What causes anorexia?

Like... I have mild anorexia. I've lost a little more than forty pounds to it. Twenty were in one month, and the rest was kinda on an exponential scale. Anyway, I have a lot of problems in my life, and self image isn't exactly one of them. Point is, it's not like I really have just one problem where I can say, "Oh, that must be what's causing the anorexia." I just know I kinda have it (not as badly as that first month, though). So, like, what's known to cause it?

First Welcome to PC...glad you posted...

There are many things that put someone in the spiral of an eating disorder...one thing that it is not about is the food. You mention a lot of problems in your life.

Might be a good time to talk to someone professionally about what ever those may be...also toss in your eating style...that would be a good start to answering your question...don't you think?

My eating style? I dunno. I just eat when my dad tells me to. I'm down to two meals a day, though. I wake up at noon, so I don't eat breakfast. And I only eat lunch because I'm forced to. I don't eat much. Just whatever's fixed. But, like, that feeling of hunger - I just don't have it anymore. I mean, I know when I should be hungry. My stomache feels _different_, but I don't have an urge to actually eat. It's hard to explain really. It feels like eating is optional, so I'll only eat if I'm forced to or if I'm bored. I eat, like, a pop tart and ramen noodles for a day's meal. A year ago, my average day's food would have been pancakes, sausage, sandwich, fries, chicken, beans, mac and cheese, two Little Debbies, and chips. It's obviously dropped. Now, one Little Debby has become a whole meal - usually my entire breakfast.

There are alot of causes for anorexia, & for me, stress is a huge part of it.....when I am stressed, I start feeling sick to my stomach....when I'm feeling that way & try to eat, then I feel even worse, so I end up not eating because I don't like feeling even sicker....then it ends up in a vicious circle....because when I try to eat after not eating.

There are many other causes....& medications can be another....& of course, what they always say is the body image issue, but I would bet that most cases of a huge weight loss has other bases than that. I can also just get involved in doing things & just forget to eat until my stomach reminds me that it is still there.

Sounds like you need to find some GOOD foods that you like....I know now that I am on my own, I can go to the store & buy the foods that really call to me. Food is much more enjoyable when it is something I like & I find that I am drawn to the good foods when it comes right down to getting what I like......of course, there is always the bag of chololate that I have to limit because of headaches.

Hi Charles,

I noticed you listed your occupation as Psychology so I'm not sure what you're asking about here because I would hope you'd know something about Eating Disorders.

I noticed a similar question of yours in the PTSD Forum.

Are you asking us "what" it is from our perspective? Am I missing something? I'm not sure I understand.

Hi. I'm not sure what you're asking but anorexia has many different causes and it's never the same for anyone. It's so much more than wanting to lose weight. If you want to know why I have problems with it then there isn't one answer. It's a mixture of need for control, anxiety, expression of feelings esp. depression, relationships with my dad and half-sisters, lots of other things as well.

I hope you are okay. I'm sorry that I can't tell you what's causing your anorexia. I think you will have to find that out for yourself. Do you see a psychologist?