Anorexia Isn’t a Thin Person Illness
What is Anorexia Nervosa?
Anorexia nervosa, also known as anorexia, is an eating disorder characterized by regular episodes of food restriction. Some medical providers believe that anorexia is characterized by low body weight. You might hear folks categorize anorexia two ways: Anorexia Nervosa and “Atypical” Anorexia Nervosa. The only real difference between the two is the size of the person’s body. “Atypical” Anorexia is just as serious as anorexia. Not only is it incredibly harmful to call anorexia in higher weight bodies “atypical”, but it is also inaccurate by its name. Research shows us that “Atypical” Anorexia is actually far more common than anorexia in a low weight body. Calling anorexia in a higher weight body “atypical” often results in those who are suffering being dismissed, minimized, or encouraged to engage in their eating disorder behaviors. This harmful advice is often given when individuals are vulnerably seeking medical care and support. The perspective that anorexia is to be categorized by body size is incredibly dangerous to folks in all bodies. At Stark Therapy Group, we want to make it clear that ANY individual can have anorexia, regardless of their body size. We emphatically reject the idea that anorexia is based on body size. Additionally, internalized weight stigma can result in an individual minimizing or dismissing their own eating disorder.
In addition to restriction, someone with anorexia may also engage in purging or bingeing behaviors. Purging can include, but is not limited to self-induced vomiting, excessive exercise, laxative use, and/or misuse of insulin. Bingeing involves the consumption of large quantities of food in a small period of time. These episodes are typically followed by feelings of shame, guilt, or physical pain/sickness.
Who develops anorexia?
Anorexia impacts folks of all ages, genders, body sizes (see the first paragraph!), and racial and socioeconomic backgrounds. Despite what society says, you cannot tell that someone has an eating disorder by looking at them. And this includes anorexia. The narrative that we can see an eating disorder is misinformed and further fuels harmful biases and assumptions that actually increase the risk of developing an eating disorder.
What are some medical complications of anorexia?
Medical complications include, but are not limited to, gastrointestinal problems, nutrient imbalances and deficiencies, dehydration, electrolyte imbalances, esophageal issues, dental issues, and premature death. Evaluation by a medical provider is a necessary part of the assessment and treatment process.
What are the symptoms of Anorexia Nervosa?
Folks battling anorexia don’t necessarily have all symptoms. Each person with an eating disorder presents with unique challenges. These are some of the most common symptoms of this disorder:
Restriction, which includes physically or mentally restricting specific food(s) and/or food groups. These include dieting and/or yo-yo dieting, fasting, counting/limiting calories, eating less to make up for something else you ate, skipping a meal, making yourself drink water when you’re feeling hungry, telling yourself you “can’t keep x, y, or z in the house,” avoiding certain foods because you “don’t have control around them,” or labeling foods as “good” or “bad,” “healthy” or “unhealthy,” “clean” or “junk” (tying any sort of morality onto food, eating habits, or yourself for eating specific foods).
Bingeing, which involves the consumption of large quantities of food in a small period of time that may result in feeling physically sick and uncomfortably full. People who engage in binging behaviors report feeling like they are unable to stop eating, are losing control, or are disconnected to the eating experience.
Purging, which involves excessive exercise, self-induced vomiting, laxative use, and/or misuse of insulin.
Feeling overwhelmed, distressed, or fearful of gaining weight.
Experiencing shame about your body size.
Experiencing high levels of anxiety about clothes shopping or shame related to your clothing size.
Hiding foods to eat later when other people are not around, which is typically rooted in shame and/or anxiety.
Avoiding eating with others or limiting food consumption in the presence of others, which is typically rooted in shame and/or anxiety.
Rapid and/or drastic weight loss, in any size body.
Feeling socially isolated.
Feelings of shame and guilt related to yourself, your body, and the food you eat.
How do you treat Anorexia?
