How did COVID-19 undermine the anorexic defenses and contributed
to the increase and exaggeration of anorexia in the population?
In response to the loss of control caused by the Corona pandemic, many
people reacted similarly to the anorexic mechanisms of an extreme need
to control the uncontrollable. People imposed several restrictions and
prohibitions on themselves, sometimes punishing themselves for violating
their restrictions. Thus, it can be argued that the reality created by
COVID-19 corresponded with the psychological and behavioral mechanisms
of anorexia.
When anorexics are faced with a reality that becomes overwhelming, their
control can extend into omnipotence, facilitating a psychic retreat
(Steiner, 1993). According to Selvini Palazzoli, (1978), anorexics have
an extreme Cartesian internal dichotomy: they believe that their soul
transcends their bodies, giving them complete control and power over
their own behavior as well as the behavior of others (Selvini Palazzoli.
1978, 223). Having the perception of being able to withstand limitations
and prohibitions may serve as a platform for feelings of superiority and
as a defense against desires and needs, which they may perceive as
humiliating. Thus, the body serves as a means of enhancing self-esteem;
“…in anorexia, the body serves as an instrument to achieve control,
purity and psychological, social, and spiritual perfection” (Duesund &
Skårderud, 2003). In its intensity and speed of spread, COVID-19 exposed
the fragility of the human body. In spite of the technological and
digital advancements that mankind has achieved in recent decades, the
Corona virus has exposed humans as vulnerable and as lacking the
knowledge and tools to combat it. The belief of humans that they were
superior to other living creatures collapsed almost instantly. In this
regard, it can be assumed that the Corona pandemic, in its immediate and
extreme consequences, led to the collapse of the omnipotent anorexic
defense. In the face of the extraordinary reality created by COVID-19,
it has become difficult to maintain a Cartesian dichotomy, which gives
the body the status of a controllable object. In sum, it can be argued
that COVID-19 has led to the exacerbation and escalation of the
incidence of anorexia through employment of two key defense mechanisms
of anorexia, which are:
Implementation of prohibitions, reductions, and restrictions.
Having an omnipotent sense of self, in which the body is regarded as
controllable.
The Corona pandemic forced us to undergo experiences never imagined. It
especially forced us to cope with experiences of a total lack of control
over our bodies, which comprises the source and the nuclear experience
of the anorexic motivation. It is our view that further investigation
and research is necessary, regarding the increased morbidity of anorexic
illness in the context of the Corona pandemic.