Eating Disorders

Eating disorders can develop for any number of reasons, more likely it is a combination or reasons and internal and external risk factors that when mixed together, can create a recipe for a disorder to develop.  Let's give you the facts first then a more personal account.....

The facts.....

This is a list of the most common types of eating disorders:

Anorexia Nervosa: Intense fear of gaining weight and distorted body image, extreme food restriction, excessive exercise, very low body weight
Bulimia Nervosa: Cycles of binge eating followed by purging, vomiting, laxative use, fasting, or over-exercising after eating
Binge Eating Disorder (BED): Repeated episodes of eating large amounts of food, eating rapidly, feeling out of control, guilt or shame afterward
Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID): Avoidance of certain foods without body image concerns, nutritional deficiencies, weight loss, sensory aversions
Pica: Eating non-food substances like dirt, chalk, or hair regularly
Rumination Disorder: Regurgitating food repeatedly, re-chewing, re-swallowing, or spitting out food without nausea
OSFED (Other Specified Feeding or Eating Disorder) Disordered eating that doesn't fit other categories, symptoms vary but still cause significant distress or impairment 

In addition to the above, there is another category of eating that doesn't count as an eating disorder, this is known as irregular eating or disordered eating, it doesn't meet the full criteria of an eating disorder but can still be physically and emotionally harmful.  The difference between an eating disorder and disordered eating is that a person with an eating disorder feels compelled to do what they do, they feel they have no choice and must engage in whatever behaviour they do (restricting, bingeing, purging, over-exercising etc).  If they don't do this they will feel out of control, panicky, anxious and so on.  There is great fear about what will happen if they don't do what they feel they have to do.  Disordered eating has some of these elements but to a lesser frequency or intensity with less impact on daily life.

Description and key symptoms

  • Frequent dieting or calorie restriction
  • Skipping meals or rigid food rituals
  • Obsessive thoughts about food, weight, or body image
  • Emotional eating (eating in response to stress or sadness)
  • Feeling guilt or shame after eating
  • Avoiding entire food groups without medical reason
  • Compulsive eating or feeling out of control around food

Why it happens

It's often influenced by:

  • Diet culture and societal pressure

  • Trauma or emotional distress

  • Mental health conditions like anxiety or OCD

  • Sports or professions that emphasize body size

  • Family history or genetics

Why it's important to watch out for:

Even without a formal diagnosis, disordered eating can lead to:

  • Nutritional deficiencies

  • Digestive issues

  • Anxiety and depression

  • Risk of developing a full-blown eating disorder

Its important to seek help if you are experiencing eating difficulties and recognise yourself in the descriptions above, click on the link to point you in the right direction Resources 



What does it feel like.....

Struggling with an eating disorder can feel like a fulltime job.  Its not just about food or weight, its a coping mechanism which may have felt helpful in the beginning but then becomes destructive and the full focus of everything you do.  Its a lot to do with control,  when life becomes difficult and we feel overwhelmed or unable to cope, our anxiety kicks in  Things feel out of control so food, eating and body shape can become one thing we can have full control over.   This, of course, has an affect on our physical being, but we have the emotional component too.  Our sense of self-worth gets tangled up, we experience emotional distress, we think certain thoughts that feed our sense of 'not good enough' or 'I'm not worthy', these thought patterns can spiral becoming irrational, distorted and extreme.  When we're thinking like this it affects our behaviour, so what we do then also can become irrational and distorted.  The people around us can find this really difficult to understand because to them it looks so irrational, why would someone do this?  What could this person possibly gain by doing this?  But, as we know, when we are struggling, our mind is very good at making the irrational, rational, we can talk and convince ourselves of anything if we really want to.  To the point that even the person becomes so confused about what's going or so convinced that what they are doing is ok that they can't explain why they can't stop. 

The good news is that people can recover from an eating disorder, with help and support, new thinking patterns and new behaviours can gradually replace the old unhelpful ones and the person can start to regain their physical and mental wellbeing. If you think you need help or think someone else does go to Resources or Services.  Please note that a serious eating disorder will need specialist help.