The one mental disorder that I kept thinking about while drafting this assignment is the Eating disorder due to it being one of the only disorders that I can relate to. I think I might have an eating disorder which is why it really peaked my interest. The definition of an eating disorder is any of a range of psychological disorders characterized by abnormal or disturbed eating habits (such as anorexia nervosa). But what is the cause for this widely spread and common disorder?
An eating disorder is both a mental and physical illness. People with conditions such as anorexia and bulimia experience severe disturbances in their eating behaviors. Their thoughts and emotions center on food and body weight to an abnormal degree. Extreme behaviors and distorted thinking grow out of control. “Eating disorders are not a choice,” says Dr. Evelyn Attia, a professor of psychiatry and director of the Columbia Center for Eating Disorders at Columbia University Irving Medical Center in New York City. “They’re not a lifestyle. They are serious psychiatric illnesses that are potentially lethal, but if properly identified are entirely treatable.”
An estimated 30 million Americans will have an eating disorder at some point in their lives, according to the National Eating Disorders Association. About 20 million will be women and the other 10 million will be men. “Eating disorders can affect people of all sizes, all ethnicities and of all sexual orientations,” says Dr. Jason Nagata, a pediatrician and researcher in the division of adolescent and young adult medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, and an assistant professor of pediatrics at the UCSF School of Medicine. “We’re now seeing that eating disorders can affect boys and girls. They can affect people of all economic strata. So it’s important not to have preconceived notions about how someone with an eating disorder looks.”Older adults can develop eating disorders, too. “I’ve had patients from 7 years old to 75 years old,” says Dr. Terri Griffith, clinical coordinator of the intensive outpatient program at The Center for Eating Disorders at Sheppard Pratt in Baltimore. She says she’s seen patients of all different races, ethnic backgrounds, males and females, who came in for treatment of their eating disorders. “I’ve had patients who are technically obese and patients who are really underweight,” Griffith adds. “So there’s a wide variety of patients that we treat.”
I have had an Eating Disorder for the last 2 years but I have stopped or believe to have stopped recently around february. I was pretty skinny back in 11th grade but I became depressed because of a relationship with a significant other. And the outcome of that relationship is what I believe started this whole thing. I have tried to diet, go workout, and do everything I can to lose weight to no end. Because I will eventually go back to eating. But in the last year I made new friends that changed me a little and motivated me to lose weight in which I am currently and hopefully will keep going. I think it changed me because one of my friends was obese around 2 years ago but the doctor told him if he keeps going he might die, he was 15. I think that scared him a lot and he is now a bodybuilder. He keeps motivating me and makes me keep going. I think I am fortunate to have this friend in my life. But unfortunately not everyone is like me. Many people keep to their habit which hurts their lifestyle a lot.
This is a problem that “Eating disorders can affect people of all ages, racial/ethnic backgrounds, body weights, and genders. Although eating disorders often appear during the teen years or young adulthood, they may also develop during childhood or later in life (40 years and older).” (NIH). In addition to the negative physical effects, eating disorders often have detrimental effects on an individual’s mental health, wellbeing, and personal life. This could lead to Isolation. Those with an eating disorder may find themselves isolating from those around them. This isolation could be due to the inability of those around them to understand the illness, but it may also present to maintain the eating disorder. In this case, people may find themselves isolating during meal times, avoiding social gatherings involving food, or ignoring those who are encouraging them to seek help. Intimacy difficulties. It’s common for those living with an eating disorder to experience changes in physical appearance and physical health. These complications can cause a decrease in mood, energy, and libido. In addition, body dysmorphia may cause individuals to avoid intimate interactions and to disconnect with those around them. Anxiety. A large number of individuals suffering from an eating disorder also experience anxiety. This anxiety may stem from biological traits that link the eating disorder with anxiety, or the eating disorder may be a coping mechanism for an individual’s anxiety. Depression. In addition to anxiety, those with eating disorders may also suffer from depression. This depression can exist prior to the eating disorder or may occur with the illness. Weight gain, body image issues, or isolation caused by the eating disorder may lead certain people to become increasingly depressed as the eating disorder progresses. It’s estimated that 30 million Americans have struggled with an eating disorder at some point over their lifetime, says Claire Mysko, CEO of the National Eating Disorders Association. That breaks down to 20 million women and 10 million men.
Although many people associate young women with eating disorders, men can have them too. “We think the 10 million number is probably larger,”
Mustafa Alattar 