[Jess113]

hey everyone I just wanna ask y'all something and see what you think...
I am not very heavy. I'll eat, not excessively or the opposite, but then every now and then I'll just see my mom (a stick) or look at myself in the shower and stop eating entirely for a few days. Maybe a light snack here and there. Then, for no reason at all, I just gradually start eating again. It's just a never ending cycle. Is this a problem? Do I need to worry about this?
Thanks..

Originally Posted by Jess113

hey everyone I just wanna ask y'all something and see what you think...
I am not very heavy. I'll eat, not excessively or the opposite, but then every now and then I'll just see my mom (a stick) or look at myself in the shower and stop eating entirely for a few days. Maybe a light snack here and there. Then, for no reason at all, I just gradually start eating again. It's just a never ending cycle. Is this a problem? Do I need to worry about this?
Thanks..

Hello Jess: You don't say how tall you are. So it's difficult to say if your weight is a problem. This is easy enough to check on most health-related websites. You can plug in your weight & height & it will tell you if you're too thin, within normal range, or overweight. Eating & then not eating for several days isn't a healthy practice. Your body needs fuel on a regular basis. On the other hand, if you're otherwise healthy, it's not going to harm you seriously either as long as you don't overdo it.

The danger comes in when you begin to starve yourself trying to achieve some imaginary degree of thinness that you never reach. This can become a compulsion that can be difficult to break.

As things stand now, you may, or may not have an eating disorder. I'm not qualified to say. But, given how serious an eating disorder can be, I would recommend that you get assessed for this &, if necessary undergo some treatment, or perhaps just one-to-one therapy, in order to ensure that what you're doing now doesn't turn into a full-blown eating disorder. My best wishes to you!

[Jess113]

its like I can never seem to stick with not eating. then I feel guilty for giving it up again. :/

Not being able to stick with not eating is a good thing, especially at your weight & height. Just don't let this not eating thing get out of control!

I'm an old geezer. I wish I could get my weight back up there again. But realistically I think it's just not going to happen...

[Secretum]

Aren't we supposed to not be discussing actual numbers like BMI, weight, etc.?

Jess, I would see a therapist if I were you, to try to get to the bottom of why you want to be even thinner than you are now. I was naturally thin, until medication caused me to gain weight. As long as you're not obese, being thinner won't make you any happier; I know from personal experience.

[waggiedog]

Hi Jess. It would seem this type of ''food/weight control'' has been going on for some time and you've slipped into a habit which makes you feel better because you are ''in control'' ~ a classic eating disorder sign. I'm also an ''old geezer'' and have had various ED's for the last 30 plus years. I've been morbidly obese and in~patient due to anorexia/bulimia and as someone else said, I wasn't happy no matter what weight I was. I've never ever been naturally thin, starving has been the only way to be slim/thin BUT, I did that (and do that now) exactly the way you are doing it. If I eat a meal out, the following week is spent severely restricting. I'm fed up with it and so I'm seeking help from an ED unit. I hope you may be able to do the same thing, don't waste your life being a slave to ED's like I have. HUGS. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Yes Secretum: I checked the Community Guidelines. You are correct. We're not supposed to be using actual numbers. My error...

[woundedsoul]

Gosh, now it's bugging me that I got here late to the board, and didn't see her post until after they edited it. I feel like I'm the only one who doesn't know what she weighed and it's killing me. I know that's my ed talking, but, I can't help it. And it's going to continue to bother me now that it's out there. Ugh.

[HonestlyLying]

jess-

Comparing yourself to your mom who you say is "a stick" is just a set-up. You aren't your mother and you may never look like "a stick" for a number reasons unless you starve yourself into oblivion. But focus on the healthy you and nurture that part of you that eats well and has all the potential in the world.

If you're asking outright if you have the DISEASE of anorexia, it can have a quick onset or it can develop over time. I see ana as the enemy of life. In my experience that's all it is. A cunning, domineering and deadly DISEASE.