The list

[Ashley-Kate]

often when i go into therapy with someone new cause i have changed therapist very often do to my eating disorder and the fact that i started off with people not so specialized and moved very often. the therapist often ask me to do a list of advantages and disadvantages of keeping the eating disorder helping me see for myself if i am ready to give it up and if the advantages are greater then the discomfort of the eating disorder. So i thought i could start a list here for those of you who want to try and do you own but only this list will be of disadvantages only cause the advantages are always easy to find the disadvantages are more hard because we chose to not see them.

-heart pains or palpitations;
-dizziness;
-insomnia;
-unable to concentrate;
-obsessive;
-isolation;
-loneliness;
-getting sick often;
-sore throat (caused by purging)
-sore muscles
-hair loss;
-passing out;
-depression
-never satisfied
- low potassium (electrolytes)
-low blood sugar
-low iron...
etc... there is so much more but i can't think of any more..

i always tried to remind myself of the "high" that my anorexia brought me and now that i think things over yes i get a good "buzz" i am happy i am losing weight.. etc , but then when it stops when the results decrease you fall a hole lot lower than if you weren't so high.. Is the "high" worth the fall that you know you will eventually have... cause lets face it you will never be thin enough for the anorexia.

 

[Meg]

Hi Ashley,

That list can't have been easy for you to make, but I think it's a great step to have written it. You're right, while losing weight may give you a good feeling for a little while, the health problems it brings are a huge cost, and it's likely that the weight goal will just keep on dropping. I hope that this knowledge, while a big challenge, will help you on the road to recovery.

:hug: