High Anxiety - Tuesday

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Doctors say the obsession with weight and body image can be triggered by a sense of loss.

Doctor Katheryn Zerbe says,"Aging, felling unattractive, giving up certain things like the empty nest syndrome, going through a divorce."

That's what started Toni Saiber losing more and more weight. She says, "Once you get to a certain point, you can't stop. You get a very euphoric feeling just looking on that scale and watching it go down every morning."

Doctors say anorexia is one of the most deadly of psychological disorders.

And it's not just teenagers or young adults who can suffer from this disease.

At the age of 52 and down to 85 pounds, Saiber lapsed into a coma.

When she came out of that coma a week later, Saiber began months of intense psycho-therapy and nutritional counseling, regaining her health and more than 30 pounds.

Saiber says,"It's an issue for me everyday. It's getting easier but I think it will always be with me."

And Psycotherapist Tom Lavin agrees,"There is a high correlation between anxiety disorders and eating disorders. People want to feel good...when we are feeling chronic anxiety day after day, feeling bad."

And here's another frightening statistic.

Experts say the relapse rate with anorexia is more than 40 percent.

If you or someone you know needs help, it's important to get them in touch with their family doctor immediately.