The Long-Term Effect Of Eating Disorders That Nobody Talks About

I found the following article really interesting and thought it may interest some of my readers as well. All of my organs became very weak when I was unwell (particularly my hear) and I often wonder about whether or not those organs have repaired fully yet or not.

This is why I think it so important to continuing nourishing your body, even after you become weight restored as a lot of the damage that you do to your body during starvation may not be reversed even when you are weight restored.

The Long-Term Effect Of Eating Disorders That Nobody Talks About                  

by Dr. Ashley SolomonMarch 2, 2017 5:22 AM         

With Healthy Heart Month in full swing, you might be hearing advice everywhere from your family doctor to your favorite newsletter about what to cut out of your diet to keep your heart strong. Ditch the soda! Cut the carbs! Skip the butter! Oh, wait, butter's back in! But maybe olive oil is better?!
While most of us can take this influx of diet advice in stride, those at risk for eating disorders are vulnerable to this deluge of information. In many cases, the eating patterns that eventually precipitated a full-blown eating disorder started with the intention to be healthier and feel better—both physically and emotionally. In a sadly ironic twist, those behaviors have likely contributed to the serious decline in health often associated with eating disorders.

Eating disorders are more than just a psychiatric illness.

In fact, eating disorders have the highest mortality rate of any psychiatric illness (or behavioral health disorder). So not only do they lead to a host of social, mental, and physical problems, but they actually put someone at increased risk for other health problems. Cardiovascular complications are one of the biggest risks for those struggling with eating disorders. The heart is made of muscle and basically functions as a pump that moves blood first to the lungs to pick up oxygen and then out to the extremities to bring oxygen and nutrients throughout the whole body. Our hearts are clearly key to our ability to live and function normally, and eating disorders put strain on the heart in a number of ways.

1. Weaker heart muscles

First, when one does not take in enough food to support our level of activity, the heart rate slows down as the body tries to conserve energy. Also, blood pressure will drop due to dehydration or because the muscles of the heart weaken. When blood pressure is low, it's harder for other organs—like the kidneys, the brain, or the liver—to receive the nutrients and oxygen that the heart usually pumps in their direction.
People with low-weight eating disorders actually lose cardiac muscle mass. All muscles of the body are subject to wasting away if we aren't nourishing them. Heart muscle is no exception. Underweight patients may develop mitral valve prolapse due to shrunken heart muscle cells, or they can develop heart failure due to a weakened heart that can't pump well.

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2. Shifts in the heart's chemical environment

A second concern is the development of abnormal heart rhythms, which happens frequently when someone is suffering from bulimia nervosa. The behaviors of binge eating and purging (which can involve not just vomiting but also laxative and diuretic use), can lead to dehydration and dangerous shifts in electrolytes in the body. When the chemical environment of the heart is abnormal, the heart is at risk for arrhythmias, which can cause heart palpitations, fainting, and even death.

3. Cardiac disturbances

And thirdly, there are a host of cardiac rhythm disturbances that are directly caused by weight loss and malnutrition. These are undoubtedly causal in the heightened risk for sudden death seen in people with anorexia nervosa.
Despite these very serious cardiac concerns, many people with eating disorders are reluctant to get help. The disorders themselves are marked by a brain-based type of denial that can make even seeing that there's a problem very difficult. As a clinician, I find that sometimes the presence of these heart issues can help someone see just how high the risk to their health really is.

Healing your body from an eating disorder

But even those who begin the process of recovery have to be very cautious about their heart health. For someone who has been eating very little, starting to eat more can cause its own dangerous shifts in electrolytes called refeeding syndrome, which again puts the person at risk for cardiac complications. Thus, some patients will need to be very closely monitored by a medical team during this process.
The heartening news is that most of physical complications of eating disorders are reversible with good nutrition. Once the body and mind are recovered and a knowledgeable support team is in place, the person has a great chance of living a long, healthy life.

If you've suffered from an eating disorder, keep the following in mind:

1. Take any cardiac event very seriously. If you experience any chest pain, are getting dizzy when you stand, have a fainting episode, or notice your heart rhythm seems off, get to a medical provider as soon as you can.
2. Enlist the support of others. We know that eating disorders thrive in isolation, and recovery thrives in community with others you care about. Let someone close to you know that you're worried about your health.
3. Know that recovery is always possible. Even people who lived with an eating disorder for a very long time can expect a full and lasting recovery. It's not easy and can't be accomplished alone, but EVERYONE suffering from an eating disorder can be helped.

