HELP transitioning from unhealthy weight loss habits

Unsure if this is a good place to post this, but I am looking for some weight loss advice. I am a 21 year old female. I have struggled with my weight and body image for as long as I can remember, and have displayed some disordered eating tendencies over the past two years. my weight has yoyo'd, though overall I have lost some weight. Unhealthily, that is. I am trying very hard to transition into a healthy weight loss plan, but am very scared that I will gain weight rather than continue losing, but I am noticing my health and mood going downhill now more than ever. I have gotten myself to the point of minimal purging, but I am not eating enough to keep myself going, which makes it hard to have the energy to work out, etc. I am terrified that if I work my way up to more "normal" healthy eating over time, my body will react poorly and I will regain weight. I still have a significant amount to lose and am trying to compromise by transitioning into healthy practices. I understand that this is something I should be doing with the help of a doctor/nutritionist, but I don't have insurance and can't afford any specialists. I have been speaking with our school counsellor who is trying to help, but doesn't know much about these issues. Please just let me know if you can offer any advice

Replies

  • gigglesinthesun
    gigglesinthesun Posts: 860 Member
    find someone in person that has experience with this - a therapist who deals with ED is probably best
  • For sure! I am hoping to do so as soon as it's a possibility for me, but as I mentioned before I am a college student without insurance. At this point, I am trying to do my best on my own until I can get help which is why I was trying to reach out/see if anyone had experienced something similar.
  • WhoIsAmber
    WhoIsAmber Posts: 161 Member
    If you live in the USA and are under the age of 26, if either of your parents work a full-time job and receive health insurance from their employer, your parents can still have you on their health insurance.
  • They are not working and don't have insurance; they live in another state and we don't keep in contact. I have applied for open enrollment and am hoping to be covered under ACA beginning in January. Just trying to get through these 2.5 months, which doesn't seem like long, but am trying not to postpone my health as much as it's possible for me to do so!
  • WhoIsAmber
    WhoIsAmber Posts: 161 Member
    Try looking around if there's any free health clinics in the area, a lot of them have mental health professionals and maybe even nutritionists.
  • TheFitnessTutor
    TheFitnessTutor Posts: 356 Member
    1. To reiterate, you need professional help.
    2. Gaining some weight may not be your body "reacting poorly." That's just your opinion. It may be the healthiest thing for you.
    3. Weight loss and weight gain is usually not linear, it will go up and down and stagnate,etc. This is largely because of water shifts in your body. If you can't come to grips with this fact, you're going to have more trouble. Your body will hold/release water in your tissues, muscle, fat cells, you name it, based on the foods you eat. Water is heavy. i know it's not as easy as it sounds, but don't sweat weight. You can gain 4lbs here and there easily. The important thing is that you have a consistent eating regimen to trust in so that you don't panic.
    4. You're female. Your weight will fluctuate greatly due to your hormones, largely due to water again.
    5. You don't need to workout much in your condition Easier said than done, but still.

    I'm sending you a friend request. i have a very important video coming up soon.
  • texanintokyo
    texanintokyo Posts: 278 Member
    Eating Disorders Anonymous. Find a local chapter, go to a meeting and ask for help finding someone that sees people based on income or for free as part of an outreach program.

    http://www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org/

    I don't have an eating disorder so I can't speak from experience but in college a friend used them to help her deal with her's and it was a lifesaver.
  • lblert
    lblert Posts: 55
    Eating Disorders Anonymous meetings can be somewhat hard to find in some areas. If you can't find a local meeting, you can also try Overeaters Anonymous. If you check the schedule of your local meetings, you'll find some that have an anorexic/bulimic focus. Those are the ones you might want to check out.

    Definitely try to get help sooner rather than later. ED behaviors can spiral into a full blown ED faster than you might think. The deeper you're into it, the harder the recovery. I got to a point where I had to go away to a residential treatment center for over 4 months.
  • gigglesinthesun
    gigglesinthesun Posts: 860 Member
    For sure! I am hoping to do so as soon as it's a possibility for me, but as I mentioned before I am a college student without insurance. At this point, I am trying to do my best on my own until I can get help which is why I was trying to reach out/see if anyone had experienced something similar.

    there are several things you need to address (hence the therapist suggestion):
    a, what are the triggers for you purging? what are you honestly trying (subconsciously) to achieve with purging? What are your emotions before, during and after?
    b, What is your BMI and as flawed as that is, do you according to it need to lose weight?
    c, Why do you want to lose weight? Is it for health? The issue is that society equates skinniness with both health and happiness, but that isn't actually true. Nobody becomes instantly more popular, because they are a size 0.

    It is a long road and if you have restricted your calories for a long time, your BMR might be temporarily affected (meaning it is lower then it would be for a 'normal' person your age, your weight and your height), so you might gain weight on calories where other people of your age, weight, height and activity would still lose.