ABSTRACT
This case study of a young female patient with bulimia nervosa (BN) illustrates how food becomes a substitute for human selfobjects, following a loss of a significant person. Unlike the disappointing human beings, food serves as a consistent, stable, comforting selfobject. The self psychologically oriented therapy allowed the patient to discover how the symptomatic binge eating is connected to feelings of emptiness, alienation and loneliness upon a failure of a person expected to serve as a selfobject. The patient’s growing ability for introspection and increasing awareness of the timing of her binges gave her confidence and enhanced her self-esteem, ultimately leading to remission.
