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I think i have an eating disorder

I'm a guy and i'm too aware/self conscious about my weight. I typically weigh between 58 and 62kg's. I want to bring this down to like 56kgs and build alot more muscle tone and whatever. The thing is i sort of puke out some meals i eat - instinctivley almost, and it makes me feel "lighter" beofre i work out. I dont know how detrimental this will be to my health in the long term. I just dont want to jeapordise or risk my health but my weight is a huge concern.

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Reply 1
I think I might have some sort of problem but I'm not sure. I used to be overweight but I lost it all and came down to just under the weight I should be for my height. But the thing is, if ever I am upset of angry I just eat food. Just eat it for the sake of it, and then either make myself feel sick, or make myself BE sick. But I want to stop it, otherwise I'll end up putting back on all the weight I lost which isn't what I want to do.
Reply 2
Anonymous
I'm a guy and i'm too aware/self conscious about my weight. I typically weigh between 58 and 62kg's. I want to bring this down to like 56kgs and build alot more muscle tone and whatever. The thing is i sort of puke out some meals i eat - instinctivley almost, and it makes me feel "lighter" beofre i work out. I dont know how detrimental this will be to my health in the long term. I just dont want to jeapordise or risk my health but my weight is a huge concern.


Sounds like you're more bulimic than anorexic, which is very dangerous.
Get some proper help, you;ve posted on here which is the first step to beating this.

Now for the serious bit:
Vomiting up your food can leave you with massive electorlyte imbalances and can easily lead to heart attacks. More peeps die of bulimia nervousa than die of anorexia nervosa.
If you're just going to puke it out why eat it in the first place?

You need food to build muscles anyway, so you can't not eat and bulk up, it doesn't work.

I suggest protein shakes. You can make your own one out of lizard's skin and eggs. Keep the shell on, though, it's full of meaty goodness.
Reply 4
Anonymous
I'm a guy and i'm too aware/self conscious about my weight. I typically weigh between 58 and 62kg's. I want to bring this down to like 56kgs and build alot more muscle tone and whatever. The thing is i sort of puke out some meals i eat - instinctivley almost, and it makes me feel "lighter" beofre i work out. I dont know how detrimental this will be to my health in the long term. I just dont want to jeapordise or risk my health but my weight is a huge concern.


In the long run, if you don't eat properly, not only is it detrimental to your health, you will end up with more fat and less muscle. Your body will waste away muscle as it tries to protect you from starvation. You would do best to eat plenty of healthy foods and exercise regularly and intensely. If you do so you will definitely notice an improvement in your appearance.

Furthermore, if you are a bloke, your weight has little bearing on your appearance. What matters is your body fat percentage, ie how much of your weight is fat. Someone could weigh 90kgs and be a fat slob, someone else could weigh 90kgs and look like a greek god. If you gain weight and the added weight is muscle, that's a good thing. As you are currently 60kg, losing more weight will probably be unhealthy in itself.

Don't be ashamed about the whole puking thing, but acknowledge that it will only hold you back from your goal of having a better body. You're not weird for doing it, just a little misinformed.
Reply 5
meathead
In the long run, if you don't eat properly, not only is it detrimental to your health, you will end up with more fat and less muscle. Your body will waste away muscle as it tries to protect you from starvation. You would do best to eat plenty of healthy foods and exercise regularly and intensely. If you do so you will definitely notice an improvement in your appearance.

Furthermore, if you are a bloke, your weight has little bearing on your appearance. What matters is your body fat percentage, ie how much of your weight is fat. Someone could weigh 90kgs and be a fat slob, someone else could weigh 90kgs and look like a greek god. If you gain weight and the added weight is muscle, that's a good thing. As you are currently 60kg, losing more weight will probably be unhealthy in itself.

Don't be ashamed about the whole puking thing, but acknowledge that it will only hold you back from your goal of having a better body. You're not weird for doing it, just a little misinformed.


You'll lose the fat before muscle. Fat is used for gluconeogenesis above muscle in order to spare muscle protein. Once the fat has gone the muscle goes...
I eat bugs...someone told me this was a disorder... lol...
Is that meant to be a joke
Reply 8
Fluffy
You'll lose the fat before muscle. Fat is used for gluconeogenesis above muscle in order to spare muscle protein. Once the fat has gone the muscle goes...


No, you will lose both fat and muscle similtaneously. However, the leaner you are, the greater the ratio of muscle:fat lost. Unless you then keep your new low-calorie diet forever (which is unfeasible), when you go back to eating more, you put on more fat as your metabolic rate is lower. However you are very unlikely to recover all the lost muscle mass. So as I said, in the long run you end up with less muscle and more fat.

If the fat went first, then the diet would be excellent, as you would just follow it until the fat was gone, then continue eating as before, retaining your muscle mass and original metabolism.
Reply 9
meathead
No, you will lose both fat and muscle similtaneously. However, the leaner you are, the greater the proportion of lean mass lost. Unless you then keep your new low-calorie diet forever (which never happens), when you go back to eating more, you put on more fat as your metabolic rate is lower. However you are very unlikely to recover all the lost muscle mass. So as I said, in the long run you end up with less muscle and more fat.


No you don't - the body actively preserves muscle until you reach fat levels that fail to produce enough ketone bodies to keep you going. Then you mobilise muscle protein...

I agree that if/when you start eating, you recover the fat over the protein...

