Feeding the empty heart: Adult children and compulsive eating

  Offering new hope for compulsive overeaters Feeding the Empty Heart breaks new ground in establishing the connection between eating disorders and family histories of compulsive behavior.  Across five years of treating compulsive overeaters, the authors came to understand that many recovering overeaters are adult children of alcoholics.  Feeding the Empty Heart is the first book to establish the connection between these adults' childhood family dynamics and various kinds of compulsive behaviors.  Beginning with an overview of the roles played in an alcoholic family, the authors discuss compulsive eating as an addictive illness, and examine the relationship between compulsive eating and other behavior patterns.  Of particular importance is the survey and discussion of treatment options.  The final chapters contain personal stories of adult children of alcoholics and their struggles with compulsive eating.  Feeding the Empty Heart offers new explanation for the causes of overeating and alternative routes to recovery.