It’s crucial for parents and guardians to understand that eating disorders in children often present differently than in adults. Recognizing the unique signs can dramatically improve outcomes through early and specialized intervention.
Children are not adults and should not be expected to respond to treatment in the same way adults do. They require specialized care that is sensitive to their unique needs. This is why Kartini Clinic’s programs are exclusively designed for children and young adults, understanding that treating eating disorders in this age group requires specific expertise and sensitivity for both the child and their family.
Why Early Intervention is a Game Changer
The earlier effective intervention occurs, the better the outcome. The duration of a child’s illness directly impacts the length of intensive treatment required. Left untreated, illnesses like anorexia can become chronic conditions, leading to irreversible physiological damage to vital organs, cognitive functioning, and bone health. Intensive treatment is more likely to be required for more severe cases, often influenced by factors such as genetic predisposition, biological variations, and environmental circumstances.
Spotting the Tiger: What to Look For
Identifying an eating disorder in a child or loved one can be challenging, but certain signs may indicate the need for professional evaluation. Kartini Clinic, with the assistance of Cliexa AI, has developed a strictly confidential and free screening tool that can help determine if treatment services might be beneficial.
Look for changes in these areas over the past three to six months:
• Weight and Eating Concerns:
◦ Noticeable change in weight (loss or gain of more than 10 lbs).
◦ Feeling unhappy with body appearance, or seeing oneself as bigger than others perceive.
◦ Skipping meals or limiting food intake often.
• Food and Exercise Behaviors:
◦ Exercising compulsively even when sick, injured, or when other activities should take priority.
◦ Eating large amounts of food at once and feeling unable to stop.
◦ Making oneself throw up or using laxatives/diet pills to control weight.
◦ Spending a lot of time thinking about food, calories, or nutrition.
◦ Avoiding certain foods or adhering to strict food rules.
◦ Lack of interest in food or eating.
◦ Taking medications differently than prescribed to control weight.
◦ Worrying about negative consequences of eating, unrelated to weight gain.
• Physical Symptoms:
◦ Dizziness or fainting.
◦ Feeling cold all the time when others are comfortable.
◦ Persistent exhaustion, despite adequate sleep.
◦ Hair falling out or getting thinner.
◦ For those who menstruate, missed or irregular menstrual periods.
◦ Noticing blood when throwing up.
◦ Heart racing or feeling dizzy when standing up.
◦ Swelling in hands, feet, or face.
• Feelings and Thoughts (in the past month):
◦ Feeling a need to be perfect.
◦ Often feeling stressed out or overwhelmed.
◦ Feeling sad or down most days.
◦ Worrying a lot or often feeling fearful.
◦ Having thoughts or habits that cannot be controlled.
◦ Needing to be in control of everything.
◦ Difficulty sleeping.
◦ Mood changes quickly throughout the day, or mood changes (up or down) persisting for days or weeks.
• Safety Concerns (in the past month):
◦ Hurt self on purpose (like cutting, scratching, or burning).
◦ Had thoughts about suicide.
◦ Previously tried to end life.
◦ Wished not to be alive anymore.
Kartini Clinic’s Specialized Approach for Children and Young Adults
Kartini Clinic practices evidence-based, family-centered eating disorder treatment. Our program is a multi-disciplinary medical and psychotherapeutic treatment model. The approach emphasizes:
• Family-Centered Care: Parents are considered essential treatment team members and are actively involved from the first assessment through all levels of treatment. True family-centered programs include weekly family therapy, family-based meals, and parent training, rather than just occasional phone calls. Kartini has assisted over 3000 children and families since 1998.
• Weight Restoration First: For conditions like anorexia, prompt and adequate weight restoration is critical before psychotherapy can effectively secure lasting remission. If a program does not ensure weight gain within two weeks, we strongly advise to seek a different one. Anorexia is a brain disorder, meaning “arguing with the illness” to convince a patient to behave rationally is ineffective and simply wastes previous time.
• Coordinated Care: Kartini Clinic offers seamless medical stabilization as part of its program, providing a level of coordinated care often unavailable elsewhere. Patients remain within their care from admission until they return to their community providers, avoiding transfers between different teams.
• Multi-disciplinary Team: Physiological and psychological remission is achieved through a team that includes group, individual, and family therapists, movement therapists, a hypno-therapist, and a licensed school teacher for patients in the Partial Hospitalization Program (PHP).
• Levels of Care: Kartini Clinic offers three levels of care—Inpatient stabilization (in consultation with Randall Children’s Hospital), Partial Hospitalization (PHP), and Virtual Intensive Outpatient (VIOP) — each designed to provide coordinated care and step-down to the next treatment level. The goal is to treat to an outcome, not a deadline, with treatment length varying based on factors like the child’s age, duration of illness, severity, and medical stability.
While treatment can be a long and frustrating process, especially with conditions like anorexia, it is emphatically not without hope for a return to a rewarding and fulfilling life.
Take the First Step
If you are concerned about yourself, your child, or a loved one, take the first step. You can use the confidential eating disorder screening tool. For more information or to speak with an intake coordinator, please contact us directly.
Call Now: our dedicated intake line (971) 319-6800
Website: kartiniclinic.com
Email: help@kartiniclinic.com
Hours: Monday – Friday, 9:00 am – 5:00 pm.
