anorexia?

[poisson123]

hey..

i've kinda read through the forums for awhile & decided to post on something slightly bothering me...

well, i think i've got anorexia but i don't really like to believe that i've got an eating disorder.. i'm 5"11 and the last time i weighed myself a few months back i was around 112lb, i'm slighty scared to weigh myself now as i'd rather not know my current weight.. and i know that that is quite skinny.. but i'm in two minds about it because i do want to gain weight, but i'm scared at gaining too much..

and i'm currently seeing somebody about my weight/body problems but i don't think it's really working for me as i'm not really forcing myself to accept the help & i don't think i'm wanting help but i know i need it & i feel sooooo embarassed when i talk about it, but s'pose that's what it does to you?

i dunno, i think i play it down whenever i get asked about it. i don't want it to get progressively worse although i can't seem to change my behaviour towards eating..

just looking for any advice, if someone has any to share?
all be appreciated.. cheers..

 

[lostnfound]

How often do you eat throught the day? You have to make sure you're getting a well-balanced meal. I know that that's what everyone says: "balanced diet" but it's so true. You're not going to get fat or chubby if you eat healthy--that paired with moderate exercise.

I'm not an expert on anorexia so, it's good you're seeing someone. I just think that a lot of anorexics constantly think they're too fat. My theory is that because anorexics experience severe loss in muscle mass, they're left with bones and the little of bodyfat required to barely survive. So, technically, anorexics are "fat" because that's all their body composition consists of. Therefore, anorexics constantly starve themselves to rid of the tiny amount of fat that's left, even though humans need it to survive.

My advice is to think about why you feel the need to be thin. Is it because you want to be thin or you're afraid of being overweight. Secondly, I hope you're taking a multi-vitamin because by not eating enough, you're depleting your body's essential nutrients. I also suggest you eat on a regular schedule--time your meals. Even if you feel "full," you should train your body to handle the ideal amount of food. Start easy, don't feel like you have to force food down your throat. Progress the load of food a little bit evey week.

Good luck to you.

 

[KaraBulut]

Well, the simplest advice that I can give you is to fire your therapist.

Have a talk with your therapist and tell him/her that you feel like you need someone who specializes in eating disorders- in men if possible.

Eating disorders are a challenge to resolve. If conventional therapy isn't working for you then you should seek a specialist. Otherwise, your next step will be inpatient therapy.

 

[Eagle653]

As you know, you have an eating disorder and to get a handle on it, you're going to have to talk, candidly, with a competent therapist about it. Your feelings of knowing you need to gain weight, but very afraid of gaining too much is the crux of your issue and the thing that, without intervention, is going to prevent you from dealing with this effectively.

Time is of the essence, and your health is at risk. Get going now to either deal with this with your current therapist, or find one who will. You don't have time to lose. I congratulate you on recognizing this problem and wanting to deal with it. Sadly, many don't until it's too late. Good luck to you.

 

[poisson123]

i normally eat two to three times a day..

thanks for all the advice (=

 

[bankside]

hey..

i've kinda read through the forums for awhile & decided to post on something slightly bothering me...

well, i think i've got anorexia but i don't really like to believe that i've got an eating disorder.. i'm 5"11 and the last time i weighed myself a few months back i was around 112lb, i'm slighty scared to weigh myself now as i'd rather not know my current weight.. and i know that that is quite skinny.. but i'm in two minds about it because i do want to gain weight, but i'm scared at gaining too much..

and i'm currently seeing somebody about my weight/body problems but i don't think it's really working for me as i'm not really forcing myself to accept the help & i don't think i'm wanting help but i know i need it & i feel sooooo embarassed when i talk about it, but s'pose that's what it does to you?

i dunno, i think i play it down whenever i get asked about it. i don't want it to get progressively worse although i can't seem to change my behaviour towards eating..

just looking for any advice, if someone has any to share?
all be appreciated.. cheers..

Well, I believe you that you want to gain weight. You say not too much though. Do you have an idea in mind of how much would be a good fit weight for you?

Also, I believe you that you don't want help for it at the moment. But, if you want to try getting to a healthy fit weight on your own you need three things:

1) A goal. How about 135? Still very light but in the healthy fit weight range. Write your goal down.

2) A plan. You need to work out the details. How many extra meals or snacks do you need to eat to reach your goal? Are you going to add some light fitness activities to your day? If so, you will need another snack to cover a walk or a 15 minute bike ride. These are the things you have to figure out. What are the best healthy kinds of foods you plan to eat to reach your goal? What is your goal for each month? 3 pounds more each month? How little or how often do you think you should weigh in? Every Thursday? Write your plan down.