Anorexia can be treated with the support of a team of providers including a Health at Every Size (HAES) aligned eating disorder therapist, an Intuitive Eating and HAES aligned registered dietitian, psychiatrist, and medical doctor. Rather than focusing on intentional weight loss through different behaviors, a HAES framework involves supporting individuals with engaging in health promoting behaviors. Treatment also includes assessing any barriers to engaging in health promoting behaviors including but not limited to symptoms of weight stigma, trauma, depression, anxiety and life stressors. Group therapy can be a helpful tool for those in recovery from Anorexia. When in a group therapy setting, clients not only get the support of an eating disorder therapist but they also receive peer support. Peer support can help those battling eating disorders feel less alone.
But is it restriction if I am just focused on being “health conscious?”
So glad you’re curious about this! Unfortunately, restriction is normalized and even praised in our society due to outdated medical practices, widespread misinformation, weight stigma, and racism. Just because something is normalized doesn’t make it harmless.
Let’s take a closer look at the word “restriction.”
If you’ve ever been on a website purchasing tickets to an event and heard the term “restricted view,” you probably know that purchasing those specific tickets would limit your view in some way. These tickets are less than ideal and don’t typically allow for a fully immersive experience. When we fixate on societal messages with a restricted view, we can lose connection to ourselves and lose sight of the big picture (aka the fully immersive experience). You deserve more.
The connection here to food is that when we believe we need to control our food in some way by “eating healthy”, we are looking at our health, our bodies, and oftentimes our worth, with a restricted view. There’s so much more to health than food. There’s so much more to you than your health than what you eat and how you move your body. In fact, living with “health” is a privilege that many folks aren’t given. Here’s the deal: “restriction” in the context of food can take away from not only your life experiences of connectedness, joy, self-understanding, but also counterintuitively, health.
Treatment of anorexia involves deepening your understanding of the role eating disorder behaviors play in your life, exploring any unmet emotional needs, and strengthening your relationship with yourself. It involves compassion, curiosity, and introspection. We want to support you in getting those VIP tickets to your life, instead of the restricted view.
But wait…what about my health?
Even after unpacking everything mentioned above, sometimes people in recovery are still left with the question of “What about my health?” With eating disorder recovery, it will be recommended that you ditch dieting once and for all and allow yourself permission to eat all foods. Yes, you heard that correctly. All foods. These concepts can be hard to sit with, especially with a society so deeply entrenched in diet culture and the pursuit of thinness. As you navigate recovery, remember that health is a complex interplay of physical, mental, and emotional well-being. Think mind-body connection. It is important for us to challenge the narrative of morality being tied to health. Here’s what I mean — you aren’t “bad” if you have medical conditions or health concerns; just as you aren’t “good” if you are free of all health concerns.
Why Stark Therapy Group?
Our philosophy at STG is to look at the big picture, which includes learning more about your unique symptoms, challenges, and life experiences and how they collectively impact you. Diagnoses are used for billing and coding purposes. You don’t belong in a box, and we’re not interested in putting you there. From our perspective, it’s less about your diagnosis, weight, and behaviors, and more about your relationship with yourself. Your relationship with yourself impacts what you do and how you relate to other people and areas of life (like food, movement, money, shopping, substances, etc.). At Stark Therapy Group, our focus is on supporting YOU as a human, prioritizing your well-being with a holistic approach, treating your symptoms as a team, and guiding you in your journey to healing and connectedness within yourself.
Whether you join us in online therapy or in person therapy, we’re passionate about providing individualized, inclusive care because you’re unique and what works for someone else may not work for you. Our therapists work on building a strong therapeutic relationship with you, getting to know you and your specific concerns, providing you with compassionate and quality care, and walking alongside you on your path to healing. If you feel anxious about reaching out for help, that’s okay. We welcome you and would love to hear from you! It can be hard to ask for help and we’re happy you found us.
Offering In-Person Therapy in Tustin, California and virtual therapy to folks throughout all of California.
