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Obese individuals frequently overeat to cope with emotional distress. Studies suggest that some people who struggle with obesity have been victims of traumatic events like childhood physical, emotional, or sexual abuse (Felitti, 1991, 1993; Wiederman et al, 1999; Brewerton et al, 1999; Springs & Friedrich, 1992; Williamson et al, 2002, Felitti et al, 1998). Certainly the vast majority of obese young people have not been abused, but some have had such traumatic early experiences. Researchers and theorists have argued that abused and victimized children sometimes develop weight problems in order to protect themselves from too much attention - to prevent further abuse.
Science demonstrates that the causes of obesity cannot be viewed in such simple and metaphorical terms. We know, for example, that genetics and other biological forces play huge roles (Kirschenbaum, 2005) in obesity. We also know that our culture provides an obesogenic environment, one that is overloaded with high-fat food and plenty of appealing sedentary activities. Nonetheless, for some seriously obese young women and men, binge eating and obesity can provide some emotional comforts, though maladaptive and unhealthy to be sure. This population of young people could benefit tremendously from working in a safe therapeutic environment that will also equip them to make dramatic changes in their lifestyles.
In order to lose excess weight and keep it off long-term, it is essential to address the emotional and psychological issues underlying the weight problem and to learn healthier ways to cope. Wellspring Academy, one of the first year-round boarding schools for overweight and obese children and adolescents, is well-equipped to handle the issues that sometimes accompany obesity and childhood abuse, and to guide young people toward a new relationship with food.
Many students who attend Wellspring Academy bring issues other than weight gain to Wellspring. Depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and attention deficit disorders (ADD/ADHD) sometimes accompany weight problems. Through weekly individual and group counseling sessions, students can achieve improvements in mood and self-regulatory skills. For some, treatment also includes learning how to find healthy coping mechanisms to deal with troubling memories of abuse.
Susan Borgman, LCSW, the clinical director of Wellspring Academy in North Carolina, has ample experience dealing with all of the psychological issues that typically contribute to or result from excess weight. Following a comprehensive assessment upon admission, a clinical team member under Ms. Borgman's supervision will provide individual and group counseling sessions four times a week. A clinical team member, called a "Behavioral Coach," provides cognitive-behavioral therapy that helps students increase their self-awareness, focusing skills, coping strategies, and emotional strength.
Students greatly increase their activity and fitness levels at the academy. These changes alone can significantly improve mood, producing a feeling of general well-being, and become part of the healthy coping repertoire that all successful weight controllers use every day. Buoyed by rapid weight losses that they experience as comfortable and manageable (all of them finding "lovable foods that love you back"), motivation for schoolwork and living a healthful life generally increase dramatically.
Childhood or adolescent obesity almost always leads to adult obesity (unless a powerful treatment helps them change) and to major health problems such as an increased risk of many types of cancers, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes. Psychologically and socially, obese children are less likely to graduate from high school, less likely to earn a college degree, less likely to get married, and more likely to occupy a lower socioeconomic status.
A treatment facility such as Wellspring Academy can address abuse, trauma, and problematic coping mechanisms in order to limit or reverse the damage this experience has caused for your child. Losing weight, dealing with the trauma in therapy, and learning new, healthy coping mechanisms can reverse these risks and empower your child to lead a happier and healthier life.
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