To evaluate yourself as having an eating disorder, you do not have to exhibit just the familiar aspects of each one.  You do not have to weigh an astonishingly how weight to be anorexic.  You do not have to purge the exact number of times that the DSM-IV deems necessary for it to have a negative impact on your life.  Some people mistakenly feel that they are not bulimic or anorexic or are a binge eater simply because they are confused as to the existence of the problem.  However, the lines for each are blurry and there is much space in between those lines.

To determine whether you or someone you love may be suffering from an eating disorder, there is one very important question to ask.  That question is whether or not overeating, bingeing and purging, obsessing over body image, food, exercise, and weight has gotten in the way of living a “normal” life.  If you or your loved one answers this question honestly, then you can determine if seeking treatment is what is needed. 

People who suffer from eating disorders, like those who suffer from addictions, may feel the need to isolate themselves, or hide their eating disorder from others.  They may be feeling guilt and shame from their disorder and not want to allow that side of them to be seen by others. 

There could come a point when the person suffering from an eating disorder will begin to hide food and the way they consume it from others.  They do not want others to know about their eating behavior.  They could feel that they are losing control of their food consumption and even though they try, they are unable to stop.  The eating disordered person may appear to exhibit normal eating behavior in public and participate in food outings with others, but this same person could do things after leaving those outings, such as binging or purging or commence in excessive exercise or restriction regimen that they think will exile that food from their bodies. 

Women that have eating disorders may feel that their bodies are disgusting or unacceptable, though to other people, they are completely fine.  These women spend much time obsessively comparing their bodies to the bodies of other women.   They do abusive things, such as use laxatives in order to immediately purge undesired calories from their bodies.  They could prevent themselves from eating during the day, only to binge eat all night.  This same cycle is repeated the very next day.  The eating disorder sufferer thinks of food constantly and this obsession gradually permeates every aspect of their lives, until it affects their meaningful relationships, desires, and goals until they are trapped with no way to escape and fall into a lost feeling of defeat and start to search for answers and a way to end the seemingly unbreakable pain.  There are some that may never reach that point.  They continue to suffer in silence and never seek the help that they desperately need and deserve.

Eating disorders may start out innocently.  A person may start with an idea that dieting will make them feel better or that eating a little bit more of something will soothe their stress or “numb” them out.  In time, these little things progressively get bigger until an eating disorder fully develops.  Those with eating disorders could begin to think that they have a problem with food and start to fear it, eventually feeling that they should avoid it altogether.  These feelings oftentimes lead to a binge, accompanied by shame and guilt.  The cycle then continues.  The secret hidden unbearable pain could sometimes be too great to handle and holding this personal flaw in leads the sufferer to purge.  This gives the sufferer hope connected to their behavior.  They have the hope that by being able to get rid of the food they ate, which is the evidence, it will provide an emotional release.  As mentioned before, the cycle will not break because what they are failing to realize is that the fundamental underlying issues related to their disordered behavior with food needs to be addressed before their problem will ever disappear.

If you have any problem at all related to food and eating, I encourage you to take a deep look at it and yourself and ponder whether the obsessions and sneaky behavior and “I’ll stop after this time” excuses are preventing you from leading a happy life.

-Victorian Staff