A morsel of food may appear little to the casual observer but to an anorexic it may represent drastic or unwanted weight gain.
Staying thin may become more important than staying
healthy. This is one of the reasons many women with serious cases of anorexia must be checked into a specialized clinic or hospital. They simply don’t want to eat.
Excessive exercising, laxatives, diet pills or other drugs and even cigarette smoking have been used to curtail a woman’s appetite.
The anorexic becomes obsessed with her starvation routine; oftentimes not seeing the starving body that she inhabits.
Some people claim that by stating these beliefs a person is
somehow supporting ‘pro-anorexia’ behaviour. I’m not doing that.
You may have a relative or friend who has this illness. We need to understand how anorexics think and behave in order to help them.
Below is what is commonly referred to as the ten thin
commandments:
-If you aren’t thin, you aren’t attractive.
-Being thin is more important than being healthy.
-You must buy clothes, cut your hair, take laxatives,
starve yourself do anything to make yourself look thinner.
-Thou shall not eat without feeling guilty.
-Thou shall not eat fattening food without punishing
oneself afterward.
-Thou shall count calories and restrict intake accordingly.
-What the scale says is the most important thing.
-Losing weight is {always} good; gaining weight is {always}
bad.
-You can never be too thin.
-Being thin and not eating are signs of true will power and
success.
Other issues related to anorexia include:
-An abnormal preoccupation with wanting to be thin.
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-The prospect of gaining any weight is terrifying.
-Losing weight becomes more important than anything else.
-The anorexic is likely a perfectionist.
-Unhealthy or unstable family environment.
-Has a sibling or close family member with anorexia.
-The physical self-image becomes grossly distorted. Extreme thinness may be interpreted as being overweight hence more weight loss is needed.
-A deep-strong refusal to maintain a normal body weight.
-There’s always a need to lose more weight.
-Denial of having a problem.
-A feeling of control (controlling how much is eaten or not
eaten).
-Mealtime is difficult and anxiety evoking.
-Food is hidden; made to appear that she has eaten.
-Self esteem is determined by weight.
-Unpredictable mood swings.
-Dieting at any and all costs.
-An obsession with identifying foods as good or bad
(excessive counting of calories, reading labels, nutrition content).
-Practicing unusual eating rituals.
-Social functions are seriously hampered.
-Starvation is an escape from another deeper problem/s.
-The anorexic must understand that she’s not alone.
-Family and friends notice that the anorexic has lost
considerable weight and appears sickly.
-There’s good help out there; it’s best to get it sooner rather than later.
After getting help an anorexic should strive to eat
healthily, deal with her problems in healthy and constructive ways, and understand that weight loss alone or being thin isn’t the magical key to being happy.
Anyone who suspects that he/she has an eating disorder
should seek immediate help. The ten thin commandments should not be a diagnosis of any sort. Only an individual who’s licensed and qualified to diagnose anorexia should be sought.
Over 90 percent of anorexics are females; most are
Caucasians in the middle or upper economic class. Many of these females are in their teens, but there has been a recent disturbing trend that has seen the gradual inclusion of children as anorexics.
Being thin may be strongly recommended or required in
certain
occupations;
actors,
airline
attendants,
runners,
dancers, ballerinas, gymnasts, public relations personnel,
culture, etc.
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The culture, especially the media has much to do with the belief that thin women are beautiful; fat or even full or pudgy women are ugly.
In parts of Africa very fat women with large breasts
(often-times sagging) are still perceived as being beautiful.
In the Arab countries persons who are seniors can attest that fat, full large-breasted women were sought after. Thin women were considered less attractive, especially if they had small breasts.
Today, however even a casual observer will notice that
there is a higher percentage of thinner Arab women, especially those who move to the west.
An elderly Arab woman told me many years ago ‘western women
don’t have breasts’.
Several years before the writing of this book a young
Kuwaiti woman who was studying in Montreal died because she’d been using diet pills. She’d come from her native country, was likely shocked to see how beautiful and slim many of her classmates and other females in the city were.
She probably didn’t know or understand the possible dangers
of using diet pills and going on sudden shocking diets.
The ‘thin culture’ of the west must change. Beauty is
really below the skin. Personality needs to be placed higher up on the beauty scale.
Many teen girls are literally starving themselves to hit that special target ‘size zero’. Required vitamins, minerals and protein are greatly diminished or removed altogether to attain a size zero.
