Anxiety

I honestly think that every person I have ever spoken to in my life who suffers from an eating disorder also suffers from anxiety too. This has certainly been the case for me anyway. I have had anxiety my whole life however I have only had anorexia for about 3 and a half years. Whilst in recovery from an eating disorder, I think it is just as important to address your anxiety as it is to actually treat your eating disorder. 

Since I am naurally a very anxious person, I do not know if it is actually possible to overcome my anxiety all together. I hope that I can, but if I cant I still intend to keep dealing with my anxiety as well as I possibely can. Currenty I take daily anti--anxiety medication and I find that this makes a massive difference. This tablet does not change anything else about me, it simply just stops me from worrying so much about every little thing.

Something else that I find helpful is just forcing myself to be rational. Or use my 'stronger voice' to tell myself that I am being silly or over reacting. For example, If I start panicking that I have eaten too much, I would firstly remind myself that it is only my anorexia that is making me feel this way. I would also remind myself that I should never listen to my anorexia as my anorexia ultimately wants me dead. I then try to put my anxious thoughts into perspective. 

I would ask myself 'who cares if I did eat a litttle more then usual. The worst thing that could happen is that I gain a tiny little bit of weight and this cant hurt me.' I always try and think about all of the real problems that people are currently facing in the world and gaining a gram or two really is not one of them. I found the following information on the Eating Disorder Hope website and thought it explained the relationhip between anxiety and anorexia well. 

Connections & Relationship between Anxiety and Eating Disorders

Often, it is the case that anxiety precedes an eating disorder. In struggling with severe anxiety, for instance, being able to control the aspect of one’s life, such as food, weight, and exercise, indirectly gives the suffer a false sense of control, which can temporarily relieve symptoms experienced due to anxiety. Now the man or woman has a dual diagnosis of an eating disorder and anxiety. These learned behaviors however, can inadvertently lead to the development of an eating disorder, such as anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa.

Treatment of Anxiety and Eating Disorders

For these reasons, it is crucial that anxiety is treated in conjunction with treatment of an eating disorder; particularly as the two are closely related and common issues are addressed to heal from the underlying factors associated with both disorders. Comprehensive treatment considerations for an individual suffering from both anxiety and an eating disorder are cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), psychotherapy, support groups, and some medications that can be helpful in managing anxiety and separating feelings from food. Learning healthier coping mechanisms for managing anxiety are also the focus of treatment.