To think obesity is an eating disorder? *POSSIBLE TRIGGER WARNING*

[pinkliquorice]

I don't want this to be triggering or offensive in anyway. If you are stuggleing with your weight or an eating disorder and are likely to be triggered by these discussions please dont read on.

Do you consider obesity to be an eating disorder in the same way as anorexia for example? AIBU to suggest this? Me and my partner have been discussing it all evening

Extra info:
(Being out of the healthy BMI range on either sides is obviously really dangerous and can have numerous negative effects on health and can even result in death.
But why as a society do we view being dangerously overweight any different to being dangerously underweight?
I have struggled with anorexia and bulimia on and off since I was 13 and when I have been severly underweight I have been given support and sympathy not judgement and that is the only reason why I am now better.
When my weight has fallen below a certain mark I have been hospitalised and given treatment to help me return to a healthy BMI, but for someone over the healthy BMI range they are not given the same treatment.
Body positivity is extremely important to me, and everyone no matter their weight deserves to be happy and respected but is there not an opposite to the Pro-Ana movement?
If someone commented on me being underweight and told me I needed to eat, I would go into panic and restict even more as controlling and reducing my weight and food consumption was my comfort, I was addicted to not eating and that took my pain away.
Surely obesity is the exact opposite of this, is it not the case that often when someone is overweight, they eat for comfort and if someone tells them they are overweight and they need to eat less that they eat more to take the pain away.)

Again, I know this is a really sensitive subject and I dont want to upset or cause offence to anyone.

Personally I think there is bugger all help on the NHS for obesity. Well not in my case anyway.
I had an issue where I was likely to require surgery when my BMI was late 30's. I was told that the hospital would have an issue with my BMI so I asked for help. I was told I didn't qualify!
So I lost a little weight but was refused surgery till I lost alot more. I opted for a VLCD as I was desperate. I lost enough weight to keep the surgeon happy but had two episodes of abdo pain in that period. Still don't know why.
A year later I have regained the weight. Still no offer of help or support.
However my cholesterol is brilliant and my BP has come down as I now exercise alot. Hoping weight loss will follow.

It absolutely can be. My mums binge eating got so bad she joined a group similar to Alcoholics Anonymous to try to deal with her issue. It follows the same 12 step program. (It didn’t work) She has a terrible relationship with food and I do consider her to have an eating disorder. I think any unhealthy relationship with food is an eating disorder. She will go through stages of starving herself for a few days at a time and then binge for the rest of the week. It’s really horrible to watch her do this to herself. She told me she’s eaten out of the bin on several occasions because she’s chucked something out so she won’t be tempted to it it and then eats it anyway.

I think there is a tendency to be overweight in the West because of a lack of exercise. If you eat more calories than you burn off, you will put on weight. So obviously that isn’t an eating disorder.

But obviously it can be an eating disorder, or at least connected to MH issues. That’s how it is for me, I’ve been a binger and purger for all my adult life, comfort eating and then starving myself. But dieting on its own won’t help as I go back to comfort eating when I’m low and put the weight on again. I think there are a lot of people like me around.

I’m currently slightly overweight having lost a lot earlier this year (from starving myself and purging). For the moment I’m not worrying about it.

irritateduser I feel much the same as you did. Hoping I can break this destructive cycle one day. I’ve got lots of hobby stuff to do but I have depression just now and can’t concentrate on anything. Cue more mindless eating.

Yes it is a mental health problem as with any addiction, an ED can cover obesity or anorexia or binge purge etc etc. These disorders have difficulties underlying them such as depression, anxiety and OCD. The outlet for these problems are often expressed with addictive behaviours. The NHS offer short term therapies to help with these behaviours but this is often because the cost is obviously less than longer term therapies, but I would try whatever is offered because you never know what will work for you.

My person experience of my weight and its related to childhood poverty and hunger.

I'm fat, don't really care what people think about this. My body, life and I'm healthier than you'd imagine.

anyway, I grew up in a nasty violent home where money went on booze and cigarettes not decent food. To the extent half a can of soup - tomato or chicken cheap brand if you're interested - and a slice of bread was considered a 'good' meal. We only had fruit 1 day a week. Often a bad if apples or bananas. Beans on toast was a regular occurrence and nasty packet cheese sauces over pasta. The only time I had a decent meal was at school due to free school meals or at my grandparents.

first saturday job I ever had the money was spent on food more than anything.

