In a world where diet culture and body image dominate social media feeds, it’s easy to overlook the fine line between healthy eating and an eating disorder.
But what happens when you realize that line has been crossed?
The most important thing to know is that you are not alone; more people than ever struggle with eating disorders, disordered eating, and body image. But remember, getting support isn’t a sign of weakness; it’s a positive move towards getting well!
IMPORTANT – If you are facing a medical or psychiatric emergency, please visit your nearest emergency room. Otherwise, take a proactive step by scheduling an appointment with your doctor. Early detection, evaluation, and treatment are not just essential but empowering. They can help someone with an eating disorder progress toward recovery more quickly and prevent the condition from becoming more severe or chronic. Below are steps (in no particular order!) to help you get the support you deserve.
Step 1: Visit Your Doctor
Eating disorders are often accompanied by medical complications resulting from malnourishment, over-exercising, binge eating, and purging. Health problems linked to eating disorders depend on the type of eating disorder and its severity.
Health issues commonly seen with eating disorders may include:
- Bloodwork abnormalities like low potassium causing problems with your heart, muscles, and nerves.
- Problems with digesting food causing gas, bloating and constipation or diarrhea.
- Lack of nutrients, weight loss and malnutrition causing heart problems.
- Dental cavities and removing the surface of your teeth from vomiting, such as bulimia.
- Not having a menstrual period, which can lead to fertility and pregnancy issues.
- Osteopenia and osteoporosis causing bone loss, which increases fracture risk.
- Stunted growth due to poor nutrition during formative years.
- Mental health conditions such as substance abuse, depression, anxiety, and obsessive-compulsive disorder,
It’s important to schedule an appointment with your doctor to evaluate your situation. Be honest about your concerns regarding a potential eating disorder. Your doctor may assess you through the following methods:
- Physical Exams: These include evaluating heart and lung function, as well as checking your skin, hair, and abdomen.
- Vital Signs: Measuring temperature, pulse, and blood pressure.
- Weight Assessment: This involves tracking your weight over time. It’s important to note that drastic weight changes are not always present in eating disorders.
- Laboratory Tests: Blood tests to check electrolyte levels, blood sugar, liver and kidney function, and urine tests.
What if my doctor isn’t knowledgeable about eating disorders?
Sometimes, doctors may lack expertise in identifying eating disorders, leading to dismissive attitudes or incorrect assessments. For instance, a doctor might say your BMI isn’t “underweight” or that you haven’t “lost enough weight” to have an eating disorder. This notion is not only harmful, but also incorrect. Eating disorders can affect anyone, regardless of weight. If this happens, don’t give up.
Provide your doctor with resources from the Academy of Eating Disorders or the excellent eating disorder resource, Sick Enough by Dr. Jennifer Gaudiani.
Here is a list of relevant lab tests your physician will likely take:
- Complete Blood Count (CBC) with differential urinalysis
- Complete Metabolic Profile (sodium, chloride, potassium, glucose, etc.)
- Serum magnesium, phosphorus
- Thyroid screen (T3, T4, TSH)
- Electrocardiogram (ECG)
Step 2: Assemble a Multidisciplinary, Weight-inclusive Team for Ongoing Support
Treating an eating disorder requires the ongoing support of an interdisciplinary team, typically including a medical doctor, a mental health professional, and a dietitian. A dietitian is especially important in helping you develop a healthy relationship with food and your body. Look for providers specializing in eating disorder treatment; some professionals will have “CEDS” (Certified Eating Disorder Specialist) in their credentials. Also, be on the lookout for treatment providers who are weight-inclusive.
Weight-inclusive means focusing on health and well-being without making weight the primary concern. It’s about recognizing that people can be healthy at various weights and that everyone deserves respect and care, no matter their body size. This way of thinking promotes body diversity and helps reduce the stigma often associated with weight.
Also, do not overlook the power of support from parents, friends, and family members; children, adolescents, and even young people still living at home may need help coordinating appointments, meals, etc.
Step 3: Seek Education, Resources, and Additional Support
There are many resources available to help you find the right providers. (There’s also a lot of incorrect or misleading information about eating disorders on the web.)
Follow your treatment team’s advice for any specific resources they recommend to learn more about your eating disorder. Organizations such as these are reputable websites and offer education, directories, licensed clinicians, free support groups, and staffed helplines.
- Alliance for Eating Disorders
- The Academy of Eating Disorders
- The National Association of Anorexia and Associated Disorders (ANAD)
- National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA)
- F.E.A.S.T Families Empowered and Supporting Treatment of Eating Disorders
- Project Heal
- Clinicians at Erica Leon Nutrition & Associates
You can also check your insurance company’s list of providers, but please make sure they are clinicians who specialize in working with eating disorders!
Eating disorders affect people of all genders, ages, races, ethnicities, body shapes, weights, sexual orientations, and socioeconomic statuses. Finding a professional who shares your identity can be incredibly affirming. For instance, if you identify as a person of color, working with a provider who also identifies as a person of color can help them understand your experiences more deeply. Resources like Project Heal and The Loveland Therapy Foundation Fund strive to provide support to people with eating disorders from marginalized identities.
Negative feelings around food and your body can feel confusing and scary, as well as normalized in our society.
Thank you to Rebecca for putting all of this together. I hope it gives you some comfort in knowing what to do if you or someone you know has received a diagnosis and please know, there is lots of supports and help out there, just reach out and ask.
If you are looking for help and want to reach out to a dietitian, nutritionist, or specialist on our team, feel free to book a call with me. We will chat about what your needs are and your next best step for you and determine the best person on the Erica Leon Nutrition and Associates team to support you.
Please know our goal is to help you heal in the best way possible that suits you and where you or your family are on your journey to peace with food and body image. If you’re ready to talk, click here and book a call with me.
Not quite ready to work with a dietitian? We have several free resources that can help you with your nutrition goals. Check them all out here.
Rebecca is one of the team of Dietitians at Erica Leon Nutrition. She specializes in weight-inclusive nutrition therapy counseling for a variety of health conditions, but primarily eating disorders and disordered eating/body image concerns, gastrointestinal disorders, family and child feeding concerns, and cardiovascular conditions. Learn more about Rebeccca.
If you need help or have more questions, please reach out. Start by booking a call.
