2023-08-20 07:08:43
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Nearly a dozen mentally ill young women have sought refuge in a private clinic specializing in eating disorders in the British city of Bath in the hope of receiving life-changing treatment.
However, their mental and physical health quickly deteriorated, according to their statements, because the responsible “dangerous” treatment subjected them to psychological abuse, which increased their distress.
Since then, the clinic has closed its doors, but former patients say they have suffered psychological and physical scars for life and demand explanations of what happened.
Katherine, Anna and Emma didn’t know each other at the time, but they all struggled with an eating disorder when they first met a therapist named Anna Otey in the early 2000s.
Her independent center announced a new approach to treating eating disorders, drawing on her own experiences recovering from anorexia.
The sessions at the center started normally, but previous patients indicated that the treatment later became strange and made them anxious.
Anna, who suffered from emetophobia – a fear of vomiting – says therapist Anna Oti told her she could “cause cancer in her body through her thoughts”.
Anna explained her feelings, saying: “I became so concerned about my health that I started to feel really sick, and started to doubt how well my body could function and cope.” “I think she wanted people to get sick and stay that way,” she added.
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Clinic treatment ‘inappropriate’
Anna Ottey received more than £1,000 (about $1,300) a week for healthcare at the clinic, per patient, according to former patients.
The BBC spoke to 10 patients and two former staff who said the inappropriate behavior was presented as a necessary remedy, and the patients became sicker under her care.
Previous patients said meals were not regular, if they existed at all, sometimes consisting of one piece of dry toast a day.
Some say they were encouraged to watch pornographic videos as part of their “therapy”.
One of them describes one of the sessions she underwent, where Oti asked her to stand in front of a mirror completely naked, so that she would start commenting on her body.
Anna Otti described herself in her position as a health psychologist.
Since 2010, this specialty has been subject to the supervision of the Health and Social Care Committee, and this was not the case in 2006, when Anna Uti presented herself at the time as a “therapist” and this profession was not subject to the laws at the time.
There is no evidence that Anna Oti is registered with any mental health authority, nor is there evidence that her clinic is registered with the Quality Center. Because her clinic did not advertise medical services, she did not necessarily need to be registered with the Care Quality Commission.
Thus, there was no one to assess the safety of the clinic to which she was inviting the women.
Getty Images Patients say they suffered coercion and psychological abuse under Anna Otey’s care.
“Surgery as a cure”
Former patient Emma – not her real name – entered the clinic with anorexia when she was 20. She says Anna Otti became “obsessed” with talking about her body and genitals during her therapy sessions.
“It didn’t seem to matter how many times I said my eating disorder was a control problem, and it was never believed,” Emma said.
“She was constantly asking if I was happy with every part of my body, until I told her I always worried about the way my vulva looked.”
“She said this was the cause and trigger of my eating disorder. It felt like a train had suddenly pulled off.”
Emma says Anna Otti arranged for her to have a vaginoplasty at a clinic in London.
And she explains that after the surgery, Ana Oti did “examinations” of her vagina “to make sure that she was recovering.”
“She didn’t touch me, she was just checking the pole.”
“I trusted her. But going back and thinking about what was happening, there was coercion and psychological abuse.”
Emma left the clinic after six weeks to return to university, but says the impact of her stay in the clinic is still affecting her mental and physical health.
Dr Jessica Taylor, a psychologist and founder of Victim Focus, which trains professionals to support abuse victims, says there is “absolutely no benefit to this therapy”.
“Even if someone says I hate this part of my body and wish I could get plastic surgery on it, as a psychiatrist, you should keep a safe distance from that and never push them to do it.”
Like Emma, former patient Katherine says her therapy sessions with Anna Otti increasingly focused on her feelings about her body and sexuality.
Katherine says she underwent a treatment plan called The Intimacy Weekend.
Katherine paid £700 for three days of therapy which Anna Ottey said would improve her confidence.
But Catherine says the experience left her “devastated”.
The BBC has seen an end-of-treatment report written by Anna Oti, in which she explains in detail her “treatment”.
The report states that Katherine asked her to enter a room and stand behind a curtain while Katherine used an electric sex device that Anna Otti had encouraged her to use.
But Katherine says that’s not what happened.
Catherine explains: “She made me watch porn videos. She told me I needed to go into a room with her and masturbate, she said having an orgasm would help me feel better. She entered the room and gave me some advice.
“I feel like she used me like a little doll,” she added.
Find Anna Otey
BBC Anna Ottey was paid over £1,000 a week to provide ‘health care’ at the clinic.
Anna Otey has provided therapy services for nearly a decade.
Katherine says she was one of the last patients to leave the Ana Ote Clinic in 2008, and shortly after she left, the clinic closed its doors permanently.
Since the clinic closed, it is not clear if Ottie has continued to practice as a therapist or psychologist.
There are a number of comments and reviews on a local business site in Bath, between 2009 and 2018 about Anna Ottey, with one claiming she presented herself as a “spiritual guide”.
Both Anna and Katherine reported her to the police twice, in 2015 and 2020.
But Avon and Somerset Police told them there was insufficient evidence of a criminal offense and no further action was taken.
The BBC wrote to Anna Ottey to respond to these statements but did not respond to numerous requests for comment.
Kerry Fleming, head of safeguarding at eating disorder charity BEAT, said the impact of abuse can last a lifetime.
“If someone has gone through a traumatic experience, they may find it difficult to trust anyone again in the near future.”
“These journeys of recovery are long, and may last for years.”
Legally, anyone can call themselves a therapist or psychologist. The Health and Care Professions Council does not regulate the profession of “psychologist”.
Former patient Anna worries that therapists and psychologists like Otti could take advantage of the absence of regulations and open clinics that harm people.
“Our experience has taught us that anyone can open an eating disorder clinic and not be held responsible for their eating disorder practices,” she said.
“If I go to a general practitioner or a cardiologist they are qualified, but why is my mind less important than my heart?”
Responsibility for the news: Cedar News is not responsible for this news in form or content, and it only expresses the point of view of its source or writer.
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