how to change the mindset of someone with an ED ?

BeautyFromPain
BeautyFromPain Posts: 4,952 Member
edited October 2 in Motivation and Support
Hey all,

I'm Ellie and when I was in high school I had anorexia nervosa. I have relapsed quite a few times and thought I was doing quite well.
But now as I am counting calories I think to myself, "how nutritional is that?" "is it okay to eat that?" "how many cals is that?" "will that put me at my cal limit?" and thinking quite simply that "food is the enemy"
And if I come anywhere close to my calorie limit I think that means I have to exercise at least 500/600 of those cals off.
Not to mention I just always think of my diet and exercise, it has actually made me lose friends cos i would rather be at the gym than hanging out with them. (Not really, but I can't help it :/)
It has taken over my life and is actually making me so exhausted that I fainted today.

I have a feeling if this goes on much longer I am going to land myself back in hospital...
If anyone has any tips on changing the mindset it would be so helpful?

Replies

  • emmaNEEDSskinny
    emmaNEEDSskinny Posts: 317
    try to get yourself off calorie counting,
    i have an ED to its kind of made me better and worse
    my binges have gotten worse since calorie counting and it really just does your head in
    calorie counting is not healthy because of the obsessive state you can get into
    i hope your ok <3
  • RiawnaIsFatFailure
    RiawnaIsFatFailure Posts: 32
    I have an eating disorder and think u should eber look over your old recovery notes set some healthy targets right them down or go see a docter councer change is scafy bht its ok and eight how to change
  • littlemili
    littlemili Posts: 625 Member
    Hey. Same here. I was anorexic at age 12, and relapsed since coming to this website even though it didn't cross my mind at the time. There are certain unchangable personality traits that lend themselves to ED mindsets such as perfectionism and anxiety. Stuff like CBT can help to teach you to alter your thinking patterns which would impact on ED if it worked for you.

    I have just decided to go the whole way and am getting treatment from regular counselling, CBT and specialist outpatient ED hospital unit where I will see a psychologist, psychotherapist and psychanalyst. I think that if you really want to give yourself the best chance of learning why you are drawn to ED behaviour you should throw yourself into treatment now and I'm sure that if you set your mind to it one of the treatments widely available can help you at least in part. I think that you even recognise your problem and are willing to tackle it is great. It took me a long time to get to that stage and even now I don't know if I actually want to get better...
  • sexyminxinthemaking
    sexyminxinthemaking Posts: 451 Member
    i also suffered anorexia when i was a teenager and the calorie counting has arose old issues for me too is there a group for people in the same situation because people who have not suffered dont have a clue would love to be able to chat to people who no where im coming from at my smallest weight i was 4 stone 7 and days away from dying that was ten years ago and i dont want to go back down that road but its a slippery slope
  • BeautyFromPain
    BeautyFromPain Posts: 4,952 Member
    Maybe we should make a page where we can all post when feeling hopeless and get support... ?
    Any good ideas on how to do this, as message board posts often get lost a lot of the time?
  • sexyminxinthemaking
    sexyminxinthemaking Posts: 451 Member
    yeah thats a very good idea to make a group where we can support eachother cos i often feel like nobody understands so it will be nice to no that everybody in the group does but i havent got a clue how to set up a group so now we just need someone to tell us how to set one up
  • LemonPoppySeedMuffin
    LemonPoppySeedMuffin Posts: 302
    The only person that can change their mind is themselves. You can scare them out of it, bribe them out of it, blackmail out of it ect but the mind won't change until the sufferer does so.
  • BeautyFromPain
    BeautyFromPain Posts: 4,952 Member
    hey all, check out http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/334657-food-is-not-the-enemy
  • TomorrowNeverKnows
    TomorrowNeverKnows Posts: 12 Member
    All my therapists (and I had several, from different hospitals and residential centers) say that if you ever had an ED you should NEVER go on a diet or control your eating without a rigorous control from a doctor.

    You should never count calories, you should never read labels... and you should always visit a real doctor to know if you really need to lose weight and you should tell him/her about your past eating disorder.

    Basically, joining MFP you're making it really easy for your mind to relapse. You decide.
  • Jackie_Snape80
    Jackie_Snape80 Posts: 152 Member
    What you just said was EXACTLY how I spent my second semester of my feshman year at college. It started out with simple curiosity then spiraled out of control until I have....*this*...Ed. Yeah, I got worse/better/worse/better throughout the summer. I'm back at college and I'm wondering the same thing.

    How *do* you go about changing something that's been a part of your mindset for so long? I can't give an exact answer, but one step at a time is best. Think of what the next right thing is. Eat too little one day? Eat a normal amount the next day..maybe add 100-200 to that. Overexercise yesterday? Take a break today. Binge/purge? Forget about that slip-up and focus and not doing it again. It's hard(and confusing) as hell, but once yo get a routine going it comes much more easily. I still love the gym, but I limit myself to one class a day, 5 days a week(only 3 of them are classes I *don't* want to miss) and make time with friends. You could incorporate a little exercise at first like bowling, swimming, walking/hiking, to make it more comfortable.

    These are just some things that I've made myself do. Keeping myself busy, entertained, or following a *flexible*(strict schedules are one of Ed's favorite way to control you) makes a difference :)
  • CoachMaritova
    CoachMaritova Posts: 409 Member
    All my therapists (and I had several, from different hospitals and residential centers) say that if you ever had an ED you should NEVER go on a diet or control your eating without a rigorous control from a doctor.

    You should never count calories, you should never read labels... and you should always visit a real doctor to know if you really need to lose weight and you should tell him/her about your past eating disorder.

    Basically, joining MFP you're making it really easy for your mind to relapse. You decide.

    Ah-ha!!! I believe it!
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