Inner Experience in Bulimia

Abstract

There have been a total of seven individuals who meet the DSM-III-R diagnostic criteria for bulimia who have been sampled using the descriptive techniques described in this book. Ashley (Chapter 8) was sampled by this book’s author; Christine (Chapter 9) and four other bulimic subjects were sampled as part of Stephanie Doucette’s Master’s Thesis at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (sampling interviews for these five subjects were most frequently performed by Doucette and Hurlburt together); and an additional (seventh) subject, who met both the criteria for anxiety disorder and for bulimia, was sampled by Hebert (1991), again with Hurlburt’s participation. All seven of these subjects were female; one of the subjects also met the diagnostic criteria for anorexia nervosa. The seven subjects ranged from those able to control their bulimic tendencies at the time of sampling to active binge eating and purging on a daily basis.