Posted by Racer on May 23, 2006, at 16:36:44
In reply to How do you know if your anorexia is back, posted by lost_and_delerious on May 21, 2006, at 18:44:40
First of all, I want to take Poet's excellent advice a step farther: if you didn't see a therapist for your anorexia in the past, go find one now. It really is necessary, even if this is "only" depression and grief.
And now for my pedantry: Yes, that's definitely Anorexia -- but is it Anorexia Nervosa? "Anorexia" means lack of appetite, from any cause. Depression and grief are causes, and anxiety for some people, as well. Anorexia Nervosa includes a few other elements, such as the distorted body image, basing your self-worth on your weight, rigid perfectionism, etc. If you're counting the calories right now, because it's kinda second nature to you, that may not be AN. It might just be habit, because you did it before. On the other hand, if you're counting the calories as in "I can't eat that -- it's got more than 100 calories per serving!" Well, I guess I don't have to tell you what that would probably indicate, huh?
My own experience is that virtually any severe stressor will send me down that road. How far down I get depends on a lot of things, but once it gets past a certain point there's no turning back. I can watch myself killing myself, and still not be able to change anything. That's where nutritional counseling and psychotherapy come in. And they are pretty well necessary.
Also, consider joining Weight Watchers, for the meetings. You're obviously not there to lose weight, but you are there to learn healthier eating habits, which is a cheaper version of nutritional counseling. Their "points" system is based on the American Diabetes Association exchanges, and those are used by most nutritional counselors. If you're not quite sure about WW, get a copy of their little pocket exchange book. It lists how much of each sort of food makes a portion, and you can use that to learn to judge what's a normal amount of food to eat.
It's scary, and it's even worse when it's part of a triple whammy like that. You won't do yourself any favors, though, by trying to get through it alone. Try to find a good therapist who specializes in eating disorders, or a good grief counselor. Find a good grief support group -- that's really valuable.
And good luck.
poster:Racer
thread:646672
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/eating/20051009/msgs/647414.html