Eating disorders
For most people food is more than a means of surviving. Food can be enjoyable or it can be a source of anxiety, distress and shame. Weight, eating, dieting, and body image are ever increasing preoccupations in western society, culture and the media. Cultural pressures, such as the need for perfectionism and media images often imply that being successful is associated with being excessively thin. For a large percentage of young people, (mostly women but a growing number of young men) thoughts about food can become obsessive, which often relates to particular behaviour and rituals connected with food and eating that may seriously affect a person's physical health. Young people in this position tend to confuse who they are with what they look like.
- About eating disorders
- Things you can do to help yourself
- How to help a friend whom you suspect has difficulties with food
- Further help, books and useful websites
About eating disorders
Eating disorders can also be seen as an outward and physical expression of internal emotional pain and confusion. The emotional distress is often to do with a negative perception of self, relationship or family problems, anxiety or depression, and an overwhelming feeling of being unable to change "bad" things about themselves or their situation. Food can be then used as an inappropriate way of taking control, as feelings of needing to be in control as well as fearing being controlled or out of control, are usually present in people with eating disorders.
There are several recognised eating disorders which can be briefly described as follows:
Anorexia is the name given to a cluster of symptoms relating to severe, sometimes life threatening, weight loss. It is often related to distorted ideas about body weight and size. A person suffering from anorexia persists in thinking they are fat when in reality they are dangerously thin. It can be linked to a perfectionist attitude, with people suffering from anorexia often being high achievers. The most commonly affected by anorexia are young women in education aged between 15–25. Sufferers' menstrual periods often stop. Sufferers may also get circulation difficulties and feel cold all the time. Some sufferers enforce excessive exercise regimes on themselves while starving. The longer the condition continues, the more difficult it can be to tackle. In severe cases it can necessitate hospitalisation and can even prove fatal.
Bulimia is a condition in which people develop a pattern of bingeing (eating excessively large amounts of food) and then ridding themselves of it by vomiting or purging themselves with laxatives. People with this illness may be of normal weight, so it may be hard for others to realise what is going on. There are severe health implications, which the person suffering from bulimia may not be aware, such as tooth decay, dehydration, chemical imbalances in the body, serious glandular disturbances, damage to kidneys, stomach and the oesophagus, and even fits and irregular heart beats.
Compulsive eating is when people cannot control their intake of food. An irresistible urge to binge may then be followed by feelings of shame or self-disgust, which usually then leads to a period of rigid dieting and weight loss. This creates a cycle of binging and dieting. Eating is often not in response to physical hunger but of feelings of need and comfort. The person is out of control when it comes to food and then imposes an impossible dieting regime to regain control and to punish themselves for what they see as their "shameful" and "disgusting" behaviour.
Non-specified eating disorders can affect many people and may not be as clear cut as the above definitions suggest. Some people may have differing patterns of eating disorder and behaviours, such as starving and vomiting, or being "anorexic" although still menstruating or their current weight being normal. Others may chew food and then spit it out before swallowing. Anyone suffering from any kind of serious eating disorder can become socially isolated because of the compulsive nature of the rituals surrounding food, which may keep them from enjoying normal social activities or may leave them with little time to do anything else. It is also probably true that all people suffering from serious eating disorders feel an underlying sense of shame and self hatred.
Things you can do to help yourself
- Recognising that you have a problem is the first stage to free yourself from the grip of an eating disorder.
- Try to eat a good balanced diet, that suits you and keeps you healthy. This does not mean a rigid routine, but a flexible and varied diet. Seeing a nutritionist to work out a programme of healthy eating is a way of doing something positive for yourself.
- Challenge any "distorted thinking" you may have about yourself, weight and eating. Recognise that your body is not the same as your identity.
- Try not to keep it a secret any longer. Talk with your friends and family if you can and try to be receptive if friends and family express concern about your eating or weight. If it is too difficult to talk to those who are close to you, it may be time to seek further help.
How to help a friend whom you suspect has difficulties with food
- Remember that your friend is a person first and someone who has difficulties with food second. Continue with the normal activities you engage in together and do not allow issues of food to dominate the friendship.
- Tell them of your suspicions, how it makes you feel and be prepared for them to deny they have a problem.
- Be supportive and encourage them to seek professional help. However, if they choose not to seek help that is their responsibility, not yours.
- Do not nag about food, spy on your friend or get drawn into becoming some form of monitor or control.
- Be available to listen to your friend so they can talk about their feelings, but do not take on more than you can comfortably cope with. Everyone has limits – of knowledge, time, understanding – so offer the level of support that you can sustain and do not let this take over your life or interfere with your work.
- If you feel overwhelmed by your friend's problems, or are very concerned about them, you can contact a professional yourself to get some support and advice.
Further help, books and useful websites
The earlier help is sought the easier it is for the eating disorder to be changed. If you are concerned about developing a serious eating disorder and the possible effects on your physical health, then contact your college nurse or college doctor immediately.
All eating disorders are symptomatic of emotional, psychological and social cultural issues. In counselling you can explore and learn to understand the underlying issues in a safe, confidential environment, thus breaking the experience of isolation. You can gain new coping strategies to deal with the driven obsession with food and body image.
| Useful books |
|---|
| Overcoming Binge Eating - Fairburn, Guilford Press |
| Getting Better Bite by Bite: A Survival Kit for Sufferers of Bulimia Nervosa and Binge Eating Disorders - Schmidt and Treasure, Psychology Press |
| Eating Your Heart Out - Buckroyd, Optima |
| Anorexia Nervosa: A Guide For Sufferers and Their Families - Palmer, Penguin |
| Fed Up and Hungry, Lawrence - The Woman's Press |