There are two main types of anorexia:
-The Restrictive Type involves weight loss through drastic dieting, excessive fasting and excessive exercising.
-The Purging Type involves weight loss through vomiting,
diuretics, laxatives or other medications.
Inducing vomiting on a regular basis can cause decay in teeth. Worse yet, internal injuries like a fatal stomach rupture may ensue. Furthermore, starving and then binging will have serious consequences on a person’s metabolism; it will also shock the body. Although rare, it can be fatal.
A partial list of anorexia symptoms include but are not limited to the following:
-Energy loss
-Irritability
-Bloating
-Constipation
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-Tooth and gum problems and decay.
-Noxious breath
-Inhibited problem solving.
-Memory loss
-Dry hardened feces that is difficult to excrete.
-Emergence of lanugos (fine dry hair growth noticeable in places where hair wasn’t present before anorexia); lanugos is the body’s way of insulating itself.
-Dizziness and fainting spells.
-Headaches
-Yellowish-coloured skin
-Dry skin
-Fine brittle nails
Anorexia nervosa can lead to lifelong illness, disability, coma and even death. Self-starvation eventually causes the body to eat up reserves of muscle tissue and more. The body is trying to compensate by finding another source of energy.
The underlying cause of the eating disorder must be
tackled, otherwise, the eating regimen may improve but the deep-
seated problem may be manifested in another way.
In very serious cases of anorexia the teen girl or woman will have to be hospitalized; an IV drip is a lifesaver.
Bulimia nervosa, commonly referred to as bulimia is a type of eating disorder in which the person eats unusually large quantities of food in a shorter period of time than normal (binging) and afterwards rids his/her food by inducing a vomiting episode or by using laxatives (any medication that speeds the movement of food through the body); in this case the intent is to prevent weight gain). This unnatural ridding of food is called purging.
A big problem with bulimics is that they cannot normally control the quantities of eaten while binging; all they need is the availability of food and time to eat it.
Aside from purging bulimics may exercise beyond the normal level that their body can take or they may go through periods of eating little or even fasting. Whether eating or fasting, there appears to be a lack of real self-control.
Like anorexia, bulimia is often a symptom of a deep
underlying problem. This problem must be diagnosed and treated, hopefully cured, before real security can occur. Otherwise, even if the eating disorder is controlled the underlying problem or problems may manifest themselves in new, even more dangerous symptoms.
Many bulimics, though, appear normal on the outside (normal
weight
category
and
may
appear
healthy),
but
weight
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consciousness, lack of self-control, and an obsession with their body shape are lingering problems.
Binging may cause the following:
-Tooth decay-Calluses on the knuckles used by thèbinging
hand’.
-Fatal stomach rupture or other internal complication
during and/or after binging.
-Chronic or frequent heartburn; other stomach problems may ensue.
-Noxious breath
-Choking or choking to death on vomit. Because purging is often done alone, there may be no one nearby to perform CPR or to call 911. Furthermore, the event can be aggravated if none of the people in the vicinity know how to handle the emergency.
Chocking to death can occur quite quickly; calling 911 and the arrival of the paramedics takes time regardless of how soon or fast action is taken.
-Injury to the heart and other body organs including the brain.
-Biochemistry of the person can be altered.
-No benefits to this behaviour.
-Pregnant women who purge may cause serious injury to
themselves and to their foetus or premature birth (underweight).
-Post
pregnancy
is
another
potential
problem.
It’s
imperative for every new mother to be healthy and to be able to nurse her child. Eating disorders have no place during this period.
Up to 90 percent of bulimics are females, not necessarily all adults though. Many are teens and therès a worrying trend in which younger girls and some boys are binging.
The culture of much of the western world in particular
North America values thinness for males and females but with a considerably stronger emphasis on females. Seven to eight million people are believed to suffer from eating disorders in the United States alone.
The attainable weight and figure is simply impossible or outright dangerous for most women to attain. Some kind of starvation, semi-starvation or cigarette smoking or over-emphasis on artificial sweeteners or diet pills is often sought.
In worse case scenarios, a dangerous misuse of diet pills and in the
case
of
some
fashion
models
hard
drugs
occurs.
For those women and girls who want to look like the
beautiful princesses on the covers of magazines, the internet, on posters, in books and on television, many of these women are suffering immensely. Even if they don`t have an eating disorder, 104
but quite a few do. It takes much work and deprivation to look like the so-called perfect model or actress. Regarding magazine covers, pictures and other images, computer work and touch-ups, special makeup designers, lighting, etc. are used to make the model appear very attractive and perfect.
