THE BODY WHICH MEANS AND THE BODY WHICH MARKS. PHENOMENOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF BODY EXPERIENCE OF FEMALES SUFFERING FROM ANOREXIA

As a complement to the tradition of body image research of people with anorexia, the present article raises issues of the body understood as a way of being in the world. Based on 10 interviews, a phenomenological analysis of the experience of the body in female patients with anorexia was carried out. The formed categories were divided into two groups: referring to (1) the body as the object, and to (2) the body as a means of establishing relationships with other objects. In the first group are the categories of meanings describing the body as a point of fixation, the object of aesthetic experiences, the object of control, the object of acceptance, object of aggression, object of devaluation and the area of expression of femininity. In the second group are the categories describing the body as an expression of opposition, the way of drawing attention, way of obtaining recognition, a defence against others and as a communication tool. In the interpretation of the results attention was brought to the deep discrepancy between the body and the psyche in the statements of the respondents. Treatment of people suffering from anorexia may be effected through imaginary conjectures, as well as attempts at establishing dialogue between these two realities.