The recently deceased George Michael once said, "You'll never find peace of mind until you listen to your heart." Listen carefully to the messages your heart is sending you. And with the right treatment, you can find peace from the burden of eating disorders.
For additional information about the Eating Recovery Center, call 877-789-5758, email info@eatingrecoverycenter.com, or visit www.eatingrecoverycenter.com to speak with a master's-level clinician.

Truly living just isn't possible when you are consumed by your eating disorder

I was hopeful that I could still be happy and have a life while living with anorexia for the first few years of my illness. It was only once I had been completely miserable for such a long time that I finally realised that my life wouldn't get better whilst my anorexia was controlling me. This moment was a very important moment in my recovery as it is the moment that I truly started wanting recovery.

I suppose the reason why I was eventually prepared to do whatever I needed to do in order to recover was becauuse I truly started to want happiness, more then I wanted to be thin. And thank goodness I realised that the only way I would ever be happy was if I recovered. I suppose it is quite true what people say, that you need to hit 'rock bottom' before you become ready to make the changes that you need to make, in order to get better

The message I am trying to get accross in this post is that no matter what you may do to try and live a good life and be happy whilst you are living with anorexia, you will never be able to do these things. I know that I usually say that anything is possible a long as you believe in yourself however I do not believe that this is true in this instance. No matter how hard you try, you wil never live a happy and proper life while your anorexia is controlling you.

My life has got so much better since I have made so much recovery progress. I have become more confident and have started going out and enjoying myself more. I have made some wonderful new friends and I have reconnnected with old friends who I lost contact with when I got sick. I have become so happy, positive and bubbly in my everyday life and Ialways have a genuine smile on my face. Iam happy with who I am and for the first time in my life, I truly feel proud of everything I ave achieved and the person that I am.

Please, you deserve to be truly happy and to live a wonderful life but the only way that this is going to happen is if you fight and recover. I know that you have what it takes to recover, so don't put it off ny longer. The sooner you start making recvery progress, the sooner you wiill be living the wonderul life that you truly deserve to live.

How do I start socialising again?

A social life was just another of the many things that my anorexia stole from me. As my anorexia worsened, I became more and more disconnected from everyone around me. I no longer wanted to see any of my friends and I didn't even want to spend time with my family. I dont know why I felt as though I needed to be on my own so much but it just felt like the easiest option at the time.

Now I am starting to get better, I really want to start getting out there and socialising again but I really dont know how to do this. I feel as though everyone in the town i live in just sees me as the shy one who always stays home and never goes to any events of gatherings and they are right, but I don't want to be that girl anymore. 

I want to have friends or even just people who I can talk to out at the pub or at social gatherings. I want people to invite me to their birthday parties so that I can get out and show everyone that I have changed and that I am now a fun person to be around. It is hard to make friends in a town where there are so few people around my age however I really am desperate to start socalising again. 

In a way, I know that it is my fault that I am now in this situation as whilst I was sick i was invited to many parties or gatherings but never attended any of them. So now everyone just presumes I wouldn't want to go and so they dont even bother to invite me along. I wish that I even had just one other friend that I felt really comfortable around, so that we could go out together and then I could talk to new people too.

And something else I have started thinking about now, that I havent cared about for years, is the fact that I am now wanting to find a boyfriend. I had absolutely no interest in guys when my anorexia was controlling me but now I actually find myself longing for a reationship with a fantastic guy.

I think I just need to be brave and start living the way that a 20 year old girl should be. This may mean stepping outside my comfort zone and socialising with people from outside of the tiny town that I live in. This is the only way i am going to make new friends and meet new people. I just really don't know how to go about doing this.

Does anyone have any suggestions for me? How do you think is the best way for me to start socialising again with people in my small home town as well as ways to meet brand new people? I know that I need to make this happen for myself and that it won't happen on its own. I just dont know how to do it.

Anorexia and clumsiness

Ever since I developed anorexia, I have become incredibely clumsy. I have scars all over my arms and hands from accidently burning myself. Even at the moment I have fresh burn marks on my arms and hands from my wood fire, the iron and my oven. Besides burning myself, I am also prone to accidently cutting myself while using knives to prepare meals. Something else I frequently do is run into things as I am trying to walk past them which results in large bruises on my legs, hips, knees and arms. Has anyone else experienced this type of thing with anorexia or starvation?