Remember one more thing; no beautiful woman can look like
‘her advertised image’ 24-7. Perhaps many photos and takes are taken; the image has to be perfect as is the case with the pose, lighting, and if applicable sweat. Many photos and images are discarded.
Any woman that’s in the beauty spotlight has a tough act to
follow. There are many other girls who want to take over her position; as she ages it’ll become more and more difficult to attain the needed look. The vast majority of fashion models are unceremoniously booted out sooner or later; the younger up and coming models usually couldn`t care less about the ousted ones.
Some of the people running the fashion industry couldn`t care less if a model has to sniff cocaine, use heroin or whatever, to continue working. The industry’s purpose is to flash beautiful, incredibly thin-looking females. Often-times their breasts can’t be large as this is a sign of fatness. Some of these fashion models have flattish breasts. They don’t need a bra to hold them up; there’s nothing there.
Even among non-models therès a lot of competition between women. They exercise, keep fit, reduce their calorie intake to look good maybe to men, but often times they`re in competition with other women. If you’re a young beautiful woman, just wait until you begin to age.
I personally know a woman who I initially met when she was deep into middle age (late 1980s); still beautiful but
definitely past her peek. She relied on her beauty to flirt with many men. I don`t know what else she did with them; she was married.
A few years later, her husband divorced her. Year after year, it became more and more difficult for her to attract men.
Then she hit the senior citizen cohort.
I began to see her standing around in busy walkways chain smoking, unable to get a single smile from one man. Even the most beautiful woman or handsomest man will age, unless he or she dies prematurely. Soon, wrinkles will appear, the body begins to sag memory begins to laps and so forth. Diet and working out can only do so much. Aging is irreversible.
The following can have an influence on bulimia rates:
-The particular culture.
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-Close family member/s who have an eating disorder;
sometimes very close friends are included (ex. if you hang out with anorexics and bulimics or people who are obsessed with their bodies, beauty or food).
-Physical,
psychological
and/or
sexual
abuse
during
childhood.
-A sudden grand emotional or physical trauma.
-Losing control of your life or your body, or the
perception thereof.
-Stress in school especially at the collegiate level has been noted as a culprit.
-Pre-existing psychological or psychiatric illness.
-Low self-esteem.
-An abnormal fear of getting fat.
-Genes, Neurochemistry, biology
Additional signs of a bulimic person include the following:
-Overuse of diet pills and diuretics.
-Excessive
exercising,
beyond
the
person`s
natural
capacity.
-Frequent bowel movements following the use of medications for the purpose thereof.
-Frequent trips to the restroom; especially during meals
and right after meals on a regular basis.
-The face may appear swollen or puffy.
-Swollen salivary glands.
-Broken blood vessels in the eyes caused by intense
grimacing, squirming of the face and pressure caused by induced vomiting.
-Personality disorder, noticeable mood swings.
-Social relationships may be seriously hampered.
-Drug abuse
Binging and purging may occur every few days or in more serious cases two or more times daily; the sudden onset of additional stress can cause an upsurge. If purging and binging is done less often, the acts are often well-planned; the girl or woman thinks about the act very deeply.
Food may be hoarded or stolen. In extreme cases shoplifting
of food may also occur.
As with any other serious eating disorder, if you suspect that you have a problem please seek help immediately. There are professionals out there whòll care about you and can help you cope with your problem.
If you have a family member or a friend who you suspect of having an eating disorder, be calm and polite; speak to him or 106
her about your suspicions. Don`t take any chances, extreme danger for this person may be lurking in the shadows. The person you care about may actually need and want to talk to someone about his/her problem; indeed you may be her number one choice.
Don`t belittle or blame the person. Understand that
treating and curing eating disorders takes much dedication and work. Tell her that you care and want the best for her.
If a family member or friend admits to having a problem, don`t try to treat or diagnose it. Seek professional help.
Eating disorders can affect young girls in grade school, sometimes as young as eight or nine, and perhaps younger still.
There’s something terribly wrong here. Large scale action must be taken before this problem worsens.
At the other end of the scale is obesity. Obesity is tough for anyone.
A recent study by Utah State University found that girls who are obese are likely to endure lifelong lower income, lower socioeconomic status and are less likely to earn a bachelors degree than their non-obese counterparts.
Changing or altering the way obese people are treated will take much work. It should begin in grade. Fatness is disliked, but obesity is mocked and disrespected at the very least.
