Steven Levenkron
http://www.levenkron.com

Noted psychotherapist to lecture on eating disorders/February 25, 1994
by:  Emily Haigh

Psychotherapist Steven Levenkron entered the field of anorexia nervosa by accident.  It began one day in 1970, when a girl suffering from anorexia walked into his office in New York.  "I had no idea what to do," Levenkron said. "I had never even heard of the disease anorexia nervosa before."

After two years, she walked out of his office fully recovered, setting the precedent for Levenkron's future.  By 1975, Levenkron was treating four girls with anorexia nervosa and had a practice unlike anyone else in New York City.

Levenkron will be speaking at the University this Saturday at 1 p.m. in the Mary Lou Williams Center.  His speech will follow a showing of a movie based on his book "The Best Little Girl in the World" as part of Eating Awareness Week.

"Speakers represent a communal way of addressing an isolating disease," said Trinity junior Catherine Baker, president of Educational Support To Eliminate Eating Misconceptions.  Levenkron is a medical expert on eating disorders.  To solidify his role, he went to Montefiore Hospital and Medical Center in Bronx, N.Y. and learned the physical aspects of the disease.

Levenkron has practiced his expertise on anorexia nervosa for the past 23 years.  He has influenced changes in the diagnosis of anorexia nervosa.
Levenkron challenged the theory that anorexia resulted from women's unconscious fear of becoming orally impregnated.  He recognized the naivete of this hypothesis, finding it discrediting to the intelligence of women.

Subsequently, Levenkron devised his own theory, which has since prevailed through his practice and books.  "People who develop eating disorders had a difficult time trusting and depending upon their parents, siblings and friends
throughout childhood. They only trust their ownselves and behavior," Levenkron said.

"They turn to society, trusting television and magazines," Levenkron said.
"They begin to see that the worst thing is to get fat according to our culture."

Overexposure to society fearful of getting fat makes girls prime victims for eating disorders, Levenkron said.  Although anorexia has been spotlighted since the mid-1970's, the disease's symptoms prevail as far back as the 12th century.  In the archives of the Vatican there are records of more than 100 anorexic women whom the Catholic  church canonized on because of their charity and virtuous behavior for giving away their food to others.

Every woman cannot imagine having the disease, but as they joke about it, they wish they had a hint of anorexia, said Levenkron.  "They both fear and are fascinated by the disease. They are amazed at the women who have it, who have the control," Levenkron said. "Society teaches women to hate their bodies and anorexics are at the extreme end of this spectrum."

Levenkron acknowledges several treatments for anorexia nervosa.  Patients can be confined to a hospital where they are rewarded if they gain weight and punished if they lose weight.  Levenkron said that this treatment does not always work because the key emotional problems behind the disease are never addressed.

"These women feel like the walking wounded. They gave something up to the hospital, but feel empty because this space was not refilled with the emotions of femininity, identity and dependence," stated Levenkron.

Levenkron has been called by patients who felt unhappy after hospitalization.  He uses individual psychoanalysis to treat his patients. Levenkron focuses his treatment on teaching his patients how to trust and depend on other people by making them depend on him.

"It may sound bossy, but I make them trust me. I act as their anchor," said Levenkron He sees 90 percent of his patients recover from their disorders.  Sometimes recovery rates from anorexia are as low as 20-30 percent.

"The numbers greatly depend on how much human energy and interest is focused on the patient.  There are no shortcuts." Levenkron said.

While his writing has been invaluable to the treatment of anorexia, he thinks that his work with patients has been more important.  "My most valuable contribution to the field are the people I get better, the recoveries.  I have a drawer in my desk full of photographs of my patients...and my patients' babies."

To the medical world, anorexia nervosa is a serious disease with a nine percent death rate.  Levenkron cites that 1 out of 250 girls will suffer from anorexia, and that one out of 12 girls will develop some form of bulimia.  Levenkron sees college as a potentially dangerous time in a woman's life for loosing this anchor.  College acts as a second puberty for women, an emotional puberty, Levenkron said.

"It is tricky being in college. Everything is changing," said Levenkron.  He sees women beginning to question their identity, and these difficult personal conflicts lead to eating disorders.

Levenkron plans to focus his lecture at the University on women between the ages of 18-22 years old and their emotional changes.