Eating disorder

[aden.d]

I have yet to encounter anyone that can help me i have seen doctors, psychitrists, psychologists, dieticans, specialists, hypnotherepists and even behavioural experts but yet no one has even been able to help me expand my diet. i have been told so many times that i would be dead by the time i was 14,16, 18 and so on im now 21 i was also told i would be unable to have children and i have an 18months old son and its mainly for that reason that now more then ever i need help as i am so scared that my son will pick up on it. i dont want him to go through this as i am ashamed of it, i have had to avoid all sorts of things from everyday life from eating out to even xmas dinners as i feel people will judge me.

My diet consists of biscuits, cereal, chocolate and very, very rarely a banana and thats it i have been like that since i was 3 i have spoken to my mum bout it so many times and she doesnt know what triggered it and i havent got a clue, i pretty much have a severe fear of food and people tell me its just a matter of trying new things but its easier said then done food scares the hell out of me and i just want to be like everyone else and it upsets me.

I was told about 4yrs bk that it could be Orthorexia but after looking into it, it seems like a complete mis-diagnosis as that is where people decide on eating healthy and i am far from that i think my average daily intake of calories is about 7000.

and im at a kind of breaking point on what i should do i dont binge eat or anything i just top my self up with more and more sugar throughout the day to keep me functioning at a good level.

has anyone heard of any similar eating disorders.

sorry for the essay

[mscat]

Hi there, and welcome to our community.

Have you ever been in a ED inpatient treatment program? I understand that many professionals have tried to help you over the years you have had your ED. I am very happy that you have overcome so much and had a healthy baby.

I had sufered from an ED for at least 8 yrs of my life. I know quite well what it is like to have his disorder. I went into treatment , however, i lost all the weight soon after I got out .

What I learned from personal expeience about anorexia, bulimia is that no amount of help from any professional will make a difference unless your ready to stop these behaviors once and for all. The only person who can make it go away , is yourself. If your ready to really stop and get better then your going to have to do this only for you.

Now that your a mother , this is a perfect reason to get well. So you can be there for your child, and not be sick.

I also became pregnant at a very low weight. I don't know how that happened , however, it changed my life around for the better .

I felt that having a healthy baby was more important then the ED. I chose to "give it up" and focus on being a new parent of a brand new baby .I had little support , however, so glad I don't have to struggle with an ED, or allow it to control me anymore.

[goose]

Hi aden.d

I had a very similar eating problem right throughout my childhood. I had a very restricted selection of food that I would eat, and no matter how much pressure was put on me I would not change.

For myself I never saw it as a problem, everyone around me thought it was. I was very thin, but I do not think I was underweight, and I was certainly not aware of body image.

I was a very passive, shy child and my therapist who I am seeing at the moment thinks that it was a mix of anxiety and attention seeking (not deliberate). I tend to agree with him. When I left home and the pressure was off I gradually starting new foods under my own terms and now eat a full varied range of food.

My youngest son developed the same eating pattern - restricting himself to only certain foods. I knew from my own experience that putting pressure on him would not work, but my husband put pressure on him and my son started hiding food. When we discovered this we backed off immediately and over the last few years off his own bat he has started trying new foods.

In my son's case he has a similar personality to mine, he also has severe food allergies from birth. I always thought his problem stemed from a very bad bout of chicken-pox which he had at 1 year old - the inside of his mouth was covered in them which made it very painful for him to eat.

I have also read that eating disorders can be genetic.

I see you are from England, there was a series of programmes on this very subject on BBC3 a while back, called 'Freaky Eaters' I think, It is repeated every so often.

Goose

Edited September 6, 2009 by goose
typo

[aden.d]

mscat im actually a male lol but no worries there

i havent tried an inpatient treatment i dont think although im not to sure on what that is to be honest, ive been admitted to a care facilty called the ceeders where they specialise in eating disorders but all they tried to do there was pin me down and pinch my nose til i opened my mouth to breath and then try and force feed me and they refused to try anything else as i bit down on the specialists fingers when he tried ramming food down my throat.

