Solving the true 'underlying' cause to Anorexia?

Hey all-I'm currently a 22 y/o female grad student with a history of anorexia (ages 17-20). I have gotten back to a normal weight and health, but still find some traits that 'remain.' This sometimes includes denying social invitations, difficulty finding comfort in dating situations, needing to organize to destress, and lots of anxiety/thoguhts/future thinking.

Personally, I believe anorexia is caused by certain precursors: perfectionist, anxitey, control freak, fear of adult responsibilities, and a few others. I think it has less to do with media and even the 'food' itself.

Does anybody have similar thoughts? If so, how do you go about managing these 'traits?' Or do you have completely different ones?

Thank you!
-Angela

Hi Angela,

Welcome to the forum!

I fully agree with you about the precursors and traits that remain. I've never been a media junkie or "foodie" either so the disorder had absolutely nothing to do with those.

Annjayyy wrote:This sometimes includes denying social invitations, difficulty finding comfort in dating situations, needing to organize to destress, and lots of anxiety/thoguhts/future thinking.

I still have issues with all of those. Cleaning is obsessive when I'm stressed out and I'm forever re-organizing closets and such. The sense of control I used to get from food is now projected into other, more socially acceptable areas of life. As a student part of the focus was on school work and grades.

For the anxiety/thoughts/future thinking, I find that CBT is the most helpful. You can find some CBT thought record sheets that walk you through each thought and pick it apart until the underlying anxiety is dismantled.

Take care.