Ellen West

Ellen West (1888–1921) was a patient of Dr. Ludwig Binswanger who had anorexia nervosa. She became a famous example of Daseinsanalysis who died by suicide at age 33 by poisoning herself.

Life Ellen West was born to a Jewish family in 1888. When Ellen was 10 years old, she and her family immigrated to Europe. As a young woman, she was stubborn, disobedient, intelligent, and obsessive compulsive. But while in school, she proved to be an ambitious and passionate student. She also enjoyed reading and writing poetry. As a young adult, Ellen had fluctuations with her weight and that was when her fear of becoming fat began. In her writings, she expressed her strong cravings for food, she had an extreme fear of gaining weight. Ellen was given permission to marry her cousin at the age of 28. She became obsessed with wanting a child; however, she would not adjust her poor eating habits, which resulted in a miscarriage. This underlying issue of death obsession can be exemplified by other harmful behaviors that she engaged in. West reportedly did several dangerous things to invite illness and death, including riding horse dangerously, kissing children with scarlet fever, and standing outside naked after bathing. Her eventual death came after taking a lethal dose of poison, having spent a full day eating to satisfaction, reading poetry and writing. West's psychiatrist Binswanger was quoted as saying, "She looked as she had never looked in life - calm and happy and peaceful." He thought of her illness as a defense against anxieties which were heightened and overbalanced, but anxieties nonetheless. Existential analysis suggested that it is necessary to understand people in a deeper, more philosophical way rather than a strictly scientific way. The psychologist Rollo May exemplified this notion when he said that "Man is the being who can be conscious of, and therefore responsible for, his existence." In the arena of existential psychology, Binswanger concluded that her bulimia was the expression of an existential vacuum to fill up her needs. felt upset that she was regarded as an object by Binswanger and suggested that she would be better if treated with client-centered therapy. Rogers also thought that her history was not pathological and she was an active girl. Decades later, Bidart also wrote a follow-up poem entitled "Writing 'Ellen West,'" which, in contrast to the first poem, speaks directly on the poet's experiences with West's story and its impact on him.

The composer Ricky Ian Gordon composed an opera based on the Bidart poem. It was first staged at Opera Saratoga in 2019.

Alternative rock band Throwing Muses recorded a song called "Ellen West" on their 1991 album The Real Ramona.

Ellen West is mentioned in "What I Loved: A Novel" by Siri Hustvedt as a case study in a book about eating disorders published by Violet, a character in the novel.

The Italian poet Simone Consorti dedicated to Ellen West his homonymous short poem "Ellen".