Anorexia may be treated in an outpatient setting, or hospitalization may be necessary.  For an individual with severe weight loss that has impaired organ function, hospital treatment must initially focus on correction of malnutrition, and intravenous feeding may be required.  A gain of between one to three pounds per week is a safe and attainable goal when malnutrition must be corrected.
The overall treatment of anorexia, however, must focus on more than weight gain.  There are a variety of treatment approaches dependent upon the resources available to the individual.  Because of increasing insurance restrictions, many patients find that a short hospitalization followed by a day treatment program is an effective alternative to longer inpatient programs.  Most individuals, however, initially seek outpatient treatment involving psychological as well as medical intervention.
Different kinds of psychological therapy have been employed to treat people with anorexia.  Individual therapy, cognitive behavior therapy, group therapy, and family therapy have all been successful in treatment of anorexia.  Those with anorexia can be treated by a medical doctor, a clinical psychologist, or both, depending upon the progression of the disorder.  A psychiatrist with both medical and psychological training is perhaps the best treatment provider.  An appropriate treatment approach addresses underlying issues of control and self-perception.  Family dynamics are explored, and often the family is included in the treatment plan.  Nutritional education provides a healthy alternative to weight management for the patient.  Group counseling or support groups often assist the individual in the recovery process.  The ultimate goal of treatment should be for the individual to accept herself/himself and lead a physically and emotionally healthy life.
While no medications have been identified that can definitively reduce the compulsion  too starve themselves, some of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSR) antidepressant drugs have been shown to be helpful in weight maintenance after weight has been gained, and in controlling mood and anxiety symptoms that may  be associated with the condition.