People with eating disorders are often reluctant to begin eating disorder treatment even though they are suffering physical and emotional consequences of their disorder. This form of denial is often not a conscious choice, and much of their inability to perceive the reality of their eating disorder could be due to the extreme anxiety they feel when being told they need eating disorder counseling.
Can, or Should, Someone with an Eating Disorder Be Forced Into Treatment?
If someone has an eating disorder deemed life-threatening by a physician, family members may legally be able to force the person into an eating disorder treatment program. However, involuntary treatment for anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge-eating disorder is controversial because it seems counterproductive to compel uncooperative eating disorder patients into treatment.
Eating disorder treatment centers accepting adolescent patients often see patients enter reluctantly because their parents rightfully use some kind of leverage to get them into treatment. Threatening to take away a teen’s cell phone, car, housing or something else the teen values is one way a parent can avoid forcing their child into an eating disorder treatment program using legal means.
What Is Guardianship?
Obtaining medical guardianship gives legal authority to someone who has tried to get a loved one to begin eating disorder counseling. Although medical authority does not grant someone the ability to sign adults into eating disorder treatment centers, it does give them legal authority to decide what should be done regarding an individual’s psychological and physical care. Before medical guardianship can be granted, a judge has to decide if the person in question is incapable of making rational decisions on their own.
What Is Conservatorship?
Conservatorship gives individuals authority over managing another individual’s finances. The reason why obtaining conservatorship of someone with an eating disorder may compel them into entering eating disorder treatment is because the person with conservatorship can reduce their access to funds fueling the eating disorder. For example, money is needed to pay for membership to fitness centers, buying clothes to hide thinness and purchasing weight loss aids like diuretics and laxatives.
Be aware that guardianship and conservatorship are regulated under state laws. One, both or neither may be effective in certain states recognizing these legal measures. If you do manage to obtain guardianship or conservatorship over a loved one with an eating disorder and they wish to seek eating disorder counseling in another state, you may have to get further legal advice and/or modify court orders to accommodate your loved one.
What Is a 72-Hour Hold?
A 72-hour hold is an emergency hold applied to individuals are legally considered an immediate danger to others or themselves. Hospitals can hold people with eating disorders who are suffering from severe malnutrition, heart failure, and other serious health issues until the courts can assess the physical and mental status of the person held for 72 hours. During a 72-hour hold hearing, the “defendant” is granted a lawyer to represent them. To get someone released from a 72-hour hold, the lawyer must argue to the judge that their client is competent and not incapacitated.
Some people with anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa or binge-eating disorder do not believe they have a problem. Part of their illness is attributed to this lack of insight concerning their health, body dysmorphic disorder, extreme anxiety over the thought of entering eating disorder treatment centers and obsessive thoughts about food. If you have a loved one who has an eating disorder and refuses to get help, please call us today for immediate assistance.
Author Bio:
Mike is a health editor with a degree in Journalism and Social Communications, currently writing for several USA & UK publications. He is specialized in articles around health tips, workout plans, and other nutrition-related topics. His main aim is to help health charities to raise awareness on campaigns about misunderstood or commonly misdiagnosed conditions.