The Contributions of Self Psychology to the Treatment of Anorexia and Bulimia

The major contributions of self psychology to the treatment of anorexia and bulimia include: (a) the unique therapeutic stance of the therapist as a selfobject who tries to empathize with the patient from an experience-near position; (b) the conceptualization of food as fulfilling selfobject needs; and (c) the respect that the theory attributes to the significance of the symptoms for the patient.