The Sensory Landscape and Embodied Experiences in Anorexia Nervosa Treatment: An Inpatient Sensory Ethnography.

Background

Anorexia nervosa (AN) is a complex eating disorder that often requires inpatient care, where treatment experiences are influenced by both the illness and the surrounding environment. Sensory issues in AN are increasingly acknowledged for their impact on treatment engagement and outcomes. Despite this, the ways in which the sensory landscape of inpatient settings shapes patients' lived experiences and meaning-making processes remain underexplored.

Methods

This study employed collaborative sensory ethnography to explore how the sensory environment of an inpatient eating disorder ward shapes patients' lived experiences. Drawing on multimodal and embodied approaches, a novel proof-of-concept method was developed, combining sensory-attuned guided reflection with AI-assisted visualization. This framework supported patients in exploring and articulating their embodied sensory experiences, linking their emotional and physical states to the ward's sensory environment through metaphorical reasoning.

Results

The findings reveal two central themes: a sense of entrapment within the illness and its treatment, and ambivalence toward both. The study highlights how the sensory environment and spatial layout of the ward amplify these experiences, demonstrating the tension between strict safety protocols and patients' needs for agency and autonomy.

Conclusions

This study illustrates the role of the sensory landscape in shaping treatment experiences and contributing to the broader lived experiences of individuals with AN. The experience of sensory cues in inpatient settings is closely intertwined with contextual and embodied meanings, often evoking complex feelings of entrapment and ambivalence toward both the illness and its treatment. These findings highlight the potential for holistic sensory and spatial adaptations in therapeutic interventions to alleviate such feelings and, consequently, improve patient engagement and well-being.