As a clinical psychologist who specializes in the treatment of bulimia nervosa, you have been asked to design a program based on the successful work of Fairburn, who utilized a variety of cognitive-behavioral techniques. Discuss the program

you will design.

Answer:

Fairburn conceptualizes the cause of Bulimia nervosa as a combination of maladaptive tendencies, including an excessive emphasis on weight and shape, perfectionism, and dichotomous "black or white" thinking. His program, that we will replicate, involves three stages. The first stage involves education and behavioral strategies to normalize eating patterns and end the cycle of eating restraint followed by binging and purging. Second, we will introduce traditional cognitive therapy methods that aim to convince the client of her cognitive errors, such as illogical and dysfunctional beliefs about the importance of weight and its the connection to self-image. This stage will draw heavily on the methods introduced by Beck. Third, as clients develop more logical and reasonable cognitions and beliefs, we will attempt to consolidate these into day to day realistic expectations about weight, diet and strategies for relapse prevention.