The Living Skeleton: A Depth Psychological Analysis of Anorexia Nervosa

Abstract

The purpose of this qualitative doctoral research study is to explore the mental health condition known as anorexia nervosa through the framework of depth psychology in combination with specific concepts from analytical/Jungian psychology to provide an in-depth analysis of the condition beyond current conventional clinical views. Anorexia nervosa is a psychological disorder clinically characterized by significantly low body weight due to severe starvation induced by body dysmorphia and an extreme fear of weight gain. The condition is also often accompanied by suicidality—thus, in combination with the potentially lethal effects of starvation, anorexia nervosa has the highest mortality rate of all psychiatric illnesses. Since first identified in medical literature over a century ago, anorexia nervosa remains a profound medical mystery and psychiatric enigma which is particularly difficult to treat due to its unknown causes and origin. As the condition presents a dire prognosis to individuals due to its innate complexity, low recovery rates, and staggering mortality statistics, anorexia nervosa demands further research beyond what is available today. Thus, in viewing the condition through the lens of depth psychology with the use of hermeneutic methodology, anorexia nervosa is poignantly transformed from a misunderstood psychiatric phenomenon into a meaningful transformational psychic process accompanying individuation. Moreover, anorexia nervosa becomes a powerful, supreme example of an archetypal death-rebirth cycle personified.