Could I have an eating disorder?

[allygirlxo]

I am 5'6'', about 108 pounds, and I am always trying to lose weight. Every day I'm trying some new diet, and some days I don't really eat anything at all. But I'm not very good at fasting or dieting. Sometimes I binge and then make myself throw up- this happens probably a couple times a week. But I'm kind of fat, and people with eating disorders are thin, right? So what's wrong with me?

[shlee1016]

Whoa, I must say that I disagree. You are not at a normal weight for your height. I don't like to talk too much about weight with people with eating disorders because I think it's triggering, but I do want you to know that you are not at a normal weight. Second, dieting does not mean exercise so I don't know where that comment came from. Just because someone is on a "diet" (I HATE that word and what it stands for in general), doesn't mean they HAVE to exercise. Another thing, not all people with eating disorders are unhealthily skinny as the statement above says. That's no true at all. People with eating disorders are all shapes and sizes and that is the truth. Eating disorders are mental disorders and so the advice to simply eat healthy and exercise does not apply. The food and weight obsession with an eating disorder is just a symptom. The problem really lies deeper.

P.S. It's moreso the purging that can damage the esophagus, not binging.

[Patricia Pitts, PhD]

Dear allygirlxo,

It sounds like you have an eating disorder.  Visit the bella vita website and take the eating disorder survey for females.  While you are on our site, learn more about the symptoms, medical complications and treatment options for anorexia and bulimia.

It would be important to seek medical and psychological treatment for your symptoms.

Best,

Dr Patricia Pitts
The Bella Vita
Los Angeles, CA

[Rob_Bob]

Well, for you height, 108 pounds is normal. First, about diets, if you were to diet, you would need to do more than just diet. You would have to exercise as well. Second, not all people with eating disorders are skinny. Over time, people with eating disorders are unhealthely skinny. Binging is a symptom of Bulimia. Plus, binging will, over time, damage the esouphagus. My advice is not to worry about your weight, and to exercise with out diet. So over all, just exercise and eat healthy and you should be perfectly fine.
I hope this helps your predicament.