DO STRATEGIES EXIST FOR EVALUATION AND TREATMENT OF PSYCHIATRICALLY ILL OBESE PATIENTS?
Initial Evaluation Because some studies of clinical groups of obese patients report unexpectedly high rates of depressive and anxiety disorders (127, 128), the clinician should be particularly careful to screen for these disorders, even if they are not suggested by the initial complaint. Obese individuals, even those who are seen for treatment of a condition unrelated to their weight, are at increased risk of suffering from binge eating disorder. Therefore, it is important to inquire about problematic eating patterns, loss of control related to eating, and weight control practices, including dieting, exercise, diet pills (prescribed, over-the-counter, and illicit), or various forms of purging after eating. Is the patient caught in a cycle of “crash dieting” followed by weight regain and further demoralization? If the patient is exercising, is the need to exercise interfering in any way with occupational or interpersonal functioning? It is crucial to assess the patient s attitudes towar
