ABSTRACT
The notion of self-help in the treatment of anorexia may strike many mental health practitioners as extremely problematic and unrealistic. The psychological nature of the problem and the physical diminution of the sufferer is a deterrent to successful contact and treatment by even the most experienced health professionals. Self-help has a role to play in coming to grips with and the recovering from anorexia. The recognition of anorexia by the sufferer herself or by a family member frequently engenders panic about how and where to go for reasonable treatment. Organizations have sprung up to detail and describe the range of possibilities from self-help to behaviour modification, or more actively interventionist models. Learning to recognize and accept feelings and needs in oneself and then coming to express them is an important general focus for any self-help work.
