Bruch Revisited and Revised

The aim of this text is to remind the clinical and scientific field of eating disorders of the seminal figure Hilde Bruch. Her work is highly original, but is it sinking into the mists of oblivion? The contemporary overemphasis on cognitive behavioural therapy may indicate that. Hilde Bruch's contribution was a descriptive and theoretical model defining anorexia nervosa and severe eating disorders as self-disorders, with emphasis on developmental deficits in the organisation of the psychological self. A limited focus on cognitions may undermine both the awareness of central aspects of the psychopathology of eating disorders, as well as the relevance of sensitively regulating the psychotherapeutic stance.