The Role of Psychiatric Medications in Eating Disorder Recovery

Psychiatric medications are a part of most eating disorder treatment plans but are usually a secondary element of the path to recovery.

Although medications can help with some eating disorder symptoms, mostly Binge Eating Disorder and Bulimia, the purpose of psychopharmacology is usually to treat the symptoms secondary to the eating disorder itself.

I have written many posts about which medications treat binge eating and how effective they are. In this regard, medications play a clear and specific role in treatment.

For most other people with eating disorders, psychiatric medications are used to ease other symptoms. It is common to confront depression, anxiety obsessive-compulsive disorder and panic attacks as part of recovery. In addition, trauma is frequently connected to eating disorders and treating PTSD symptoms can help as well. Addressing these symptoms can help the person feel more able to eat regularly while managing the eating disorder thoughts and urges.

Often as the eating disorder improves, people taking medications for secondary symptoms find they can lower or even stop the medications in time. Many people, though, continue to find that the medications remain effective after recovery as well, so each individual needs to consider the best use of medications through the process.

A much smaller percentage of people with eating disorders learn that the eating disorder is the secondary diagnosis. This means that treating the primary diagnosis with medications can successfully lead to remission of the eating disorder as well. In these unusual cases, the psychiatric symptoms cause the eating disorder. Depression, Bipolar Disorder, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and even Attention Deficit Disorder can cause an eating disorder as a secondary condition. It’s important to recognize how rare this situation is and not to think this outcome is likely.

Seeing a psychiatrist knowledgeable about eating disorders is an important part of any recovery program. It’s crucial to know medications rarely play a central part of treatment but are necessary for many people to help them get well.