Not Alone
Bumping this post to include the link to Beth's blog, A Sense of Scale. Thank you for sharing your story. (For other resources in dealing with binge eating disorder, check the comments.)
According to a new study, binge eating is a more common eating disorder than anorexia and bulimia combined, and it affects more than 1 in 35 adults. 10 to 15 percent of the obese population suffers from binge eating, as did the author of this article. Binge eaters also have higher levels of anxiety and depression than those who do not binge, but are equally overweight.
"I learned where the few all-night mom-and-pop shops were located so I could pick up the evening’s supply on my way home from work. Then I would spend the night eating nonstop, first something sweet, then something salty, then back to sweet, and so on. A half-gallon of ice cream was only the beginning. I was capable of consuming 3,000 calories at a sitting. Many mornings I awakened to find partly chewed food still in my mouth."
Yet somehow, binge eating is not classified, formally, as an eating disorder. My theory is that binge eating makes you fat, and therefore far less sympathetic. People look at an anorexic woman and think how sad, she clearly needs help; whereas people look at obese women and think she is a "fat pig" who has no self control. And yet anorexia, bulimia, and binge eating are all eating disorders and all deserve support and treatment.
Thanks to Jen Wade for sending along the article.
According to a new study, binge eating is a more common eating disorder than anorexia and bulimia combined, and it affects more than 1 in 35 adults. 10 to 15 percent of the obese population suffers from binge eating, as did the author of this article. Binge eaters also have higher levels of anxiety and depression than those who do not binge, but are equally overweight.
"I learned where the few all-night mom-and-pop shops were located so I could pick up the evening’s supply on my way home from work. Then I would spend the night eating nonstop, first something sweet, then something salty, then back to sweet, and so on. A half-gallon of ice cream was only the beginning. I was capable of consuming 3,000 calories at a sitting. Many mornings I awakened to find partly chewed food still in my mouth."
Yet somehow, binge eating is not classified, formally, as an eating disorder. My theory is that binge eating makes you fat, and therefore far less sympathetic. People look at an anorexic woman and think how sad, she clearly needs help; whereas people look at obese women and think she is a "fat pig" who has no self control. And yet anorexia, bulimia, and binge eating are all eating disorders and all deserve support and treatment.
Thanks to Jen Wade for sending along the article.
Labels: binge eating, science
posted by mo pie at 10:27 AM
13 Comments:
Wow, how do you fall asleep with food in your mouth? I think I fell asleep with gum in my mouth once, but the point of gum is *not* to swallow it. I'm not trying to be judgmental, just curious.
Thanks for the clarification, Jen; I misread the article. I have to think about the second part of your post, though. If binge eating is more common than anorexia and bulimia, and if it is treatable with therapy, I wonder why it's not actually treated more.
Does that mean medical doctors can't give psychiatric referrals for overeating? Mine always referred me to Weight Watchers but never asked if I had any kind of binge eating problem. If I were super-skinny/anorexic, I suspect the approach would have been different.
I wish we could treat all of the eating disorders with compassion, without stigma. My experience with binge eating led me to feel that it's a coping mechanism (faulty as it may be) that has a lot to do with loneliness and not being connected to others, more of an emotional emptiness rather than mental illness. Just my 2 cents, I know everyone's different.
There is a really excellent blogger talking about her struggle with binge eating - she lives in London, and actually just completed a course of counseling, which helped identify her triggers and how to cope with them, and it's seemed to make a huge difference for her.
And now I'm hesitating whether to link her or not, because I'm not sure if she'd welcome the attention.
Anyway, my point is that counseling might not be the cure, but it sure as hell is helpful in identifying the problem in the first place, providing a compassionate & safe place to discuss it, and then beginning the process of figuring out a way to deal with it rationally.
Wow, this is a really complicated issue, isn't it!
I know it's "wrong" to binge eat (which I do all the time), but I would never consider seeking psychiatric help for it because...hmmm...I don't know why. One reason is that my current style of binge eating doesn't result in weight gain (though it has in the past), so I look very normal to others despite the binging. (And, no, I don't purge.) When I was obese, I wouldn't have sought treatment because I know doctors aren't particularly sympathetic toward fat people and I wouldn't put myself in a vulnerable position with regards to psychiatric/medical care when I don't absolutely have to.