This had created an unhealthy relationship with food for me. When I first left home at 16 I had more money and could actually buy proper meals (but didn't know how to cook) so I ate thinking I wasn't going to have another meal that day even though I would. This was learned behaviour from home. The constant hunger is ever present and I learned to eat everything because growing up there would be nothing else to eat.

fast forward 16 years I am finally getting to grips with the unhealthy relationship I have with food I have been battling for 16 years. Every dip into poverty, I am a carer atm, knocks back my progress because that survival mindset kicks back in and I eat all my food even if I am not hungry.

the Only way I have managed to 'cope' with this is to skip breakfast and I eat a piece of fruit instead with a cuppa.

If I was treated earlier and not told it was lack of self control and self esteem rather than realising my food issues are inextricably tied to my childhood abuse, just like anorexia and bulimia can be tied to abuse, I wouldn't be the size I am now. Its only in the last year of giving in to the fact I have this 'poverty' mindset with food and skipping meals that Im shifting the weight at last a good understanding GP has helped enormously too.

The reasons for Obesity are just as complex as they are for Anorexia and bulimia and other eating disorders. Bulimics and overeaters probably share some common ground with the reasons for their binge eating too.

I've been dealing with this 16 years and its not about being lazy, fuck the people who tell me it is. I walk 4+miles every day and get 3x a week exercise in. Its not about lack of self control or not knowing how to cook or not knowing how to shop. Trust me I can do all of those the thing I couldn't control is the abuse, poverty and the hunger I felt as a child.

I think it depends.

Anorexia is not the same as being underweight - it’s just one part of the condition - and bulimics are often a normal weight.

Anorexia is a very dangerous condition and has the highest mortality of any psychiatric disorder. Compulsive overeating can reduce life expectancy but is generally not as dangerous as anorexia in the short term.

Conversely, obesity is not a psychiatric illness in the same way that being underweight isn’t either. There are many reasons for both which are not necessarily eating disorders. Some people enjoy eating and enjoy food but just have too much or are not active enough. They may be obese but it’s not an eating disorder. Compulsive eating, on the other hand would be.

JetCityWoman, I had a similar experience as a child. It's only now, and I am 47, that I have any semblance of control with food. Even then it's precarious, and I often plunge into cycles of overeating, despite having lost a lot of weight.

I'm overweight but not because of an eating disorder. I've been on meds that make you gain weight. Now I've stopped them, the weight is falling off. I havent made any changed to my diet or exercise routine but I'm losing around a pound a week.

PolkaDottyRose its crap isn't it? Those who haven't been starved or in poverty or hungry everyday don't quite grasp the impact it can have on you. Especially as a child. I'm working my way out of it now.

Polkadotty and jetcity

I’m so sorry for your childhood experiences.

You might be interested in the ‘Minnesota experiment’ where a group of men were fed half-rations for 6 months during ww2. The effects on them were long lasting and didn’t just disappear once they were refed. And these were healthy young men who had volunteered and knew it was only for 6 months. Starvation has been shown to have serious psychological consequences.

No, I disagree. I've had anorexia and I'm now overweight. They are two different animals for me. Now, I enjoy food, don't like being hungry, eat the wrong things and my portions are too big.

I guess for some, overeating can be an eating disorder but not for most.

@Needadvicetoleave

That’s interesting, do you think your anorexia has been cured and you no longer consider yourself to have an eating disorder?
I see my self as in recovery but kind of like an alcoholic I never see my self as no longer having anorexia. I can manage and control the symptoms of my ED now with support so I remain at a healthy weight but the thoughts and feelings won’t go away and I can’t recovery completely from that trauma.

My DF is morbidly obese, I am overweight. I know that my dad has an eating disorder. His attitude and emotional attachment to food is quite alarming and is his every thought from morning until night. He has absolutely no control over what he puts in his mouth. He is currently managing his weight fairly successfully but it is a real struggle for him. He can't do things in moderation - it must be cold turkey for him.