Better and healthier diets for kids are a good start, but the fact is some people are genetically predisposed to be obese.
They have more fat cells than most people and their metabolism may be considerably slower.
Obesity is increasing in the United States. It’s worse for females because they have less muscle mass than men and naturally have more fat deposits on their chests, buttocks and thighs. Not to mention the weight gain resulting from pregnancy.
Furthermore, society’s ‘beauty standard’ though used on both sexes is more intense for females. There’s more pressure for a girl or a woman to look beautiful.
Obese women are often rejected for jobs based on their
appearance.
The
interviewer
may
not
personally
have
any
prejudices of his or her own, however any front desk or public service job requires looking presentable.
A study conducted by the University of Texas at Austin
found obese girls are only half as likely to attend college as non-obese girls.
If obesity is uncommon in the high school the obese girl attended the likelihood of attending college drops below the 50
percent mark.
Obese girls are more likely to suffer from medical and
psychological conditions than their non-obese counterparts. The likelihood of abusing alcohol, drugs, contemplating suicide and suffering from low self-esteem are also heightened. Worse yet, 107
regardless of the obese female’s age, she’ll be teased and mocked in public; that’s a fact.
But in all fairness, let’s not blame all of this on just being obese. Society as a whole can be really ruthless to obese people. Being teased and mocked at is often another excuse to eat more junk food.
Obese boys are more likely to be bullied. However, in
numerous studies obese girls have been shown to be more likely to become bullies.
A recent study conducted by Queen’s University published in
the European Journal of Obesity found that obese girls were three times more likely to be bullies (non-physical bullying) than their non-obese peers.
Several years ago I saw an obese woman walking in the mall.
With every single step she took she panted heavily. Furthermore, she was sweating profusely. But what shocked me the most is the number of people that were frowning, glaring staring at her.
Thankfully, the obese woman was unaware of what was
happening around her; or maybe she was good at pretending that she wasn’t aware; practice makes perfect.
Obesity affects females more than males regarding college attendance. Body image, though tough on both sexes is more important for girls.
Sometimes, obesity can become so profound the behaviour of the person can be saddening. Oftentimes, it can be extremely tough to carry all that extra weight.
While living in the dorms during my school years in Des Moines I knew of a certain undergrad student, a very obese woman who was so lazy she drove from the women’s dormitory to the men’s. The two building were almost beside each other. I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t been a resident of the dorms.
But this woman, as told to me by a fellow student who was from her hometown, she’d apparently lost 60 lbs. just before coming to school.
One day, while the woman was lying down on her friend’s dorm room bed she got the urge to pee. She was too lazy to get up and go to the restroom, which was down the hall.
The woman peed in her underwear and pants while she was still lying on her friend’s bed. Wow, I don’t know what to say.
Further back, during my high school days I remember some of
townies (NOT ME!) used to call this one obese girl and her obese friend ‘Russian Tank’ and ‘German Tank’.
Referring back to the woman who urinated on her underwear and pants, I remember a guy who made reference to this girl; he put all the blame on her inability to control her eating; ‘all she has to do is stop eating junk food’! He said to me.
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This guy had a lightning-fast metabolism. I used to see him
eating junk foods like Hostess snacks, candy bars, chips, pizza, burgers, and more. While he made his statement to me regarding the woman he was munching on a Hostess snack, and he had the rest of the carton beside him, like umm he was going to eat the whole box’s worth. He couldn’t see the hypocrisy of his talk.
I’m almost certain that he didn’t have the will power to stop eating junk food. Most of us who have plenty of food to eat (including myself) fall into this category. Let’s be honest, most junk food tastes great.
When a girl or a woman deliberately cuts herself with a sharp object piercing the skin and resulting in noticeable cuts or abrasions that bleed, it’s called self cutting or cutting for short. The person is referred to as a cutter.
Cutting is a form of self-abuse. The vast majority of
cutters are female, usually beginning their cutting in their early or mid-teens. Some girls, especially those who don’t seek help continue cutting into adulthood. Some cutters are addicted.
Cutting may be done on the arms, forearms, wrists, legs or abdominal area. Although there are other forms of self-abuse like burning oneself with a lit cigarette or matches cutting oneself is the most common form of self-abuse.
The cuts and abrasions usually leave lifelong scars.
Cutters generally hide their cuts by wearing long-sleeved shirts and long pants. They’re secretive about their ritual.
Cutting is not th