--------------

And have just double checked in 'Kumar and Clarke' and in 'Baynes and Dominiczak'...
Reply 10
PS my brother went to Tommy's...
Reply 11
If you are sick a lot, say almost every day, you don't binge but you eat normal meals and throw them up (I appreciate this is bulimia), what damage can it do to your insides? I am seeing the problems on my teeth, fortunately the damage can be repaired with fillings and another possible cause of the decay is eating too many sweets anyway! The reason I ask is that I've had this problem on and off for seven years and now when I'm sick I get pains in my chest and stomach. I'm aware that there is acid in the stomach and this is what decays the teeth, but the stomach is protected by a lining - is this mucus? Is the oesophagus protected by anything or will that start to decay just like the teeth? How about the tongue? If so, how long does it take? Are there any measures I can take to prevent damage being done while I am trying to recover? (No doubt I will have relapses). Many thanks :smile:
Reply 12
Anonymous
If you are sick a lot, say almost every day, you don't binge but you eat normal meals and throw them up (I appreciate this is bulimia), what damage can it do to your insides? I am seeing the problems on my teeth, fortunately the damage can be repaired with fillings and another possible cause of the decay is eating too many sweets anyway! The reason I ask is that I've had this problem on and off for seven years and now when I'm sick I get pains in my chest and stomach. I'm aware that there is acid in the stomach and this is what decays the teeth, but the stomach is protected by a lining - is this mucus? Is the oesophagus protected by anything or will that start to decay just like the teeth? How about the tongue? If so, how long does it take? Are there any measures I can take to prevent damage being done while I am trying to recover? (No doubt I will have relapses). Many thanks :smile:


OK - I'm not going to dress this up...

It can do one hell of a lot of damage - you can rupture your oesophagus, which usually equals game over, you will bleed to death before you can get anywhere near help.

You'll end up liberating minerals from your bones in order for metabolism to continue, which means you'll be at a high risk of oesteoporosis.

You can also end up with irreversible kidney and liver damage.

The main risk is that of electrolyte imbalances, especially your potassium and calcium levels, which are critical for control of muscle contraction and relaxation. Your heart is under massive threat if you continue to purge. Also skeletal muscle spasms are common, uncontrolable and embarrasing if they happen while you're out and about. Eventually this will become extreme muscle weakness leading to an induced state of paralysis - a fair few bulimics die of respiratory failure as they can not control their intercostal muscles (skeletal muscle required for the voluntary aspect of breathing control).

If electrolyte imbalances get to the stage where they affect your brain function, you can add sesures to the list too...

You will get a certain amount of recovery, provided you haven't ended up with chronic inflammation and scaring of internal structures. If your electrolytes are well and truly ****ed, you could end up with a permenant heart problem...

I cringe now, when I realise the true extent of the damage I have probably done to myself through my dalliance with the big B... DOn't let yourself get sucked in...
the esophagus (sp?) can be torn, as can the lining of your stomach, which can also become ulcerated (i think) from the excess stomach acid that could be produced. I dont know about the tongu, but it probably isnt good for it. Chest pains are clearly not a good sign, this is beyond the point where you can help yourself, you need to talk to someone.

you seem under the impression that this will be an easy thing to overcome and that you can do it alone; newsflash: neither of those things are true.
its great that you've taken a step and told people on here, that in itself takes guts, but you also need to take another step and tell someone close to you, or preferably a doctor, so that people can begin to help you overcome the problem and get back to health.
Reply 14
I've let myself get sucked in somehow, and I don't no how it started, and I dont want to do it but everytime I end up with my head down the pan, I think OK, this is the last time this is happening, bit it always happens again. How are you meant to stop?
Reply 15
Anonymous
I dont know how detrimental this will be to my health in the long term. I just dont want to jeapordise or risk my health but my weight is a huge concern.


Oesophageal cancer from all that puking up...

My advice is be a man and stop being an idiot.
Reply 16
Anonymous
I've let myself get sucked in somehow, and I don't no how it started, and I dont want to do it but everytime I end up with my head down the pan, I think OK, this is the last time this is happening, bit it always happens again. How are you meant to stop?


With medical help and good psychological support.
Reply 17
Fluffy, you seem to know loads. Do you reckon my insides are messed up? Is there any way to find out? Is the damage irreparable?

I never used to want to stop but now I do, but I am too embarrassed to go to the doc's.
what is it with people being too embarrassed to go the doctors???
thats what they're there for :rolleyes: you say you want to stop, which means you must have realised on some level how much you're damamging your body; you need to see a doctor both to begin and succeed in overcoming your problem and to deal with whatever health problems may have arisen because of it.
seriously, doctors are not scary, judgemental people; or if yours is then your very unlucky, ask to see a different one in the practice. Doctors are there to help people just like you, dont ignore the resource, get down there and get recovering :smile:
Reply 19
Anonymous
Fluffy, you seem to know loads. Do you reckon my insides are messed up? Is there any way to find out? Is the damage irreparable?

I never used to want to stop but now I do, but I am too embarrassed to go to the doc's.


I don't know loads - I used to be bullimic myself (part of my recovery from anorexia!), and weve just done a lot of this at med school...

Make an appointment and go and speak to your GP - this is probably sexist, but I would make and apppointment with a female GP, they're usually more in tune with this sort of thing. Depending on how long you've been doing this to yourself, your GP may decide to refer you for endoscoping investiagtion (where they use a camera to check your oesophagus, stomach, intestines etc..).