(Very Long and detailed TMI) Digestive Problem Advice?

kelseyyates

i sometimes wonder if i have body dysmorphic disorder in addition to my anorexia. i feel like i don’t deserve to say i have ‘anorexia’ when i have gained weight recently and eat a ‘healthy amount’ each day. but, if i think about it, it seems that i still have the thought patterns. it is always about the calories (which isn’t so bad since i eat a healthy amount), and i mean it is good for me to be aware of what i eat because i have so many things that my body cannot digest well. i do wonder what it’s like to eat for pleasure, though. i purely eat based on ‘what will make me feel okay’ because i know so many foods don’t agree with me. (it also may be worth mentioning that as a child i could eat anything and felt fine/never had any problems with digestion. it is probably because of how i starved myself in middle school-> highschool that i have such problems with that today.) i eat foods i know will give me energy and make me feel okay. i also have a wheat gluten allergy (if i eat a reasonable amount of wheat gluten it digests terribly, bloats me, and gives me a migraine for 2 days! it’s hell!) but, sometimes my body betrays me and i still end up not digesting the foods i usually eat and am used to well. but, this is why i pick safe foods that i enjoy the taste of and eat pretty much the same thing everyday. i like trying new things sometimes on the weekend, and i really am not picky when it comes to foods i enjoy the taste of. but, i am afraid of feeling really bad later.
but, when i notice i have gained weight i immediately start shaming myself and telling myself i need to restrict. recently i have told myself not to think this way, but it’s very hard to break the cycle and i still feel like i should be restricting… it’s sad because i tell myself that i see women 2-3 times my size and think they are beautiful! i really appreciate so many different kinds of women and i definitely don’t think only thin women are attractive. so, it is weird that i hold myself to this standard and feel repulsed when i see extra weight on me…
i always drink a lot of liquids (mostly to hopefully improve digestion/i like drinking lots of barley tea, 0 calorie fruity drinks (calpis oasis, aquarius zero, etc), water, and diet coke [please don’t shame me about this; it really helps my digestion…i am looking for other alternatives]) so i tend to be a little bloated at all times. this makes me feel fatter than i am, and if i haven’t had liquids for a few hours i do look quite thin. i wonder how thin i “really” am if that makes sense. i have taken pictures of myself before and been shocked at how thin i look, so maybe i have dysmorphia?
everyday i start off having a lot of sushi (inari rolls which contain wheat gluten but it’s a small amount so it doesn’t affect me) + sushi with veggies in them. i am the kind of person that HAS to have the same exact breakfast everyday (and i have!! to have breakfast) or i feel really terrible the rest of the day. i have adjusted to this, and my body likes it, so i don’t plan on changing it. i usually have it with a diet coke because that improves digestion, and i USED to use the bathroom every morning because of it. lately, i haven’t been able to. i think maybe it’s because a few days in a row i changed up my dinner from things i usually eat… but i don’t know it’s been a while and now i seem to go 5 days without going and i get really bloated and don’t feel good. i take my regular vitamins, and i am considering taking fiber again, but when i did i didn’t notice a difference after a few weeks…
sometimes i have lunch and sometimes i skip depending on my hunger (still full from 700 cal breakfast). if i have lunch it is usually gyuudon light from a restaurant called Sukiya (thinly-sliced beef on veggies + tofu). sometimes i switch it up to something else quite light but similar in nature.
for dinner, i have a few things i usually pick from. lately i have been getting 2 containers of okazu every night.


Ichiban dashi de yaita okazu no nimono
Which means accompaniment for rice dishes cooked in the first spice (there are a few spices regularly used in Japanese cooking and this is the “first” of those spices). Includes konyaku (grey thing - solidified jelly from rhizome of devil’s tongue), daikon x 2 (Japanese raddish), carrot, shiitake mushroom, yachikuwa (tube-shaped tube-shaped fish cake), yasai satsuma age (fried bean curd/vegetables), and a devilled egg. i feel really good after i eat them and i really like the taste. sometimes i will eat pea salad with these as well.
other foods i eat include gyoza soup + vegetables (minimal wheat gluten so i react to it all right), mayo + onion squid tentacles, sichuan-style bean curd.. and a few other options. but, those are my most frequently-eaten kinds of things.

i also try to exercise fairly regularly. exercising used to help my digestion, but lately i have been seeing little effect… i really like running, and i run ~4 miles in 30 minutes on the treadmill. i feel healthier on days i do this, though! of course.

from reading that, does anyone have any tips on what i can eat/any supplements i can take to improve digestion (preferably that are sold in Japan since that is where I am living right now)?

thisismeraw

Have you tried probiotics to help digestion? I have issues sometimes and find probiotics help a lot. You can buy them in any drug store or stores like Walmart (not sure if you have those there). You can order them online to have them shipped to you as well from a lot of different sites.

Also, ensure you are getting enough fibre, water and healthy fats as they all help digestion.

GormanGhaste

I would suggest more vegetables and fruit. Just add them in slowly, to give yourself time to adjust to the increased fiber.

allshebe

Can you get papaya fruit or juice? That may help with your digestion. I'm assuming you've tried limiting your diet for a week or two (or until you feel relatively "healthy") to just a few safe things and then on a weekly basis introduced one "new" food to see how you react? Food intolerances can be a real challenge. I avoid gluten, but tolerate almost all other things that don't contain the wheat/rye/barley glutens. Have you rec'd therapy to deal with the emotional side of your eating issues? I can understand how you might not care to eat if so many foods make you feel ill.