Goose thanx its nice to know im not the only 1, yeah i did catch a few episodes of freaky eaters the most relevant one was the lady whose diet mainly consisted of chocolate as that is the most similar to mine. my girlfriend is always tryna coax me into trying new things with no real joy but i did try something new today my son decided he would ram a cookie down my throat and much to my suprise i liked it. as i said before i am worried that my son will pick up on it and that is summit i really dont want to happen as he seems to throughly enjoy his food already. I used to be scared of handling food aswell but since my son was born that has kinda just stopped happening.

ive been in contact with a nurse who is looking into alternative therapies and should hear something bk on tuesday so fingers crossed i might get some proper help for once.

thanx for sharing your past ive never been able to talk to any1 else who has been through something even remotely similar especially as i dont tell anyone about my eating as i am embarrassed

thanx again

[mscat]

mscat im actually a male lol but no worries there

i havent tried an inpatient treatment i dont think although im not to sure on what that is to be honest, ive been admitted to a care facilty called the ceeders where they specialise in eating disorders but all they tried to do there was pin me down and pinch my nose til i opened my mouth to breath and then try and force feed me and they refused to try anything else as i bit down on the specialists fingers when he tried ramming food down my throat.

Goose thanx its nice to know im not the only 1, yeah i did catch a few episodes of freaky eaters the most relevant one was the lady whose diet mainly consisted of chocolate as that is the most similar to mine. my girlfriend is always tryna coax me into trying new things with no real joy but i did try something new today my son decided he would ram a cookie down my throat and much to my suprise i liked it. as i said before i am worried that my son will pick up on it and that is summit i really dont want to happen as he seems to throughly enjoy his food already. I used to be scared of handling food aswell but since my son was born that has kinda just stopped happening.

ive been in contact with a nurse who is looking into alternative therapies and should hear something bk on tuesday so fingers crossed i might get some proper help for once.

thanx for sharing your past ive never been able to talk to any1 else who has been through something even remotely similar especially as i dont tell anyone about my eating as i am embarrassed

thanx again

Hey , I sorry about that! Glad that you have been in contact with a nurse who is going to help you find alternative therapies.

Best wishes to you.

Cathy

[aden.d]

the nurse came bk to me and has told me to contact my doctor to be reffered for something called cognitive behavioural thereapy aint got a clue wat it is but ill try anything

[Guest ASchwartz]

Hi Aden d,

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is not an "alternative" therapy at all and, in fact, is mainstream. In it you will be asked to examine all of your thoughts about eating with the goal of uncovering those thoughts that are incorrect, misguided and distorted. You will then be taught how to replace the misguided or distorted ways of thinking with those that are realistic: based on real facts. You will be left with a tool that can help you cope for the rest of your life.

My suggestion to you is to not worry about diagnosis. Whether your condition is called Orthorexia Nervosa or Anorexia Nervosa or some other type of Nervosa is less important than recovery. Yes, you do have an eating disorder and it will take time to correct it.

We now know that eating disorders affect men as well as women. You are still young enought to beat this thing.

It seems to me that your treatment needs to include a nutritionist who can help you construct meal plans and follow them and weigh you as well. You will also need an MD. These people will need to work as a team with your cognitive behavioral psychologist.

Understand something else here: Denial is part of having an eatind disorder. For example:

was told about 4yrs bk that it could be Orthorexia but after looking into it, it seems like a complete mis-diagnosis as that is where people decide on eating healthy and i am far from that i think my average daily intake of calories is about 7000.

What do you think??

Allan

addendum: A nutritionist is not a dietician. A nutritionist, here in the US, is a medical and mental help specialist trained to work with eating disorders either in or outside of hospitals.

[aden.d]

thanx ASchwartz for explaining what is entailed in the therapy i am really looking forward to it, im hopin this will be a start of good things to come. it sounds like it has a lot to do with positive re-enforcement. just got to wait for a doctors appointment to get my refferal.

thanks every1

[Guest ASchwartz]

Hi Aden.d,

Yes, but the work will be hard at times. Yet, you have every reason to be hopeful because you are young. The idea is to try to not fight the doctors and therapists. What I mean by that is that these eating disorders are tricky, your mind plays "ticks" on you and convinces you that you are eating well or are too fat or won't be told what to or how to eat. It is just your mind attempting to deceive you because it is under the "spell" of the eating disorder. Part of your job is going to be to expand what you eat and that is where a really good Nutritionist comes in.

Allan