The Experience and Management of Emotions on an Inpatient Setting for People with Anorexia Nervosa: A Qualitative Study

Objectives

Research has identified how people with anorexia nervosa (AN) have problematic relationships with their own emotions, which can impact recovery. The aim of this study was to understand factors that were important in the care and emotional management of people with eating disorders on an inpatient unit.

Design

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight participants with AN.

Method

Interview transcripts were analysed using a qualitative approach that was based upon interpretative phenomenological analysis, but also incorporated a theoretical component.

Results

From the qualitative analysis, two overarching and related themes were developed: ‘difficulty with emotion’ and ‘predictability and care’. These were underpinned by a number of theoretical important constructs, such as ‘staff factors’, ‘understanding of emotion’, ‘validity of emotion’ and ‘looking for ideal care’.

Conclusion

Results suggested that the management strategies employed by some staff could serve to maintain eating disorders symptoms, whilst patient factors were also important as they had negative effect on staff's impact to care for this patient group. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Key Practitioner Message

• Emotions and emotional processing is problematic for people with anorexia nervosa.
• The expression of emotions within anorexia nervosa is difficult and it often leads to emotional expressions that are out of context.
• Staff teams need to be aware of the issue of expectations of care when looking after people with anorexia nervosa.