Recovery from bulimia

[KiM]

hey everyone ..... i had a few questions regarding the recovery from bulimia .... mine is obviously having its ups and downs and seeing my body change is not all that easy ... so i was wondering if like, the bloated stomach and weight gain there will eventually go away? will my muscles build up again? will my metabolism go back to somewhat of a normality ... ? will my skin/hair/organs inside go back to being healthy ... or ? and how long wikl this take ?

i am scared of the damage that i have caused so i guess i just want to know if there is hope in my body becoming healthy again and looking somewhat normal -? not the constant bloatedness of a stomach whenever i eat now (and dont purge..)
thanks .... xx

 

[Eunoia]

hey Kim... haven't seen you around since a while! recovery does have its ups & downs, that's a normal, yet challenging part of it. I can tell you what I know from my own knowldege/ experience but I would really suggest asking your therapist/ doctor about all of this too, b/c they will be able to give you better answers given their background. Those symptoms you're experiencing should go away, but it takes some "re-adjusting" and time. The weight gain is only so far as the body is readjusting to the new, and much needed calorie intake, but right now it's storing up for later, b/c that's what it's used to. When someome eats a very low cal diet for example and then increases their caloric intake, they are much more likely to gain weight at 1st than a person who eats a normal amount of cals and increases their calorie intake by the same amount- b/c the person w/ the lower calorie diet has a slowed metabolism to begin with b/c of the restricting. Your body is trying to find its set point right now, so you might initially gain weight, but eventually once you've found your set point, you might even lose a bit again. It's difficult to go through that, gaining weight, but just try to keep in mind why this is happening and what your body is trying to do and has to do and with time it will work itself out. Your metabolism should go back to normal too, again within time. The body in general is pretty robust so even after having been put through something like this, it can readjust to a certain extent but how much and how long that will take and whether or not all damage can be repaired etc. does depend on each person, how bad the damage was, etc... again, talk to your GP hun. If you have severe damage from your bulimia then all of this might not be so smooth, but don't give up hope. Becoming healthy is so much more than just how we look, but also how we feel, and a balanced diet, enough sleep, moderate exercise etc. will contribute to that overall feeling of being healthy- and it will show on the outside too. Give your body some time, I don't know how long it's been since you've been in recovery... do you have a dietician/ nutritionist that you're working with as well? I would really try to find a doctor who knows something about ED's if I were you & you don't already have one... even just for the comfort level.

I read a book recently that was really good in explaining the factors in recovery, one of them being this readjustment process you asked about:
Eating Disorders: New Directions in Treatment and Recovery. 2nd ed., Columbia University Press, edited by Barbara P. Kinoy, 2001