3) Problem solving to make your plan work: how are you going to kick your own butt when you know you should eat another bowl of soup but just aren't in the mood? What are you going to do to make sure you keep going if your plan stalls out one week even though you ate way more than before? How are you going to stick to your plan every day? Think about the obstacles that might happen, just in case. If you list at least 5 obstacles that could happen, and plans to overcome them, that is probably enough to start using your plan effectively. Also, are there other issues going on in your life that might distract you? If so, list the top 2. If not, great.

Also, being underweight, your body can go into in "emergency mode" where it tries to shut down as much as possible and just wait for the next calorie. It can affect your mood and your energy level for thinking things through. Eating more and coming out of "emergency mode" will help give you energy, but it might be a rough ride.

Does that seem okay for you to handle on your own? If so, try it. You feel it is worth a shot to gain a healthy amount of weight on your own Good, now give yourself a deadline. If you don't see results of your plan after one month, it is time for help. Or if you know trying on your own would be overwhelming, then it is time for help. That is when it goes from "seeing someone about weight and body problems" to asking for proper medical help treating an eating disorder.

Everyone you have ever known and everyone you have ever met will have a serious medical issue at some point. Sometimes they can manage it on their own but nobody complains if they decide to get a doctor's help. It is important to you to try this on your own, and I think you should try.

And tell your therapist what you intend to do. It is okay to say, "listen, I want to try this on my own for a month so I only want an appointment with you as part of my back-up plan." If you don't weigh more at the end of the first month, then your back-up plan is to take it to a doctor for help making the plan work.

 

[poisson123]

ideally, i'd like to be between 135-140lbs, but i don't know if i'll think i'm too big when i see myself and just freak out ha

i've got a plan sorted out.. which has only just started today.. which got of to abit of a rocky start, but was alright.. just have to see what tomorrow, and the rest of it is like.

i've got this picture/writing on my wall to remind me of why i'm going to have to eat and will eat but just with today, it's been quite tricky sticking to my plan, and it would be sooo easy to just throw it out the window and carry on the way i'm going but i don't really want that.

i'm also getting abit stressed out cos i'm moving away in a few weeks, which is why i started my plan asap because i don't wanna move away with having nothing there, cos i know i'll just skip meals but now i've got my plan, it seems more bearable? lol i dunno, c'est la vie..

 

[CudDULL]

I'm in a similar boat as you.

I'm 5'8 maybe 5'9 (thats a lie I wish) and the most I've ever weighed was 117lbs. I've gone down to 103lbs. I don't have an eating disorder. I don't purposely starve myself. I just don't eat well and I'm already naturally skinny and don't gain weight fast enough. The reason I lost weight was because I moved out on my own and being 19 i'm not the best cook and not used to it so I would usually eat stupid foods like frozen dinners or mac and cheese. Thankfully now I'm learning to cook and eat some more meaty foods. But another thing is money, I don't always have money to be buying a lot of food D:

 

[CudDULL]

He probably just doesn't know what a decent weight for his height is and isn't used to having that weight on him.

I mean I wish I could gain some more weight like up to 125 - 135lbs and Im 5'8. Which I think would be decent enough for me since I would still like to stay slender.

 

[CudDULL]

BTW any real advice on how to actually start gaining weight. Like some weight gaining programs? My biggest issue would be my budget and me willing to cook all the time.

 

[poisson123]

having a target weight of 160-175 seems too daunting at the minute.. so just have to attempt to reach 135-145 and take it from there, hopefully then i'll be able to aim for 160 but who knows..

i'm not purging, it's not really very pleasant.. lol.. i'm just not eating alot..

i'm with CudDULL about advice on gaining weight.. what foods would be best? apart from eating junk food 24-7 ha..

cheers

 

[bankside]

Well your government's health department usually publishes a guideline to healthy eating.

The Canadian government's is here but I'm sure you can find more online:

http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/food-guide-aliment/index-eng.php

If you're just not making time to eat because you are busy, make the time. You will get more done with proper nutrition because of the positive impact on your health and energy levels.

If the act of eating is emotional or exhausting or it feels great until you are done and then it feels like a let-down, these are warning signs. The only think you should usually feel after a meal is "Wow! That was alright!" If you find it hard to be content after a nice meal because of the way it makes you feel, then it is not just that you don't have enough time to cook or that you are too busy to eat. That is an early stage for concern.

Before, I suggested you might try 135 as your goal. I just found that number by looking at the low end of the healthy weights shown on a BMI index. At 135, you would be officially very thin, but in the healthy range. That is important because the healthy range means no great extra risks of health problems due to being underweight.

You could easily look thin and be fit at 175, but it is also something you can decide in stages. If you get to at least 135, you know you have made it to a healthy weight.

How is your plan going? Most of all, by now I hope you are just able to enjoy the food and not think about it. I spend way more time eating than thinking about eating. It should be fun trying to reach your goal. If you are struggling to do that, remember the idea of having a back-up plan and seeking medical help. You started about a week ago - I think you will have a good idea in just another couple of weeks about whether to stick with the plan or go for the back-up plan.