Hi,

I'm new here. I've been bulimic for 6 years, and have gone to 4 or 5 doctors about it, but had nothing done. You see, the doctors all tell me that I am mentally fine. I don't understand how throwing up after you eat can mean you're mentally fine.

I think because I have a healthy body image (which makes no sense), they don't know what to do with me.

Personally, I wish I could stop b/p'ing. I wish that after I eat I wouldn't feel a big lump in my stomach that won't go away until I throw up. I wish that empty stomachs didn't feel so good, and that the feeling of food didn't make me sick.

What is the first step of recovery? Where do I go from here?

thanks
Jill

Hey!

First of, wellcome to the boards! Those doctors are wrong- of course it is not "normal" to binge/purge. You are not the only bulimic to have a healthy body image as often the behaviour has a lot less to do with food and weight than people think. Your bulimia is probably a coping mechanism for other things as im sure u already know. Although in my case, I have very bad body image, I also know my bulimia has a lot to do with coping with stress too.

Anyway, have u tried finding a councellor to help you get to the bottom of it? Otherwise, have u read Overcoming binge eating by Dr Fairburn? Its good because it is in two parts. The first kinda helps u get to the bottom of ur problem and it also made me realise how much I am not actually completely abnormal. The second part is a sort of self help guide with 6 very structured stages to follow and work through. That guy really knows his stuff!

Well hope this makes sense. Im kinda rambling in the midst of another uni work crisis! And keep posting here!!

Suzanne
xx

sounds like you need an eating disorder specialist - bulemia and/or the urge to is part emotional and part psychological - so you are right - you aren't fine- perhaps the image you give them or they see when you talk to them is that you are fine so they think there is nothing wrong..... Did you tell them how often you binge etc??

Yeah, I told them how often I b/p'ed.

I'm pretty sure this is a addiction. But... I don't know what to do about it. Where would you find an eating disorder specialist?

Another question I have is how big of a problem (how serious) is this? I mean, I've been bulimic for 6 years, and I don't seem to have any effects from it yet. I mean, I don't see anything happening to my body.

So... if I don't get treatment right now, what is the risk?

I know I have 2 problems to solve:

1. The amount I eat. I have a hard time knowing when I'm full. If I'm too full I want to get it out cause it's like this terrible weight in me. So I need to not pass that point.

2. The type of food I eat. I have an obsession with healthy food. If it's unhealthy food it's like a terrible weight in my stomach and the same effect as before.

So if I eat small healthy meals, there's no problem. Just... how do I keep eating small healthy meals... haha the million dollar question.

lol jilly- a sense of humor is very important in this mess. I don't have a lot of advice on the bulemia issue, I have never done that. Bingeing on healthy food seems like it would be less of a problem than bingeing on junk food all the time. But bingeing isn't good either way really.

Look in the phone book for eating disorder treatment or call your local mental health office and ask them, or call the nearest hospital and ask there, you may have to look around a bit especially if like me you live in a smaller city or town. You could also check in with a dietician who has experience working with ED patients, she/he can look at what you are eating and getting rid of and give you some advice.

Has anyone ever done any tests to determine whether or not you might have a disease or disorder which cause any of the issues. And 6 years is a long time and the risks are mighty when the do come. I have been anorexic and purged without bingeing for 30 years, yeah nasty and there are a multitude of issues that build up over time, damage to the stomach, damage to your throat, jacks up your teeth especially the back ones, It really is a risk......