El mundo según Marta

through the analysis of a case report, this work analyses some of the underlying factors contributing to the maintenance of the so-called eating disorders. seemingly, anorexia is a ruthless fight of the patient s with the survival efforts of the body; but, in spite of this, anorexia pro-vides this kind of patients with a strong identity. it also provides them with a special role to perform in their families and, somehow, it supplies them with their own place in the social groups to which they belong; being this a crucial factor, especially when the patient is a teenager. this article contains as well a comment on the essential factors that, from my view, should be treated in psychotherapy. finally, some social factors intervinig in the development of eating disorders such as anorexia, bulimia or binge-eating disorders are studied.