Eating Disorders and Body Dysmorphic disorder

Here is a link to a site that shows how a person can have an eating disorder AND have Body Dysmorphic disorder also.

Body Dysmorphic disorder is something is something I contend with too. Is there anyone else who feels that they have this disorder?

http://www.healthyplace.com/Communities ... e/bdd.html

Kathy

*edited it by sadgurl to add sticky. So it doesn't get lost.*

sweetngentle wrote:Here is a link to a site that shows how a person can have an eating disorder AND have Body Dysmorphic disorder also.
Body Dysmorphic disorder is something is something I contend with too. Is there anyone else who feels that they have this disorder?
http://www.healthyplace.com/Communities ... thy*edited it by sadgurl to add sticky. So it doesn't get lost.*

Had a good friend that suffered BBD, bulimia and sexual abuse. All seems to be related and go hand-in-hand. It's really an awful life-threatening unhealthy way to live. I only want to help those people, but know I really can't.

Body Dismorphic Disorder is usually a component of any eating disorder. The two go hand in hand....one can begin the problem and then spawn off into the other or visa versa but it's almost unanimous among those with eating disorders to also suffer from bdd.

i don't know what kind of eating disorder i have..
but i know that i have one but i just don't know
how to find out what kind i have

I had an eating disorder 2 years ago. They told me it was "atypical Anorexia Nervosa". At the time I was also experiencing severely the symptoms of Body Dysmorphic Disorder. They told me this was an "atypical variation of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder", and was largely ignored to focus on the eating disorder, as this was the directly life-endangering problem.

I know now, (still experiencing the symptoms of BDD, though much less severe) that this is mainly what was effecting me. This was never acknowledged by the doctors

I suffer from Body Dismorphic Disorder, I'm a pretty extreme case... I also have an eating disorder cause of it... it makes me very sad, I want to love my body so I obsess about not eating. I hate food cause of fat and because it makes me uglier and destroys my life. I can't stand my mind and my thoughts, 99% of the time I think of my flaws and get a sick feeling in my stomach. I know that guys find me very attractive, I get a lot of positive attention but I just can't see myself.

Anyone with this disorder please write me, if you have recovered then please tell me how cause I can't live with myself.

I was diagnosed with anorexia at age 12, but recovered quickly and maintained a pretty healthy weight until age 19, when I relapsed and was forced to take a medical leave from college. Once again, I recovered quickly, and I will be returning to school in the fall. I find that it is always easy to do what I'm told and return to a normal weight, but the poor self image remains. I don't think that I'm fat - in fact, I've never thought that I'm fat - but sometimes I fell that since I feel that I am flawed/ugly in other ways, I want to at least be skinny.

I'm starting to get over this distorted thinking and beginning to realize that being skinny isn't going to make me feel better about myself. I feel that my body is not normal - and there is objective evidence to support this - I have been on birth control for several years now because I have NEVER gotten my period naturally, even though I maintained a normal weight for six years. I also have a round stomach which protrudes disproportionately to the rest of my body (this is not an illusion of mine, friends and family who I have shown it to agree. I started to notice it around age 17 and it's gotten worse recently. It was there before I lost weight, while I was underweight, and after I returned to a normal weight. Nobody knows what's causing it) I am afraid that I somehow permanently stunted my growth at age 12, because even now, at age 20 and a healthy weight, I don't menstruate and don't have the figure of an adult woman. This doesn't seem possible, because even at age 12 my anorexia was not severe (I wasn't hospitalized), but I can't shake the notion that all of these medical problems are somehow my fault.

I was just wondering, can anyone comment on/relate to my experience? Does anyone else have issues with their stomach? Has anyone else been recovered for a very long time but still not menstruated?

Instead of asking friends and family, I would bring your concern about your tummy to your doctor. It could be hernia or just normal anatomy. I have a friend who has something where her tummy protrudes because of how her uterus is positioned in relatio to her small hips. I wouldn't worry about that, but you can always ask a doctor and they can reassure your anxiety.

sweetngentle wrote:Here is a link to a site that shows how a person can have an eating disorder AND have Body Dysmorphic disorder also.

Body Dysmorphic disorder is something is something I contend with too. Is there anyone else who feels that they have this disorder?

http://www.healthyplace.com/Communities ... e/bdd.html

Kathy

*edited it by sadgurl to add sticky. So it doesn't get lost.*

This makes so much sense to me and it explains what I've tried to explain to friends for years!

Eating Disorders are about issues of control. Usually the invidual who has an eating disorder is trying to get some type of control over his or her life. For whatever reason they feel lost and weight/appearance is something that they can control. Chances are if someone is not eating right out of laziness or being too busy, they're probably going to seek out fast food, and will probably gain weight. Unless it's a medical issue that's making them thin, there's something wrong with refusing to eat or be at a healthy weight. If you know someone like that, talk to them. Talk to a physician, therapist, or someone else who is a professional. Eating Disorders are serious and can cause bodily harm, and in some cases death. If someone isn't eating, there's a reason why. If they have a light appetite, they're still going to eat. They may not eat as much as the person sitting next to them, but they're not going to avoid it all together. We need to eat to have fuel to survive! At any rate, Eating Disorders are not something to be taken lightly. Also remember that you can't force someone into treatment (or even to get an assessment) but you can encourage and support them as best as you are able.It's a disease and shouldn't be taken lightly.