I suppose it is only natural that my concentration levels have decreased and I have become more clumsy as I know my brain has been so badly damaged. this damage has come from starving my emtire body, including my brain for so long, meaning that it is no longer able to function optimally.



While I was unable to find much information about whether or not there is a relationship between anorexia and clumsiness on line, I did find the following information about how starvation effects the brain. I was quite happy to read that as I recover, my brain should recover too, which should mean my clumsiness will be gone when I am recovered. Perhaps this is an indicator I can use to make sure I am physically repaired internally, when I appear to be physically repaired externally.

The Effects of Starvation on the Human Brain

During starvation the body does everything possible to preserve the brain. The brain has highest priority when it comes to gaining access to essential nutrients and fuel. The brain is, therefore, the last area to suffer from a shortage of food. There is even some evidence that short periods of starvation may be healthy for the brain. However, even the brain must eventually metabolize its own neurons to keep the rest of the brain alive.

Breakdown of Muscle and Neurons

When starvation is allowed to continue for an extended time period, most of the body's stored fat has been used up and the shortage of vitamins and minerals becomes significant. At this point, the body's only chance of survival is to metabolize its own muscles and connective tissue. The brain too lacks essential nutrients and begins to break down its own neurons to keep the rest alive.

Reduced Brain Volume

When the brain starts to break down its own neurons, the brain literally shrinks. This shrinkage, however, is reversible if starvation is ended. A study published in the May 2010 issue of "International Journal of Eating Disorders" showed reduced brain volume in people with anorexia nervosa. When anorexics starve themselves to lose weight, their brain starts metabolizing its own gray matter. However, those subjects who regained weight also regained brain volume.

Falling into the deep hole of Anorexia

I think that one of the scariest things about anorexia is that you really can't see it coming. You can't feel yourself developing it and once you realise you have it,  it is far too late. The damage is already done and this damage is extremely hard to undo. Just like a hole in the ground that is hidden by leaves and undergrowth, often a person doesn't even know that it is there until they fall right to the bottom of the hole. It happens so fast that the person falling only realises that something terrible has happened when they hit the ground at the bottom of the hole. For me, it only took about 6 months to go from being a perfectly healthy and bubbly 17 year old girl to being a miserable and very sick girl suffering from Anorexia.

Some people can never get out of the hole as they have simply fallen too far in. Others may be able to eventually climb out of the hole but it takes a lot of time and a lot of strength to do so. Initially I thought that the hole I had fallen into was impossible to climb out of but now I realise It is possible, it will just take a long time and a lot of strength to do it. So far it has taken me 3 years to get to where I am in my recovery and I know I still have a long way to go before I reach the top and recover completely.

The point I am trying to get at is that if you suspect you could be developing an unhealthy relationship with food, try to get help before you develop this awful illness and fall deep into the hole of anorexia. Also, if you suspect someone you care about may be developing anorexia, don't wait until they have developed the illness entirely before getting help for them. The longer a person Is sick, the more powerful their anorexic voice becomes and the harder it is for them to recover. It is a known fact that early intervention is very important and can often determine the recovery outcomes of a patient.

I can not stress enough just how serious Anorexia is. More people die from anorexia than any other mental illness because it is so hard to fight. It has a higher mortality rate then some cancers and also has very few treatment options as very little is understood about it. Dont risk developing this awful disease as it WILL ruin your life (well at least a significant part of it anyway). Please, trust me when I say that there is nothing good about having anorexia.

I wish that I could somehow show everyone just how awful it it to have anorexia because then I think they would take extra precautions to avoid developing the disease. If only someone had been able to explain to me how awful Anorexia is when I was becoming obsessed with food and weight, perhaps I would have been able to stop myself from falling down the hole. I may have been able to see the hole coming and stepped over the top of it, instead of falling into it.

I never imagined just how terrible anorexia could possibely be until I was going through it. It wasn't until I suddenly had no control and was unable to eat anything at all that I new something was wrong.  By then, the damage had allready been done. I had developed anorexia and had no choice but to start fighting for my life to get out of the hole and survive.