@YorkieDorkie

Your defiantly right, it’s not so much being overweight but much more do do with your attitude and emotional relationship with food. Initially I was thinking extreme ends of the bmi are likely to be the result of eating disorders but of course you can be either end and not have an eating disorder and you can be a perfectly healthy weight but have an eating disorder.

Even if it is accepted as an eating disorder, there’s still no quick fixes. Like there’s no quick fix for drug or alcohol addiction. It’s down to the individual to change. Which is extremely hard.

@Achoopichu

Of course, but it is almost impossible to change without proper support and treatment.
I think in the same way that there is no cure for alcohol or drug addictions, eating disorders can’t be cured but with help the symptoms can be controlled and managed.

I don't know about anyone else but this morbidly obese person definitely cannot control themselves around food. Eating pretty much anything for me leads to a craving to eat more

I have lost weight (between 3- 7 stone each time - not including the constant 1-2 stone yo yoing) around 15 times in my life (between the ages of 14 and 52) and regained the weight each time . I am now as fat as I have ever been and completely defeated. If it weren't for DS I would kill myself (quickly as opposed to slowly by binge eating) as I know I will never be able to fix it. It is truly hopeless for me anyway

@bumblingbovine49

I am so sorry, that defiantly sounds like an eating disorder, the compete opposite of what I have but the feelings and thoughts are very much the same.
That is why it is so wrong that they are not treated the same. I don’t think anyone can be completely cured from an eating disordered way of thinking but there is support and strategies that that can be used to manage those feelings.
Have you ever seen a therapist or found any support for over and binge eating? Also if you think you may be depressed and are not being treated for that?
I hope you can get some help and start feeling better

I'm obese and I agree with you that it's an eating disorder. It will probably lead to an early grave yet I can't stop overeating

I have binge eating disorder and I never tell anyone, because they would just think I was a greedy fat cow. When I'm bingeing, I don't even want to eat, I just can't stop. It's like being drunk. And then because I'm overweight (not only because of the BED, but that's a lot of it) I don't want to eat in front of people which makes it worse.

Fun times!

I agree not everyone who is obese has an eating disorder, but they still need help.

Thanks for the kind words pinkliquorice. I have had therapy in the past. Two extended periods of it. One specifically for eating disorders. I even tried hypnotherapy in desperation.

I think I am definitely depressed at the moment but even if that were better I would still be morbidly obese. There is no way out of that for me which makes me care less about dealing with my depression as even if I end up not depressed, I will still be massively fat so why bother.

I have spent nearly 40 years living in hope that this next time/intervention/ effort will stick. That I will be able to maintain any weight loss this time (despite all evidence to the contrary in that 40 years)

Now I have reached the point of understanding that I can lose weight reasonably succesfully if I try but I will not be able to maintain it so why bother. Just preventing myself from gaining weight takes all of my energy at the moment. I am not even succeeding in that at the moment.

Anyway I am going to bed now. Lack of sleep makes my mood much worse and if I stay up late after DH goes to bed the bingeing gets really bad but thanks for caring.

Your original post was obviously written thoughtfully and from a caring perspective (quite rare on MN these days on weight/obesity threads) .. I rarely post (or even read) weight/obesity threads anymore as it seems pointless but this one seemed a bit more interesting/relevant.

@pinkliquorice yes, I consider myself cured. Which I know not many can say. Being overweight now is unconnected to my past eating disorder and my mental health has limited impact on my food choices ( I won't say none, but I don't think it's more than anyone else). I am trying to lose weight and I am finding it difficult. Food just tastes so good and I have no will power any more.

This is a really interesting thread.

I've never understood the link between emotions and eating - if I lose weight I celebrate by eating, if i gain weight i console myself by eating. I eat if I'm sad, lonely, happy, socialising.

I've lost perspective on what a portion is.

Does anyone know of any resources that might work for that? Like, helping us with portion control?

I'm not even bothered about thinking about my emotional response and why I overeat and binge. It's too boring for words, I think I just need to be practical.

Yes it is, its is just as much an eating disorder as Anorexia and Bulimia, and should be treated as such.