Guide to Body Image, Food and Emotional Wisdom", recommends a hunger meter to sharpen the awareness of appetite and help break a cycle of impulsive eating.

The meter has numbers from 1 to 10 corresponding with how a person feels about eating. The number "1" is for starving or feeling cranky or lightheaded.

When the needle is on "3", a person has a manageable appetite that's often felt before sitting down to a regular meal. That is a good time to eat. The number "6" is the satisfied, peaceful feeling -- full but not overly stuffed. It's a good time to stop eating.

With the highest numbers on the meter, the food has lost its taste and the person feels overly stuffed.

Darpinian, who has a personal growth podcast, said she does not demonize emotional eating, which has a soothing effect. But she believes it becomes more of problem when it's habitual.

The National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA) has information and a helpline Monday to Friday at (800) 931-2237.

The numbers on the hunger meter equate to:

1. Starving, ravenous, cranky, low blood sugar.

2. Very hungry, rumbling stomach.

3. Manageable hunger; calm and mindful about eating.

4. You could eat, but you're not that hungry; snacky.

5. You've probably just eaten, and aren't hungry.

6. The dreamy stopping place; your stomach feels happy and at peace, not overly stuffed.

7. Your taste buds lose interest much beyond this point.

8. You are on the path toward full and feel anchored by your food.

9. Thanksgiving Day stuffed.

10. Uh oh, time to unbutton.

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(c)2020 The Modesto Bee (Modesto, Calif.)

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