To think extreme weight loss is not taken as seriously in overweight people

It’s not healthy - especially not the fizzy drinks - but I’d hazard a guess that it’s much healthier than being 8 stone overweight. That is a whole extra person her heart, lungs and joints have been carrying, and a whole extra person’s worth of fatty tissue for nasties to hide in (cancer etc.) Basically anything you can do to get that off is probably worth it.

That said, it sounds like it would be time to start eating a balanced diet.

If a 9 stone person lost 8 stone it would be an impossible disaster. If a twenty four stone person lost 8 stone it would be a good thing. Of course they are treated differently.

100% agree, I can’t believe people are saying this is fine.

I had an eating disorder for quite a while before I became under weight. I tried to get help but unfortunately I wasnt taken seriously until it became physically obvious. My hair started falling out while I was still a healthy weight. So in my experience, I think you are right to he concerned

The majority of overweight people already have eating disorders - which is why they’re overweight.

And you are absolutely correct that someone who is underweight is taken much more seriously with an ED, than someone who is overweight.

But considering that she’s losing weight, she’ll be much healthier than someone who is underweight and losing weight.

Obviously if she starts becoming underweight then she can quickly turn unhealthy.

It’s healthier to lose weight when you’re overweight, than it is if you were underweight.

Its like saying what’s more dangerous - someone gaining weight when they’re underweight or when they’re morbidly obese.

I lost 7 stone in about 7ish months on mounjaro last year. Dropped from 17 stone to 10. I was in a huge calprie deficit. Lived to tell the tale and best decision I made.

Yes, I’d find this sad and hard to watch in a friend tbh, I don’t think losing weight outweighs all else in terms of health

Dr Now is a bariatric surgeon from My 600lb Life
edit
Nowzaradan was born and raised in Tehran, Iran. In 1970, he graduated from the University of Tehran with a Doctor of Medicine degree. He then moved to the United States. He participated in the Medical Orientation Program at Saint Louis University in 1971 and completed a Rotating Surgical Internship at St. John Hospital (operated by St. John Providence Health System) in Detroit. Nowzaradan is currently affiliated with Houston Obesity Surgery in Houston, and practices at several local hospitals.[4][better source needed] He is the author of several scholarly publications on obesity and laparoscopy.[5]

eating only chicken and apples for 9 months is an eating disorder

Of course it’s an eating disorder but it’s also very well acknowledged that overweight people have eating disorders- maybe you’ve just not come across it?

I didn't say it wasn't but, equally, eating less and eating regimented to lose fat doesn't equate to an ED. Being overweight/obese and lack of self-discipline despite health issues etc can also be an ED.

Not everything is an ED.

Edited to add: they are obese specialists who perform bariatric surgery and kidney surgeon who treats obesity related kidney failure - internet helps your research and I would suggest they know more than any of us in this area

Who are these doctors?! What do they know about ED? It is quite possible to have atypical anorexia and be overweight.

Surely the weightloss isn’t the first sign of an eating disorder. Getting to the weight she was was also a sure sign of disordered eating. Why being concerned only when she’s losing and not gaining?

If you have fat to lose, you're not eating disordered by eating smaller amounts, even significantly smaller amounts, because you have excess nutrients as well as calories.

This has been confirmed by Dr Now and Dr Fung and others.

Also, experience. I went from a size 24 to a size 6/8 and I didn't die or have any ill effects. I'm not the only one with these results and experience.

Anorexia has the highest mortality rate of any mental illness, and unless you are on the verge of death the drs won't care. This is a dangerous way to eat and i hope you get the help you need

You have to hope she is just doing this to quickly get down to a reasonable weight. Hopefully she will think of healthier ways to maintain once she is there. Though from your post it sounds unlikely.

Your friend’s not the first! Have a look at this…https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angus_Barbieri%27s_fast

Well you are judging!!

She must be so much healthier now. You aren’t coming across as a supportive friend.

Was she tubed for anorexia when she was 15? Maybe you should have added it to your OP and the answers would have been different.

Does she feel like she is slipping into ED behaviours and mindset?

Such judgement my goodness thats amazing what she has achieved, if you are judging her after her weightloss how on earth did you judge her before, maybe you are a teeny bit jealous that she is getting the attention now, and chicken and apples are much better than stomache surgery and jabbing yourself with a needle, your friend sounds amazing good for her

I've done a similar weight loss... I've also made sure I maintain vitamin intake, nutrition, protein and all that positive stuff. The loss IS dramatic - but it was from a dramatic starting point - and since I work in an office full of nurses and dieticians - I'd get no end of shite if I was doing anything stupid.

This happened to me in my pregnancy. I had hyperemesis. I was sick daily for 9 months. Sometimes I kept nothing down for over 24 hours. Sometimes I vomited blood. I was losing weight, not gaining. I had ketones in my urine, not from gestational diabetes, but because I couldn’t eat.

yet the response from the medical team was surprisingly blase. I had iv hydration and anti-emetics when it got to the vomiting blood stage, but mostly they just left me to deal with it. It definitely seemed like the thought was I could afford to lose weight and the baby was still growing so what did it really matter.