I Think I Have an Eating Disorder and Want to Stop
An eating disorder is a life threatening condition that often requires professional assistance and support to overcome. If you think you have an eating disorder it is critical that you seek out the help and support you need to overcome your condition.
Beating an eating disorder can prove very rewarding and open new avenues of opportunity you never dreamed of. You will no longer be tied down by food and your emotional as well as physical health and well being will improve substantially. Often the first step to improving your health is to understand the causes of eating disorders.
HOW DO I KNOW I HAVE AN EATING DISORDER?
There are many signs and symptoms that are indicative of an eating disorder.
Consider asking yourself the following questions:
- Do you obsess about food and eating?
- Do you deny yourself food at times even when you feel hungry?
- Do you often withdraw from social activities involving eating?
- Do you often feel fat even if you are not fat or overweight?
- Do you exercise excessively after meals or to the point of pain or injury?
- Do you purge (vomit) after eating?
- Do you regularly use laxatives or diuretics to control your weight?
- Do you often eat large volumes of food uncontrollably?
If you answered yes to one or more of these questions, you may have an eating disorder.
ANOREXIA AND BULIMIA
Anorexia is a type of eating disorder that is often characterized by starving oneself thin. People who are anorexic often do not allow themselves to eat more than 500 or less calories per day.
Bulimics tend to eat large quantities of food and then purge them, through vomiting or laxative use.
Both anorexics and bulimics may exercise excessively. There are other types of eating disorders as well including binge eating disorder where you consume large quantities of food over and over again but don’t necessarily purge.
WHERE TO GO FOR HELP
If you feel you may have an eating disorder it is vital that you seek help. Recognizing that you may have a problem is actually the first step toward recovery.
The good news is you can eat a healthy and well balanced diet that doesn’t require that you follow a strict or rigid routine. A flexible diet will help you remain fit and a normal weight. A nutritionist or dietician can help you develop a healthy and well balanced meal plan that is easy to follow and will help boost your spirits.
Eating disorders often result from distorted thinking about yourself, your body image and the way others perceive you. Part of recovering from an eating disorder requires that you recognize that your body isn’t related to your identity and that the two are actually separate. You may need professional help distinguishing between the two and identifying the triggers that are causing you to engage in distorted eating patterns.
Many eating disorders are simply a way to mask your emotional pain. If you have an eating disorder, don’t keep it a secret. Talk to friends or family members or seek assistance from your healthcare provider or an online support community. There are numerous groups online that can help you work through your emotional pain and start your journey toward healing.
S.A. Smith is a freelance writer, correspondent, and contributing editor of the Anorexia Bulimia Help resource site which publishes helpful news, tips, and articles for families and individuals coping with anorexia, bulimia, or other eating disorders.
Vitamin D and Lack of Sunshine
Vitamin D and sunshine go together. Among other ailments, a D deficiency increases the risk of “adult rickets” or osteomalacia, a painful bone disease that can lead to muscle weakness, bone pain and bone fracture.
Osteomalacia, according to Dr. Michael Holick, director of the Vitamin D, Skin and Bone Research Laboratory at Boston University, is often misdiagnosed as arthritis or fibromyalgia. Many patients with aching bones and muscles, Dr. Holick points out, are often simply suffering from a lack of D vitamins.
Insufficient sun exposure and D deficiencies are also linked to multiple sclerosis, congestive heart failure, high blood pressure and some cancers, including non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL). A recent study published in the International Journal of Cancer shows that people with the highest sun exposure had 35% less NHL.
Scientists have also known for some time that Caucasians, when compared to darker skinned ethnic groups worldwide, have a much lower diabetes 2 risk. They believe this is due to white skin’s greater sensitivity to sun exposure. A recent study, for example, showed that people with white skin and a high D vitamin level had one quarter the risk of diabetes than those with low levels.
Ten minutes to as much as an hour and a half of sunlight two or three times a week for darker skinned people should be sufficient to produce adequate vitamin D. The best food sources of D are dairy products, organ meats (liver), egg yolks, cod liver oil and seafood, particularly halibut, salmon and tuna.
