Has anyone had an eating disorder during pregnancy?

[Pregnantandfierce]

Just that really. I’m in my first trimester of pregnancy and suffer with anorexia and bulimia. I’d say I’m recovering and doing really well but I am feeling a little anxious about weight gain and food intake. I had my booking in apt yesterday and I made my midwife aware - she has assigned me to a consultant so I’ll have a little extra support.

How did you cope if you suffered? Any advice greatly received.

Pregnancy was the only time I have not been bullemic.
The urge to protect baby was more than the urge to be sick if you see what i mean? I still went to a group once a week for help.

You should be referred to specialist psychiatric support to help you manage your disorder in a healthy way throughout your pregnancy. Have you had treatment before? Are you still in touch with your team? You might need to be proactive and go and see your GP or ask your midwife to speak to the mental health team.

Best of luck with the rest of your pregnancy.

Thanks both. Yes I’ve been in out of hospital over the years and have seen a psychiatrist on and off. I do agree though I’d like some specialist care to have a little extra support. I’ve not been sick or withholding food since I found out I was pregnant but I’m still feeling some irrational anxiety over weight gain. I’m running and cycling most days so that’s helping.

I channeled my anxiety into exercise. It is ok to exercise when pregnant! You will be ok.

I was actually ok when pregnant, a bit emotional towards the end about how I looked and felt. Like others I had an urge to make sure that my DD was getting from me whatever she needed and didn't want to restrict that. I was also referred to the consultant, so was happy that I had support there if needed. I know this is not a huggy forum, but sending them anyway as its a constant battle deep down even when in recovery.

I had anorexia and bulimia for 10 years and now work as a Camhs specialist eating disorder practitioner. If you could reach out to your local team for support it may be really helpful as a consultant in pregnancy probably isn’t best placed to give eating disorder advice (much further than how it affects baby anyway). You say that excising is helping at the moment, do you feel it is helping in a therapeutic way or keeping you in the comfort of the ED?
Weight gain is a part of pregnancy that is so hard to accept, I’m on baby #2 and even though I’m fully recovered I still struggle some days with the thought that I can’t just restrict or purge, it’s hard because you are out of control of your own body and it can be a constant battle between the ed and what baby needs. But without adequate nutrition or weight gain it’s going to be hard for baby to thrive. Is there anybody in your family/friends that you could talk to about this? We

Did she refer you for counselling? There is a lot of support available for mothers, if you aren't getting what you need then go back to your GP who should also be able to refer you.

Well done on managing well so far! It's so individual, but if it helps I'm on pregnancy number 4 (!) and have managed all ok - with my first I was very nervous about how I would react to my shape changing, but like StandardRussian I felt very protective. Because of my background i did struggle a bit at listening to my body when exercising - a heart rate monitor helped me here, and I do pregnancy yoga, which is a lovely way to help you calm down, celebrate your pregnant body and connect with your baby.

The other thing I would recommend, if possible, is talking to a dietitian with an interest in eating disorders about ways to support good family eating behaviours after birth. It was a shock to me when I found that weaning challenged my need for control around food, and I think that if I'd bottle fed it would have been the same. I found an awesome and understanding dietitian who was also a mum, and she helped a lot.

Good luck and congratulations!

Thank you, lovely ladies for the really great advice. I’ve always exercised regularly and will continue to do so just from a health point of view rather than to feed the ED.

I’m already seeing a private psychotherapist for my ED which is helping greatly but @upside I agree - a dietician would be really helpful for me I think. I’ll speak to my midwife and GP.

Great suggestion on pregnancy yoga - I’ll definitely look into that.