Anorexia Nervosa: A Synthesis of Poetic and Narrative Therapies in the Outpatient Treatment of Young Adult Women

Abstract

Current trends for treatment of women with anorexia nervosa often focus on weight gain as the primary therapeutic goal without concurrently addressing psychological concerns. As a result of this singular focus, many women drop out of treatment before recovering. This article offers an alternate treatment model. A synthesized narrative and poetry therapy modality is useful in treating this population because it offers women an opportunity to create an expressive and assertive voice while shifting blame from the self to the disorder.

KEYWORDS:

• anorexia
• women
• poetry therapy
• narrative therapy
• externalization
• empowerment
• creativity
• counseling