ABSTRACT
Questionnaires assessing heavy drinking and binge eating were administered to 58 women with alcohol problems. A sub-sample of the binge-eaters then participated in qualitative interviews about their perceptions of the connections between their two problems. Seventy-one percent self-identified as binge-eaters with most reporting 'severe' binge eating. Binge-eaters were younger, more frequent drinkers and drank more often for emotional relief than non-binge-eaters. Binge eating and heavy drinking appeared to serve similar functions in a given client (i.e. emotional relief or reward functions). We discuss implications of the findings for the development of better treatments for women struggling with both health issues.
Subject(s)
Alcohol-Related Disorders/epidemiology , Bulimia/epidemiology , Substance Abuse Treatment Centers , Adult , Comorbidity , Emotions/drug effects , Female , Humans , Middle Aged , Reward , Surveys and QuestionnairesABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: The present study examined the relation of pain catastrophizing to the severity of upper respiratory tract illness. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Participants included 50 adults (35 female subjects, 15 male) who were self-diagnosed with upper respiratory tract illness and who agreed to complete a diary of symptoms for 7 days. Illness symptoms were grouped into three categories: pain-related, constitutional, and respiratory symptoms. RESULTS: Results showed that pain catastrophizing was associated with symptom number and symptom severity in all three categories of symptoms. The rumination subscale of the Pain Catastrophizing Scale showed the strongest relations with illness severity. The relation between pain catastrophizing and illness severity remained significant even when controlling for initial symptom severity, duration of the symptoms before the study period, and depression. DISCUSSION: The results provide the preliminary evidence that the influence of pain catastrophizing may not be restricted to pain-specific domains. The data also provide some support for the view that the excessive focus on bodily sensations may account for more severe symptoms.
