Women And Eating Disorders

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I was just wondering if anyone here has an eating disorder or has had one. What do you think about women getting eating disorders so much today?

Ugh...I guess it's just you and me hon.

Last edited by claire-333 on 23 Aug 2008, 11:27 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Yeah I have mild OCD and perfectionism, I think that is a big part of it.

I've battled compulsive over eating since I was 11, lost weight, gained, lost, gained... etc. I am finally getting a hold on it now. Its a real struggle though, like so many other things.

I don't have an eating disorder, but I tend to loose quit a bit of weight when I am stressed or sad. I know some people have it the other way around.
I know there different reasons, layers (dunno what to call it) for eating disorders, but I think eating disorders have a lot to do with our society too, the norms and values, the food that's available, the pressure to look slim, the role models in this society etc, etc, etc. It is very hard for people with eating disorders, because you never get really over it and people without eating disorders and sometimes even doctors won't take it seriously (until it's too late), or belittle you. I know somebody close to me who had/has an eating disorder (anorexia).
I am vegan and I am a (part time) cook. I am very aware of what I eat. In general I have a healthy and tasty diet, but when I get stressed or sad I tend to forget to eat, neglect my diet, not interested in food and eating.

Im not officially diagnosed with an eating disorder but I believe I have one

Ithink I have

Binge eating disorder
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Binge_eating_disorder

or

Compulsive Overeating
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compulsive_overeater



but more likely the first one

I don't know if you'd define it as an eating disorder or not, but I have major problems with food and stress, and since right now (and for many years now) I've had major problems with stress (poverty, powerlessness) I've had major problems with food - eating food that gives me indigestion on purpose, and just plain eating my feelings.

It's normal to have a few moments here and there of seeking comfort in "comfort" foods if you are overly stressed. But if it becomes something that you are dealing with on a daily basis and if you find yourself addicted.. then its an eating disorder. It's compulsive over eating or binge eating disorder (BED) and I have it too.. I have good and bad moments but lately its been more under control. It's sooo hard I know, but I am seeing that its more important to stay healthy and at a good weight than it is to keep binging away my feelings. I have been only coming to terms with this over the past year and it takes a long time to get a handle on this. But it is doable.

I'm a recovering binge eater.

Food was my comfort zone, and it built a protective layer around me so people wouldn't touch me.

Thats a common reason for binge eating, so you wouldn't be touched but in my case it wasn't so much that.. it was to "fill a void". Being rejecting for so many years kind of creates one. But after coming to terms with this, dealing with it has been easier. But breaking away from the habit alone has been more of a challenge.

Yes, breaking the habit is a huge challenge.

It got really bad when I was working an on-call job. I'd work strange hours, and my sleep schedule was erratic for 3 years, plus with apnea the sleep I was getting wasn't restful, and I'd need caffeine at 3 am to stay awake to deal with whatever issue I'd been paged about.... then I wouldn't be able to get to sleep.... so I'd binge eat to induce a food "coma" of sorts, so I could pass out. It was a huge downward spiral.

Add in PTSD (rape) and not wanting to be seen as a (male)sexual object, and I did nothing to stop the behavior, because it had the desired effect, it made me fat so no one would want me.

I was filling a void as well. I felt like I could never truly be what I felt like I was meant to be, so eating killed that pain and made me numb, just like playing WoW non-stop did.

I eventually hit a point where it was either get busy living or get busy dying. I decided to do what I needed to do and begin the process of transitioning gender.

I can honestly say that the motivation of this has given me back control over my life. My eating is under control, I walk 6 miles a day, I go out on weekends and do active things, I gave my WoW guild notice that I was leaving when we finish the last boss (which we are finally at now). I also quit smoking, which has made me hellish the last two weeks, and increased my appetite along with the metabolism increase from my new exercise routine.

So yeah......I backslide now and then.... but I've got an image in my mind now of who I want to become, and binge eating isn't a part of that, and it's where I'm drawing all my power from right now.

When I was 11 yrs old, I came home from school to see my mom's co-worker that I didn't know very well moving his stuff into our apartment. That very night I started fasting and binging, fasting and binging. I also would execise rediculous, dangerous amounts and eat very little at the same time. This went on for years.

