Can PTSD Treatment Be Successfully Integrated Into Eating Disorder Programs?

What you need to know

• People with both eating disorders and PTSD often experience more severe symptoms and worse treatment outcomes when each condition is treated separately
• Integrating evidence-based PTSD treatments into eating disorder programs appears to be feasible and effective
• About 70% of patients showed meaningful improvement in their PTSD symptoms while also making progress in their eating disorder treatment

The Complex Relationship Between Trauma and Eating Disorders

When Sarah first sought treatment for her eating disorder, she felt overwhelmed trying to address both her disordered eating and the traumatic experiences that haunted her. Like many patients, she found that focusing on one issue often caused the other to worsen. This common challenge highlights why treating eating disorders and PTSD separately often falls short - these conditions are deeply interconnected and may need to be addressed together.

A High-Risk Combination

Research shows that nearly all individuals with eating disorders have experienced some form of trauma, and between 25-40% meet the criteria for PTSD. In intensive treatment settings, these numbers are even higher - over half of patients may have PTSD. When these conditions occur together, patients typically face more severe symptoms, higher rates of other mental health challenges, and poorer response to standard treatments.

A New Integrated Approach

The study examined 57 adults receiving treatment for eating disorders who also participated in one of two evidence-based PTSD therapies: Prolonged Exposure (PE) or Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT). Rather than treating the conditions separately, these trauma therapies were integrated into the eating disorder treatment program.

The results were encouraging. Patients showed significant decreases in both PTSD and eating disorder symptoms over time. Approximately 70% of participants experienced meaningful improvement in their PTSD symptoms while simultaneously making progress in their eating disorder treatment.

Understanding What Works Best

Interestingly, the research found that patients with lower levels of eating disorder-related life impairment at the start of treatment showed greater improvement in their PTSD symptoms. This suggests that having some stability in daily functioning may help people engage more fully in trauma therapy. However, those with more severe eating disorder symptoms at the beginning also showed substantial positive changes, indicating that even highly symptomatic patients can benefit from integrated treatment.

What This Means for You

If you or someone you love is struggling with both an eating disorder and PTSD, these findings offer hope. Rather than feeling forced to choose which condition to address first, integrated treatment may provide a path to healing both simultaneously. When seeking treatment:

• Look for programs that have experience treating both conditions together
• Ask about their approach to trauma treatment within eating disorder care
• Don’t feel pressured to “fix” one issue completely before addressing the other
• Remember that improvement in one area often supports progress in the other

Conclusions

• Integrated treatment for eating disorders and PTSD appears to be both feasible and effective
• Most patients can make progress on both conditions simultaneously
• This approach may help avoid the “whack-a-mole” effect where improving one condition causes the other to worsen