Regaining Your Self: Breaking Free From the Eating Disorder Identity: A Bold New Approach (Hardcover)

by Ira M. Sacker (Author), Sheila Buff (Author) "In my thirty-five-plus years of practice, only one patient has ever told me she wanted to have an eating disorder..." (more)
Key Phrases: eating disorder identity, obsessive identity, eating disorder voice (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
"His work has been a constant influence on individuals seeking help for the devastating consequences of anorexia nervosa and bulimia." -- Leigh Cohn, M.A.T., editor-in-chief, Eating Disorders: The Journal of Treatment and Prevention, and publisher, Gürze Books

Product Description
A new understanding and approach to eating disorders from a renowned expert, coauthor of the classic Dying to Be Thin

Nearly 5 percent of Americans face an eating disorder -- and eating disorders have the highest mortality rate of any mental illness. Long considered an affliction of young women, they are now common among young men, middle-aged women, and even children as young as five. This is a health crisis of epidemic proportions.

Regaining Your Self offers hope in the battle against eating disorders through a radical new therapy technique pioneered by Ira M. Sacker, M.D. A leader in the field, Dr. Sacker has been treating patients with eating disorders for thirty-five years. This breakthrough book, filled with firsthand accounts from patients, family members, friends, and others, provides what patients and their families desperately need: a therapeutic model that heals.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: Hyperion; 1 edition (February 28, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1401303056
• ISBN-13: 978-1401303051
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #126,213 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A New Possibility for Healing, May 9, 2008

By	Isabelle (Jersey City, NJ) - See all my reviews

As a person who suffered from anorexia and bulimia in my younger years, I find Dr. Ira Sacker's book on eating disorders wonderful. It contains powerful information to help sufferers of eating disorders gain insight on their condition and heal themselves.

According to the author one of the factors that trigger anorexia are the judgments that one has on oneself, the belief that one is "not" perfect and the quest for never attainable perfection. The persons afflicted with the disease are plagued with the idea that they are flawed and that life will only get better when they reach an ideal weight.

This "cursed" way of thinking is not only symptomatic of people who suffer from an eating disorder. For me, what made all the difference was finding a place of acceptance of myself where I stopped working on myself and striving to reach unrealistic goals. The book Working on Yourself Doesn't Work: A Book About Instantaneous Transformation by Ariel and Shya Kane really supported me in discovering that place and transformed my life. The Kanes bring the message that we are perfect just the way we are and that if we can stop listening to those delusional conversations in our heads about our imperfections, life can transform instantaneously into an exciting adventure.

If you are or have been suffering from an Eating Disorder and are looking to strengthen your ability to be yourself, experience satisfaction and live free of neurotic behavior, I urge you to look into the work of Ariel and Shya Kane (they have written 2 other books How To Create a Magical Relationship and Being Here: Modern Day Tales of Enlightenment). They bring a very real and instantaneous possibility for Healing that very few people have had the chance to experience.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally I Understand, June 13, 2007

By	Michael McKeel (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I have been a compulsive overeater for twenty-five years. I can't calculate the damage this has done to my life. I have been to four therapists, attended Overeaters Anonymous, and read scores of books on diet, exercise, overeating, and compulsive behavior. All of them have provided clues, but none of them taught me the comprehensive overview of why I behave the way I do and what is needed to recover that this book has done.

It has answered all of my questions, and several more that I didn't know to ask. It showed how a great deal of my strange behavior is not just a quirky personality, but the direct result of my disease. The book has shown me the way to real healing. I am very grateful to the author for making this information available.

Yes, the book focuses on anorexics and bulimics. Yes, sometimes the book seems to be addressing patients and other times therapists. Yes, some of the book does not seem to relate to me. But this is probably necessary given the books objectives and, as I said, it addresses every concern I had and more.

I am now looking for a therapist who is willing to read the book and work through its approach with me. This book is a life changer.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book is a blessing, June 7, 2007

By	Ralph Dibari "Dawn" (Orlando, FL) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I highly recommend Dr. Ira Sacker's book to anyone suffering from an eating disorder, as well as to their families, friends, professionals, and anyone else interested in this area. God has used this book to help me understand so much about my own seventeen year struggle with anorexia, which began at the age of thirteen, and it has given me hope on my road to recovery. I have experienced all of the slips, lapses, relapses, and collapses, in which he explains in his writings. I now see a light at the end of this long dark tunnel. Dr. Sacker has been working in the field of eating disorders for more than 35 years; and his knowledge and unique approach known as PIRT-Personal Interactive Rational Therapy-is profound. This book is validating, informative, and deeply insightful. I have finally grasped that overwhelming anxiety along with other issues is at the core of eating disorders, rather than weight and food. Dr. Sacker does not just write about the underlying problems, but provides how one can overcome them by finding their passion in life. I can see Dr. Sacker's heart and soul in every page of this book. I am so grateful to him for his dedication, compassion, sensitivity, and incredible desire to see individuals regain their true selves and to be free from the "hell" that they are in. I am also eternally grateful to God for the contribution that he has made to the eating disorder field. Dr. Ira Sacker is a blessing. Please buy his book and internalize its truths, so that you can become the person you are meant to be. As Dr. Sacker quotes, from an anonymous source, "Just when the caterpillar thought the world was over, it became a butterfly." Sincerely, Dawn D.