I had decided that if I reached a weight that I now know is rediculous, I would kill myself. Well, that day came and went. I made up my mind to live and I decided, when I was 17 or 18, that I was just going to eat whatever and if I got fat, f**k it.

Well, I didn't really. Until I had kids!

Now my dd is 11. Recently, after spending the night with my mom, she tried to purge herself. Thanks mom. My mom is always telling my kids and I that we're fat. My mom was anorexic when I was little. I told her that if she talks like that around my kids, she won't see much of them.

Both of my dd's, ages 11 and 8, are obsessed with their weight. It's so sad.

Flutter, its understandable that binge eating can be a result of traumatic events happening and you sure have been through a lot. But I commend you for being strong about this and not letting the binge eating control you. You are in control of it, not the other way around and that is one thing that we have failed to see for a long time. Creating a positive image of yourself does help, and makes you realize that your health and your well being, and happiness are far more important than food. Eating only when you are hungry and stopping when you are moderately full is the key. And I know how hard it is.

Spacedoubt, that is so horrible that your 11 year old tried doing that when she was with your mom, how awful. And how horrible that your mom is saying those things to you and your kids. And I am sorry that your 8 year old is having body image issues as well It seems to be happening to girls younger and younger and its scary.

All you can do is drill into them that they are beautiful, from the inside and out. My daughter is only 6 but I worry about her because soon enough she'll be approaching those difficult years, especially for girls.. I know in my case it was HELL when I was a pre-teen. I also walked around with undiagnosed autism which made my life even more hellish. She is not under the spectrum, but.. still, it doesn't matter. It's a tough time and a very important time for their self esteem to be built up.

am often accused of having an eating disorder by home staff,am do not have an eating disorder,they say am trying to starve self,very far from it,am have fat and couldn't care less.
the problem is am have severe sensory issues with food,and cant eat stuff from any staff am have not built a long routine with,so am often go without food for days,and have complan milkshake on those days,but the staff are forcing am to see the dietician,they nastily told the GP am uising complan as a diet [am didnt have laptop to communicate with at the time],and because of that,the gp will not prescribe ensure now.
They have also got him to allow them to lock the complan away to starve am of it until have had no food for a long time,all it proved to them was they all allowed am to be neglected of vitamins/other good stuff that the complan gave.
the NAS/autism staff team am have unlocked it all and put it back in the unlocked cubord,as they understand why am do it/the sensory problems am have and have complained to the home staff about this.


if am had an eating disorder,am would get help easy,but it seems harder to prove that do not have an ED.

I've never been thin, I have been heavier than am now, and ate the same no matter my shape-it's mysterious to me.

I don't eat too much nor too little-I have massive sensory problems with most foods. So, my issues with food don't meet criteria for a standard, "known", eating disorder-but food is & has been lifelong difficult situation for me. Was the one thing got harped on about as kid, by family & friends, led to countless arguments & resulting secondary problems (hang-ups, emotional baggage) as result of no one taking my food refusal (or "excessive selectivity") seriously. My preferences are extremely narrow, am like "the princess & the pea"-not in snobby way, but in "picky" or hypersensitive (to smells, flavors, textures) way.

My mom had anorexia (still has even at 88). She never cared for my outwardly appearance. Called me all kinds of "fat" names when I was a kid, & started pushing laxatives on me as a teen to get my weight down. I wanted so much to please her that I went along with her demands. Happiest day of her life is when I was able to fit into size 5 pants. However, I am not built anything like her (very petite with an hourglass figure), & maintaining a size 5 was totally unrealistic. I belonged to Weight Watchers for some time & actually learned good eating habits, & stopped purging.

My ideal size is probably more along an 8 or a 10, but I still have a ways to go before I reach that goal. I am working on getting my weight down (it's gone steadily up for several years now), but it takes time. Mom still tells me I'm fat...like I couldn't possibly be aware of it myself. I have taken to calling myself all kinds of horrible things when I am around her. Beached whale, going for the next satellite to orbit earth, etc.