Co-written by Mikayla Bruendl and Ali Dusinberre
What comes to mind when we hear the words “eating disorder”?
An abstract concept of the term may bubble to the surface, as defined by the tabloid covers and pop culture depictions that one has consumed over time. What many may not realize is that anorexia nervosa is the world’s deadliest mental illness — and one of the most vastly understudied.
NEDA reports that in 2011, eating disorders afflicted 30 million people in the US while receiving only $28 million in NIH research funds. Alzheimer’s disease, on the other hand, afflicted approximately one-sixth that number of people and received slightly over 16 times that amount of money, averaging $88 per individual. For further reference, schizophrenia averaged $81 per individual, and autism averaged $44. But that average for eating disorders? Less than $1.
This may contribute to the fact that so many people possess such little knowledge of eating disorders, including those who suffer from them.
Anonymous readers have recently asked us if self-starvation followed by splurging on food indicates an eating disorder, even in the case that no weight is lost. While we at Affinity are not medical experts and cannot provide diagnoses, these behaviors may be signs that an eating disorder has developed or is developing, and it would be wise to seek help.
The medical terms for the behaviors described are restriction (reduction or elimination of certain foods from one’s diet) and binge-eating (episodes of compulsive eating in which one consumes a large amount of food within a short period of time), and the most common eating disorders include one or both of these types of behaviors as symptoms.
“The first time I remember consciously watching my weight was in sixth grade,” says Arianna, who has suffered from an eating disorder. She recounted to me her experiences with competitive gymnastics and springboard diving, two sports in which she says it is better to be short — something which she was not. Her height made her feel as though she was too big in every regard. “At the end of eighth grade I quite both sports and consequently stopped working out. I began to skip full meals, sometimes binging at night, but overall losing weight. I had heard about people throwing up to lose weight, and decided to try it when I was in ninth grade. I still ate two meals a day, but would purge dinner every now and then.” By the end of ninth grade, her daily routine would come to consist of significant restriction throughout the day and self-induced vomiting, or purging, after dinner.
Eating disorders often begin with participation in unhealthy behaviors such as these as a means of coping with underlying issues. Thus, afflicted individuals may fail to accept or even realize that their behaviors and attitudes toward food and weight are actually symptoms of an eating disorder.
“I had been dealing with severe depression with suicidal thoughts and tendencies. This was a coping method,” Arianna says. “I always told myself that it was just a way of maintaining my weight, but deep down I knew that something was wrong.”
I spoke with another individual, Alicia, who has also suffered from these issues.
“I guess I realized when I first purged, and I kind of took a step back and realized that everything I was doing wasn’t healthy — the amount of attention I had put on food, my body, and calories without even realizing it,” says Alicia, in regards to how she realized she had an eating disorder. “But at that point, I didn’t want to stop because I was losing weight. It’s just hard to have self-control, personally, when it comes to food-related things.”
Anorexia nervosa is characterized by an intense fear of and obsession with weight gain, inadequate food intake that leads to dramatic weight loss, poor self-esteem as a result of severely negative body image, and a failure to recognize the severity of the situation. These symptoms combined with binge-eating are what make up anorexia nervosa binge-eating type. Other forms of anorexia include purging type (in which purging behaviors, such as self-induced vomiting or excessive exercise, are present) and restricting type (in which neither binge-eating nor purging is present).
Atypical anorexia nervosa, a form of Other Specified Feeding or Eating Disorder (OSFED), consists of the same symptoms, except that weight is not below normal. Other examples of OSFED include purging disorder and night eating syndrome.
These are only a few examples of the numerous eating disorders that exist. Eating Recovery Center provides the following self-assessment for those who fear they may be suffering from an eating disorder (two or more “yes” answers would indicate that one should seek further help):
- Do you make yourself sick because you feel uncomfortably full?
- Do you worry that you have lost control over how much you eat?
- Have you recently lost more than 15 pounds in a 3-month period?
- Do you believe yourself to be fat when others say you are too thin?
- Would you say that food dominates your life?
A longer, more comprehensive list of warning signs can be found here. As you can see, focusing solely upon the number on the scale is not useful. If your relationship with food is causing you significant distress, that is cause enough to at least seek out support from loved ones, even if you haven’t lost any weight.
But once you realize you may have an eating disorder, where do you go from there?
Eating disorders are treatable, especially with early intervention and a solid support system. Every individual has different roots that have caused their eating disorders to consume their lives, and recognizing and combating them through professional help can ensure recovery and prevent relapse. Relapse is common, and eating disorders should be treated like any other addictive behaviors. It is important to provide eating disorder survivors with ongoing support even once presumed fully recovered. By talking with a therapist or doctor, one is often diagnosed with a mental illness that directly correlates with their eating disorder (i.e. OCD, anxiety, depression). Medications for these illnesses can improve one’s mental state and help provide relief or comfort for someone who may have been relying on their eating disorder to provide these feelings.
Depending on the eating disorder, physical treatment in a hospital may need to be undergone in order to prevent permanent physical damage. Eating disorders have the highest mortality rate of all mental illnesses. They need to be treated as early as possible and with serious attention.
Having the support of friends and family is an important factor in a successful recovery. Professional help is ideal, but recovery is still possible without it. There are plenty of online resources and recovery apps that can assist someone during the recovery process. Developing coping mechanisms such as journaling thoughts and behaviors, meditating, listening to music, or talking with a friend can help combat triggers. It is important to remove the focus from food by engaging with friends, picking up hobbies, or investing your time in a project. Having a therapist to help you resolve the underlying causes of your eating disorder can make the process easier, but communication with any close family member or friend will help with one’s recovery.
“In the middle of [sophomore] year, I opened up about what I was dealing with to a friend for the first time. She helped me get better by watching what I ate and making sure I had someone to talk to. I am forever grateful,” Arianna says.
For me personally, recovery seemed unachievable at first. With help from a therapist, doctors who worked towards finding me the right medication for my depression, and the abundant support of friends and family, my outlook changed. Help made me realize my eating disorder wasn’t something worth holding on to, and comfort can come from much safer sources than binging and purging. I found a passion for writing and a mission to utilise my talents to destigmatize mental illness. My focus shifted from food and calories to the people around me and my goals for the future. Recovery really is within every sufferer’s reach; we just need the right people and sources to help us regain health.
Great Online Recovery Sources:
Great Recovery Apps:
- Optimism
- Kissy Project
- Recovery Record
- Eating Disorder Assessment
- Cognitive Diary
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