Please Scroll Down to See Forums Below
Bulimia and other eating disorders?
- Thread starter ubertannedchick
- Start date
katdav
New member
T-Cake said:Binging was a huge problem for me too, but the scariest part for me was that I was a closet eater, much like many women with EDs are.
I would eat a normal meal -- not even something particular healthy, just a normal meal -- with family and then I would sneak around all evening pigging out. I did this up until a year ago or so, really. I hid food from boyfriends, roommates.
One time I was living with girls in college and eating something quickly in the kitchen before someone came out of their bedroom... I remember that moment because I was 220 lbs trying to re-start my diet... and my roommate walked out of her room, saw me eating and I JUMPED. She scared the crap out of me -- and I remember her saying, "Are you SUPPOSED to be eating that?"
That stung. I'll never forget that; totally caught.
It was really hard for me to break that habit when I lived alone for the last few years because there was NO ONE around to catch me. GG saw my old apt -- I was ground level, so when those blinds were shut, I was ALWAYS hidden. I had to keep the blinds open because at least that would keep me from worrying what the neighbors would think as I scarfed two (yes TWO) super size fast food meals with a pint of ice cream for dinner some nights.
It was bad.Makes me sad to think I used to live like that... now I genuinely LOVE food and am not ashamed to say it now that I finally have control over it -- not vice versa.
Good for you. I can totally relate to eating in secret. I'll have people over and I can't wait for them to leave so I can attack the Ben & Jerry's (that was on sale)!
I have never had problems with bulimia but definitely binge and then starve myself. After having four children, I was over weight and hated it. When I joined a gym and went on a serious diet, I did many unhealthy things. I would follow my diet then go on a binge. The day after a binge, I would not eat anything and go to the gym and do hours of cardio. I was punishing my self for overeating. I did get down to a size 4 doing this.
Once I started powerlifting, I received many lectures about my cardio and not eating. I did stop starving myself and cut back on cardio. But it is tempting to go back to my old ways. Over the summer I decide to go up a weight class and I feel my body is at a weight that I can maintain without starving myself. My last meet I was able to eat the day of the weigh-in instead of spending the week starving myself to make weight. I am 14lbs heavier then I was last May but I am healthier and stronger.
I still look in the mirror and think I am fat but I force myself to eat 6-7 meals a day and limit my cardio.
Once I started powerlifting, I received many lectures about my cardio and not eating. I did stop starving myself and cut back on cardio. But it is tempting to go back to my old ways. Over the summer I decide to go up a weight class and I feel my body is at a weight that I can maintain without starving myself. My last meet I was able to eat the day of the weigh-in instead of spending the week starving myself to make weight. I am 14lbs heavier then I was last May but I am healthier and stronger.
I still look in the mirror and think I am fat but I force myself to eat 6-7 meals a day and limit my cardio.
katdav
New member
Gymgurl said:
Before thanksgiving I was having the same issue. I was training for my 3rd marathon in 1 yr, and was getting too skinny. then my ankle gave out on me a little and w/ the holidays bla bla bla. but I'm not going to go into my winter hibernation gain 20lbs mode this year.....
Sorry ladies for jumping in on this one, and if you want to delete or move my post becuase I dont belong in this section, I understand. However, I work with these types of disorders but in a much younger population. It is a real a gut wrenching, heart rending experince to have 6-9 yr old girls purging. In as much as there is an element of trying to find something that the girl can control independent of what ever else may have happened to them or what was done to them or taken from them, we see Encopresis (deficating in inappropriate places) and Enuresis (urinating in innapropriate places) with these children as well.
We see these young children (boys and girls) come from such horendous home lives, and quite often they have histories of sex abuse, severe physical abuse, PTSD, obsessive compulsive type behaviours, and sometimes even reactive attachment disorder behaviors as well.
While eating disorders are not my forte, they are of interest to me in the formation of the dynamics involved and at the age in which these these dynamics begin to form and to become active.
I admire any woman or man who has the courage, the honesty, and the discipline to face their eating disorder issues head on and to deal with all the underlying trauma, pain and loss.
It scares me to see the latency age girls talk about all the unhealthy and abnormaly thin and fraile female bodies that they see in the popular media. I never thought I would see the day when six and seven year olds talk about making themselves vomit in order to stay thin.
I wish all the mothers on the EF board, all the best in helping to correct the distorted and destructive messages that society and most particularly the pop culture is trying to spoon feed the children (mostly girls) of today.
Ok soap box stand over
As an FYI
DSM-IV Criteria for Anorexia Nervosa
Criterion
Description
A Refusal to maintain body weight at or above a minimally normal weight for age and height (e.g., weight loss leading to maintenance of body weight less than 85% of that expected or failure to make expected weight gain during period of growth, leading to body weight less than 85% of that expected).
B Intense fear of gaining weight or becoming fat, even though underweight.
C Disturbance in the way in which one's body weight or shape is experienced, undue influence of body weight or shape on self-evaluation, or denial of the seriousness of the current low body weight.
D In postmenarcheal females, amenorrhea, i.e., the absence of at least three consecutive menstrual cycles. (A woman is considered to have amenorrhea if her periods occur only following hormone, e.g., estrogen, administration.)
Specify type:
Restricting type During the current episode of anorexia nervosa, the person has not regularly engaged in binge-eating or purging behavior (i.e., self-induced vomiting or the misuse of laxatives, diuretics or enemas).
Binge-eating/purging type During the current episode of anorexia nervosa, the person has regularly engaged in binge-eating or purging behavior (i.e., self-induced vomiting or the misuse of laxatives, diuretics or enemas).
