Mental heath as well as physical and it’s VERY HARD to treat.
Do you remember Karen Carpenter of “The Carpenters”? She had a beautiful voice and she died of this!!!
I would imagine it’s a 12 step program just like the AA and NA. If the patient is willing to help herself she could sign herself in at a state mental facility in Georgia.
If serious as this is I’ve seen patient s on an IV and naso gastric tube. This one: fed them Ensure in restraints. I cannot remember the legality, think this had to be done via a judge and patient was on a 5350( whatever the one year conservator-ship is, forget now) in a state hospital inside a SNF unit. pt did not die. I’ve seen bad brain stem injuries( etc0 where we just used a stomach tube and fed then. It sounds like this patient needs some legal deal so the hospital can treat her. Dumb but it’s a big deal if something goes wrong.
I suppose various psych drugs could be tried.....
some pts allow a tube feeding....
some will allow constant IV nutrition which is extremely expensive....
the "cure" for this problem lies strictly and solely with the patient....
One of the most powerful hormones signals the body to be hungry and eat — INSULIN. So they used to give anorexics shots of insulin — hunger too strong to resist.
Once a person has gone without eating for about 3 days, the appetite is suppressed - read this when reading about Gandhi hunger strikes. Giving a shot of insulin would interfere with the no appetite issue.
It can’t be ‘fixed’ medically.
Cheese burger and a milkshake and don’t let her upchuck it.