Since the 1930’s, authorities have recommended limiting D vitamin intake to less than 2,000 I.U. a day. But recent studies show that at least 5,000 I.U. and up to 10,000 I.U. a day are safe and healthy. “It’s virtually impossible to get that much from diet,” Dr. Holick says. “And there’s never been a reported case of D toxicity because of too much sun.”
So, if you’re stuck inside all day, have dark skin or live north of Atlanta or Los Angeles, where there’s just not enough sunlight from November through February, be sure to supplement your diet with vitamin D. Dr. Holick recommends at least 1,000 I.U. daily. Typical multiple vitamin supplements usually have only about 400 I.U.’s.
Moss Greene makes it easy for you to look and feel better. Visit her site at http://nutrition.bellaonline.com to learn the simple things you can do for yourself right now. Be sure to subscribe to her free newsletter – you don’t want to miss a thing!
Lessons for Life TOBACCO, ALCOHOL, & DRUGS
“Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.” 1 Cor. 3: 16-17
Purpose: Our bodies will give out at some point in time and we will die. There is no reason to hasten the process by using chemicals and substances that damage our bodies. These substances not only shorten life, they can make life miserable. Too many of us suffer as the result of using tobacco, alcohol, and drugs.
The Lesson
I don’t have to tell you that hundreds of thousands die every year due to the intake of drugs, alcohol, and tobacco. The statistics are on the Internet for anyone to view.
Hundreds of agencies monitor the health of folks like you and me for the effects of drug or tobacco abuse.
Millions are admitted into hospital emergency rooms across our globe due to substance abuse. Ten to one you know someone who has been treated for such ailments.
The Sad Thing is: ALL THE TRAUMA AND DEATH OF SUBSTANCE ABUSE IS PREVENTABLE!
In my younger days I was involved with organizations dealing with youth. Have you ever seen the change in a child that has been hooked on drugs? A happy, industrious student turns into a moody, slovenly, lazy individual who has lost all traces of morals and all desire to perform daily routines. They are what we call “Out of It!” Hundreds of organizations deal with such youth on a daily basis, helping them to shake off the drug demons.
One lad I worked with had gone through a terrible surge of drug addiction. I was able to work with him. He gave up drugs and helped me change the direction of other youth. He grew up to be a fine young man, giving much service to his church and friends.
When I was a teenager, I would stand on the street corner and watch for the bus to arrive a block away. When it did, I started walking up the block. I knew that my adult friend, Louis, would need help getting home because he probably was drinking that day. I didn’t want him to trip and fall and bash in his nose or gash his head. As I mentioned, alcohol was his problem. Louis overcome his alcoholism with time. I use to shovel the snow off his walks. One day I got home from school too late. Louis shoveled the walks and died of a heart attach. He was my dear friend but I was glad to see him go “dead sober.”
In Pennslyvania, I was called to the bedside of a man dying of lung failure. He had quit smoking before he died. We had become good friends and I hated to see him go. All his son and I could do was give him a blessing and say goodbye. But he knew what had to be done. He had to quit smoking. It was just that he quit too late.
Find Professional Help
I can’t help you with an addiction problem that may concern you. I can’t give counsel to you or the person that needs it. Not sitting here at my computer. But there are many sources for help probably right in your community. Give a call to the court house or to a church or to a doctor. Call the police or the hospital. And don’t forget you can find local information on the Internet. You may have to pay for private counseling, but that may me the way for you to go. But, get counseling!
Copyright©2005 John Taylor Jones, Ph.D.
John T. Jones, Ph.D. (tjbooks@hotmail.com)is a retired R&D engineer and VP of a Fortune 500 company. He is author of detective & western novels, nonfiction (business, scientific, engineering), poetry, etc. Former editor of international trade magazine.
More info: http://www.tjbooks.com
Business web site: http://www.bookfindhelp.com (wealth-success books / flagpoles)