DSM-IV = Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th ed.
Reprinted with permission from American Psychiatric Association. Practice guideline for the treatment of patients with eating disorders (revision). Am J Psychiatry 2000;157(suppl):4.
TABLE 2
DSM-IV Criteria for Bulimia Nervosa
Criterion
Description
A Recurrent episodes of binge eating. An episode of binge eating is characterized by both of the following:
Eating, in a discrete period of time (e.g., within any two-hour period), an amount of food that is definitely larger than most people would eat during a similar period of time and under similar circumstances.
A sense of lack of control over eating during the episode (e.g., a feeling that one cannot stop eating or control what or how much one is eating).
B Recurrent inappropriate compensatory behavior in order to prevent weight gain, such as self-induced vomiting; misuse of laxatives, diuretics, enemas or other medications; fasting; or excessive exercise.
C The binge eating and inappropriate compensatory behaviors both occur, on average, at least twice a week for three months.
D Self-evaluation is unduly influenced by body shape and weight.
E The disturbance does not occur exclusively during episodes of anorexia nervosa.
Specify type:
Purging type During the current episode of bulimia nervosa, the person has regularly engaged in self-induced vomiting or the misuse of laxatives, diuretics or enemas.
Nonpurging type During the current episode of bulimia nervosa, the person has used other inappropriate compensatory behaviors, such as fasting or excessive exercise, but has not regularly engaged in self-induced vomiting or the misuse of laxatives, diuretics or enemas.
Just a word of caution and of humorous relief--I had a professor once tell me to take the DSM with a grain of salt. As you read it you will see a bit of yourself in most every disorder in the book. However, a couple similarites does not a disorder make. Or in otherwords reading the DSM can bring about a type of "psychological hypochondria"
We see these young children (boys and girls) come from such horendous home lives, and quite often they have histories of sex abuse, severe physical abuse, PTSD, obsessive compulsive type behaviours, and sometimes even reactive attachment disorder behaviors as well.
While eating disorders are not my forte, they are of interest to me in the formation of the dynamics involved and at the age in which these these dynamics begin to form and to become active.
I admire any woman or man who has the courage, the honesty, and the discipline to face their eating disorder issues head on and to deal with all the underlying trauma, pain and loss.
It scares me to see the latency age girls talk about all the unhealthy and abnormaly thin and fraile female bodies that they see in the popular media. I never thought I would see the day when six and seven year olds talk about making themselves vomit in order to stay thin.
I wish all the mothers on the EF board, all the best in helping to correct the distorted and destructive messages that society and most particularly the pop culture is trying to spoon feed the children (mostly girls) of today.
Ok soap box stand over
As an FYI
DSM-IV Criteria for Anorexia Nervosa
Criterion
Description
A Refusal to maintain body weight at or above a minimally normal weight for age and height (e.g., weight loss leading to maintenance of body weight less than 85% of that expected or failure to make expected weight gain during period of growth, leading to body weight less than 85% of that expected).
B Intense fear of gaining weight or becoming fat, even though underweight.
C Disturbance in the way in which one's body weight or shape is experienced, undue influence of body weight or shape on self-evaluation, or denial of the seriousness of the current low body weight.
D In postmenarcheal females, amenorrhea, i.e., the absence of at least three consecutive menstrual cycles. (A woman is considered to have amenorrhea if her periods occur only following hormone, e.g., estrogen, administration.)
Specify type:
Restricting type During the current episode of anorexia nervosa, the person has not regularly engaged in binge-eating or purging behavior (i.e., self-induced vomiting or the misuse of laxatives, diuretics or enemas).
Binge-eating/purging type During the current episode of anorexia nervosa, the person has regularly engaged in binge-eating or purging behavior (i.e., self-induced vomiting or the misuse of laxatives, diuretics or enemas).
DSM-IV = Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th ed.
Reprinted with permission from American Psychiatric Association. Practice guideline for the treatment of patients with eating disorders (revision). Am J Psychiatry 2000;157(suppl):4.
TABLE 2
DSM-IV Criteria for Bulimia Nervosa
Criterion
Description
A Recurrent episodes of binge eating. An episode of binge eating is characterized by both of the following:
Eating, in a discrete period of time (e.g., within any two-hour period), an amount of food that is definitely larger than most people would eat during a similar period of time and under similar circumstances.
A sense of lack of control over eating during the episode (e.g., a feeling that one cannot stop eating or control what or how much one is eating).
B Recurrent inappropriate compensatory behavior in order to prevent weight gain, such as self-induced vomiting; misuse of laxatives, diuretics, enemas or other medications; fasting; or excessive exercise.
C The binge eating and inappropriate compensatory behaviors both occur, on average, at least twice a week for three months.
D Self-evaluation is unduly influenced by body shape and weight.
E The disturbance does not occur exclusively during episodes of anorexia nervosa.
Specify type:
Purging type During the current episode of bulimia nervosa, the person has regularly engaged in self-induced vomiting or the misuse of laxatives, diuretics or enemas.
Nonpurging type During the current episode of bulimia nervosa, the person has used other inappropriate compensatory behaviors, such as fasting or excessive exercise, but has not regularly engaged in self-induced vomiting or the misuse of laxatives, diuretics or enemas.
Just a word of caution and of humorous relief--I had a professor once tell me to take the DSM with a grain of salt. As you read it you will see a bit of yourself in most every disorder in the book. However, a couple similarites does not a disorder make. Or in otherwords reading the DSM can bring about a type of "psychological hypochondria"
Similar threads
