Overactivity and boundary setting in anorexia nervosa: an existential perspective

Excessive motor activity in anorexia nervosa has been variously described as a symptom of a wider perceptual disorder, as the cause of anorexia, and as a neurologically based compulsive behavior. It is also considered a secondary symptom used to burn calories. In this paper, this symptom is considered from an existential perspective. It is first shown that the anorexic's mode of being is overly rational and not irrational as claimed by cognitive-behaviorists. It is then hypothesized that overactivity may help the anorexic person achieve a sense of existential permanence by dynamizing her static and too rational mode of being. It is also advanced that over-activity may play an adaptive role and should not be indiscriminately deterred in the treatment of anorexia nervosa.