Anway, just to balance the point:
I've also, at my lowest weight, exhibited signs of anorexia (extremely low body weight, contant shivering, long-term amenorrhea) that were completely missed by doctors and nurses--even when I was seeking treatment for depression--so I'd have to say that most doctors aren't paying much attention to body/eating/nutritional issues that have such obvious psychological components.
I've been researching a lot about binge eating. And Jen said it right, right now it is classified in the "Eating Disorder Not Otherwise Classified" meaning that more research is needed. One of the discusions is about treating it as a separate disease or putting inside the bulimia umbrella so binge eating would be bulimia without compensating behaviors (meaning you don't vomit or stop eating or exercise a lot after a binge)
I have a theory about binge eating treatment or lack of. Most of fat people doesn't suffer from binge eating disorder but still the general perception is that they eat too much. So I keepthinkingthat if I tell the doctor I eat too much, he will just look at me like I am razy because doh! of course you eat too much, you are fat. I think it will be hard to explain that yes I am fat because I eat too much but it's because I can't stop until I'm physically ill and I remove myself from the room. It's a lose of control and it's really scary.
I've been looking for a therapistof some kind. From what I've read the bestresults have been achieved thru cognitive therapy but to know how the doctor works is hard. Apparently they do not like to be asked. And freudians have a lot of strnge theories about eating disorders. Neurofeedback could deal with the anxiety and depression that can come with binging but it's the chicken-egg question: which got here first? the binge eating r the depression.
And this is turning into a thesis instead of a comment so i'll stop. But I am really interested in this subject so if Anne gets permission to post the blog I would love to have it.
Actually I decided last week to start a blog about binge eating in spanish (I'm mexican) because most of the info about BED is in english.
And I'll stop now
And apparently I need to use the preview button. Sorry for the typos.
Just another thing, I've found some centers that treat eating disorders but put emphasis in anorexia and bulimia and I would feel weird going to group theraphy with some girls that are sick to the point of dying. Of course BED can kill me too but it's a somewhat slow thing so most of the time I do not feel the hurry to get treatment.
I know it is an eating disorder but it's hard to accept it since a lot of fat people have managed to eat healthier and lose weight so why can I? But most of fat people do not suffer from BED so I shouldn't compare with them still I do and it's all a big debilitating cycle.
My heart goes out to those of you who are struggling with this.
Heather, to answer your question, I haven't been to OA, but I would imagine it's worth a shot. I just asked a friend of mine who used to go regularly. She said that she couldn't buy into the "higher power" aspect of it, but that having a community of people who had significant food issues and addictions (and who were in most cases obese) was helpful. Anyway, if you feel like it's not the right solution for you, you can always try something else.
Anabell, I don't know if that's a possibility for you as well. You might also be able to find a referal at nationaleatingdisorders.org
I can definitely recommend the book "Feeling Good" By David Burns, it takes you through cognitive behavioural therapy step by step. It's focus is treating depression and anxiety, but since eating disorders are often triggered by or rooted in depression and anxiety it may be helpful for someone still looking for a good behavioural therapist. There are exercises to do regularly to reduce negative thoughts and handle stress. They're really effective(I need to get back in the habit actually - I've been stressed out). Brief written exercises that is, not physical exercise.
If you are looking for a therapist to work with, specifically look for people who work with "behavioural therapy" as well as "cognitive therapy" they're close to the same thing. Counsellors really should tell you how they work and what their approach is, you might feel funny asking, but you are interviewing them for the very important job of helping you heal! I know I took a while to realize that if a counsellor wasn't really working for me, or if I didn't feel I could confide i the, then I should go see someone else.
Pasta Queen, I can believe that someone could fall asleep with food in his/her mouth. I've fallen asleep sitting bolt upright on the couch, with a bowl full of cereal and milk in my hand. I was really glad not to have dumped it all over myself and the couch when I snapped awake, too.
All you need is to be tired enough.
Beth, the blogger I was talking about earlier, has kindly agreed to let me share her link.
I have the same problem with OA, I can't work with the higher power thing but if your friends says it's still helpful I'l give it a try. I already know where the closest meeting is.
Hey, this site I read (fitsugar.com) just did a post on binge eating too, it's interesting. Check it out here.
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