The relationship between binge eating behavior and psychological pain in patients with major depressive disorder

Purpose: Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) is a psychiatric disorder that is accompanied by serious impairment in social or occupational functioning and may include depression, loss of interest, desire, guilt, suicidal thoughts, changes in appetite, sleep and energy. Many studies show that depressive symptoms cause binge eating behavior, that it is a risk factor in the development of Binge Eating Disorder (BED), and that individuals with MDD learn to use binge eating as a coping mechanism to get short-term relief from negative affect.2 It was stated that when negative emotions such as disappointment, grief, defeat, humiliation, guilt, shame, hopelessness and anger increase too much, they turn into unbearable psychological pain. Psychological Pain (PA) is most commonly associated with MDD, one of the psychiatric disorders, and it is mentioned that PA is an important dimension of MDD. There are not enough studies in the literature on MDD, binge eating behavior and PA, which are closely interrelated. This study aims to demonstrate the relationship between binge eating behavior and psychological pain in patients diagnosed with MDD. Material and Method: The study was conducted at Çukurova University Faculty of Medicine Psychiatry Polyclinic. The sample of the study; It consists of individuals diagnosed with Depressive Disorder with and without Binge Eating Disorder and healthy controls. Sociodemographic data form was given to all three groups, Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS), Psychological Pain Scale (PAS), Psychological Pain Tolerance Scale (PATS), Barratt Impulsivity Scale (BDI), Eating Disorder Assessment Scale-Short Form (YBDS-Short Form). has been implemented. Results: In our study, the PAS total mean score, YBDS-Short Form Binge Eating subscale total score mean, HDRS total score mean, BDI attention impulsivity and inability to plan total score mean of individuals with MDD accompanied by BED were found to be significantly higher than the other groups; PATS total mean score were found to be significantly lower (p=0.000).A similar significant relationship was found between the YBDS-Short Form Binge Eating subscale and HDRS and PAS (p=0.02; p=0.04, respectively). In our study, a partial mediating role of binge eating behavior was found in the relationship between psychological pain and tolerance to psychological pain (p<0.001). Conclusion: In our study, we found that there is a direct relationship between binge eating behavior and psychological pain in individuals diagnosed with MDD accompanied by BED, and that binge eating behavior has a mediating role in the relationship between psychological pain and tolerance to psychological pain. Keywords: Depression, Binge eating disorder, binge eating behavior, Psychological pain, negative affect