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Nobody truly understands what
it is like to have an eating disorder except for those who have been or are still
struggling day after day with their eating problem.
Eating
Disorders are not simply about food and weight but are an attempt to use food
and weight to deal with emotional problems.
Quotes...
"She
is absolutely obsessed with her weight and she binges at least twice a week."
"It
seems the only thing that makes me feel better is eating. I eat and eat, and then
I feels so bad about myself and make myself throw up."
"Even
though the numbers on the scale say that his weight has gone down, he doesn't
see it when he looks in the mirror."
Anorexia Nervosa (Anorexia): Characterized
by self-starvation, low body weight and body image distortion
with an obsessive fear of gaining weight.
Bulimia Nervosa (Bulimia): Characterized
by episodes of uncontrolled binge eating followed by inappropriate
methods of weight control such as self-induced vomiting, fasting,
abuse of laxatives, diuretics, diet pills or excessive exercising.
Binge Eating Disorder: (Compulsive Overeating
Disorder)
Characterized by episodes of uncontrolled binge eating (which
is a period where an individual consumes a large amount of
calories within a short period of time) followed by periods
of guilt and depression.
EDNOS (Eating Disorder Not Otherwise Specified):
Defined as a verifiable eating disorder but, from a psychological
point of view, the patient doesn't exhibit behaviours consistent
with other forms of the disease.
Eating Disorders - no matter
what form or shape they may have taken - are serious and potentially life-threatening.
Up to ten percent of sufferers from an eating disorder die
as a result of their illness either from starvation, cardiac arrest, medical complications,
heart problems, malnutrition, or suicide from depression caused by the eating
disorder.
Eating disorders are not diets and are not a
solution to lose weight!
Over 90 % of eating disorders begin with
a diet!
You may start out with a diet but will gradually
lose control over your relationship with food and develop
an obsession with eating. The situation can so quickly and
easily get out of control and turn into a vicious circle of
dieting and binging of which it is extremely difficult to
get out of. Your eating disorder has slowly taken over control
over your life and won't let go so easily again ...
"Even though her life looked glamorous from
the outside, inside she was a physical and emotional mess.
She was a scared and lonely girl with an eating disorder."
Imagine, a girl, so skinny that her bones are
sticking out and you can easily count her ribs. Her skin that
used to be soft like velvet, is now dry, pale and swollen
from all the purging she does. The beautiful smile that she
used to have and everybody admired her for, has turned into
a black and rotten grin. Her gorgeous big eyes that she loved
so much about herself are now red and have deep dark circles
underneath. Her long and wavy hair has started to fall out.
Imagine, a girl, so sad that her cheeks taste salty from her
tears.
Eating disorders are serious - if you suffer
from one, get help right away!
Myth #1: Only teenage (Caucasian) girls have
eating disorders.
Eating disorders can affect anyone--no matter what their
gender, race, age, sexual preference, profession, religious
or cultural background. Consider this:
One out of ten anorexia or bulimia sufferers is male.
About 50% of people with binge eating disorder are males.
Binge eating disorder is the most common eating disorder
in the United States
Children as young as four years old can develop eating
disorders
Individuals in their 40s, 50s, and 60s can also suffer
from eating disorders, either having developed them during
adolescence or even in mid-life.
Myth #2: Anorexia is the only serious eating
disorder.
Even though anorexia has the highest mortality rate of
all eating disorders, every form of this disease can do
serious, long-term damage to the body and in extreme cases
end in the sufferer's death, most commonly by cardiac arrest
or suicide.
Myth #3: You can tell by someone's appearance
if they have an eating disorder.
Eating disorders come in all shapes and sizes. In many
cases, it is not possible to tell if someone has an eating
disorder simply by looking at them. Most sufferers look
"normal." In fact, that can be one of the most dangerous
things about this disease - sufferers can hide them perfectly
for months, years and sometimes, even a lifetime.
Most anorexics don't look like the extreme cases shown
on television (ie. like walking skeletons). Such a person
may look thin, but don't necessarily look "sick".
Bulimics often look to have a healthy weight.
Binge Eaters are usually overweight but because most of
the Western world has a substantial number of overweight
individuals anyways, they tend to blend in.
Myth #4: Eating disorders are about food
and weight.
Contrary to popular belief, eating disorders are not about
food, weight, appearance or beauty. They are an attempt
to use food and weight to deal with underlying psychological
problems. An eating disorder is simply the symptom of something
deeper going on inside.
Because eating disorders are not about food, saying "just
eat" to an anorexic, "stop purging" to a bulimic or "stop
eating so much" to a binge eater does not help.
Eating disorders are a complex disorder and require the
assistance of both a trained professional and a willingness
by the sufferer to want to get better in the first place.
Myth #5: Once you have an eating disorder,
you're stuck with it forever.
Full recovery from an eating disorder is possible. In fact,
it's more common to recover than not. All it takes is a
willingness to get better, as well as help and support from
friends, family and trained professionals.
If you unfortunately suffer from an eating disorder,
know that you are not alone. Reach out for help and support
to get you started on your road to recovery.
Eating-Disorder-Information.com is sponsored by "You
Are Not
Alone (Vol 1 + 2) - The Books of Companionship for
Women with Eating Disorders" - inspiring collections
of personal recovery stories, poems and artwork from
women who are either in strong recovery or fully recovered.
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Recovery really is possible - also for you!
You Are Not Alone, Vol 2 (plus FREE Companion
CD) - The Book of Companionship for Women with
Eating Disorders
Inspiring collection of personal recovery stories,
poems, artwork, and song lyrics by women who are
either in recovery or fully recovered from an
eating disorder.
Foreword by Dr.Anita Johnston
(author of Eating in the Light of the Moon)
RECOVERY MUSIC Also included in the book is the You Are
Not Alone Companion CD filled with healing
songs by women who are either fully recovered
or in strong recovery from an eating disorder.
Profits
are donated to eating disorder help and support
organizations to help raise awareness and help
others in their recovery.
You Are Not
Alone is a proud sponsor
of the Recovery Buddies Project, the Joy Project,
and MentorCONNECT.
Not
Alone (Vol 1 + 2) - The Books of Companionship for
Women with Eating Disorders" - inspiring collections
of personal recovery stories, poems and artwork from
women who are either in strong recovery or fully recovered.