Medical Consequences of Eating Disorders

During our check-ins at this week's group, M said that she was anxious about a doctor's appointment she had the next day. The discussion progressed to the medical consequences of eating disorders. Most people are aware of the risks, but somehow feel invincible. However, the members of our group went into great detail about the permanent damage that has been caused as a result of their eating disorder:

• Mitral valve prolapse (a heart condition which may result in cardiac arrest)


• Irritable bowel syndrome and chronic diahhrea (must always wear a depends diaper)


• Gasrtoesophogeal reflux disease (GERD - which may lead to esophogeal cancer)


• Teeth erosion and gum decay (which may cost $20K+ to repair)


• Infertility (missing periods might seem great, until you realize you can't conceive)

So, we all hope M's appointment with her doctor goes well. She is young, so maybe she can avoid some of these negative consequences of eating disorders. But remember... none of us are invincible...

Letters to ED and FRED

At one of our recent meetings, T introduced us to FRED -- FReedom from Eating Disorder. At last night's group, she suggested that we all write a letter to ED and FRED. First, we wrote our letter to ED -- telling that Eating Disorder voice exactly what we think and feel, and perhaps being ready to say goodbye. Then, we wrote our letter to FRED -- welcoming this FReedom voice in whatever capacity. The process of writing these letters is very emotional. Depending upon where you are in your recovery, you can feel anger, sadness, grief, loss, relief and even gratitude. During my recovery, I wrote more letters to ED than I can count. But each one took me one step close to finally saying goodbye to ED. Until last night, I had never written a letter to FRED. I wish I had, because I don't want think FRED to think he's unappreciated. Without FRED, I probably wouldn't be alive. Thank you, FRED, even though at first I didn't like you. Do you have any more friends? I welcome more positive changes in my life :-)

Dump ED... Meet FRED!

Many of you may have heard of the "eating disorder voice" referred to as ED.  This is the "voice" that might tell you to skip a meal, exercise extra hard, binge,  and/or purge.  You might also identify with a "healthy voice," one that helps you to eat and exercise in moderation.  In last night's support group, T shared that she calls this "healthy voice" FRED -- FReedom from Eating Disorder!  Our group now meets from 6:30-8:00pm on Tuesday evenings, but I invite anyone to come early at 6:00pm to have dinner with myself and FRED.  Obviously, eating regular meals is a part of recovery, as is being able to eat with others.  So, I thought it might be helpful to offer this pre-group opportunity!   

Anorexia Athletica. Drunkorexia. Diabulimia.

The headlines of this entry are not official medical terms, but are used to describe troubeling phenomenon in addiction and eating disorders. J shared three articles that she found on the internet, which discussed these issues. Anorexia Athletica refers to the fine line that many competitive athletes walk, when they step up their workouts and step down their eating to gain a "competitive edge." However, this concept of "running on empty" actually compromises the ability to perform, and uses competitive training as a mask for an eating disorder. Drunkorexia refers to someone "starving themselves, cocktail in hand."  Although calories from food may be "forbidden," in part this is to offset calories in alcohol consumed.  Of course this is a dangerous behavior, because there is no nutritional value in alcohol, the body becomes depleted of essential nutrients as the alcohol is metabolized, and chronic drinking can be a sign of alcoholism.  Finally, Diabulimia refers to people who are diabetic, but who skip their insulin shots in efforts to lose weight.  However, this results in the loss of many nutrients in the urine plus dehydration, and many end up blind and in organ failure, all risking life to be thin.  At what price, thinness?  

Welcome To Our Eating Disorder Support Group!

Our FREE Eating Disorder Support Group meets in Denver, Colorado every Tuesday evening from 6:30 -8pm, at The Eating Disorder Foundation, located at 3003 E. Third Ave., which is the corner of Third and Milwaukee in the Cherry Creek North area. There is free parking behind the building, which you can access from Milwaukee Street. We meet in the basement conference room. The group is open to anyone in recovery from anorexia, bulimia or binge eating disorder.

Future posts on this blog will feature highlights of the topics that we discuss at our group. Feel free to post comments, and become involved as a follower of this blog. You can get support for eating disorder recovery no matter where you live!