Eating Disorders: A Disorder of In and Out

The coexistence of a traumatic past and the development of an eating disorder is corroborated by clinicians and researchers. This article will discuss the author's concept of "the disorder of in and out" which is believed to describe the resulting core pathology: the individual does not know what to take into their lives and what to keep out of it, which is believed to be expressed metaphorically via symptoms. Treatment approaches will be explicated utilizing this perspective. Symptom choice, trauma, attachment and dissociation theories will be discussed with respect to the concept of a disorder of in and out.