When Dieting Goes Too Far: How to Conquer Eating Disorders

Disordered eating is not the same as eating disorders, but it can lead you down the path of developing one. For that reason, it’s important to recognize what disordered eating is, and take steps to fix it.

Disordered eating isn’t unusual in our society. It stems from pressure to be fit and healthy, but many people don’t have a solid understanding of how to achieve that. Even if you haven’t dealt with disordered eating personally, you probably know someone who has. Learning what it is and what to watch for can help you to recognize it and head off an eating disorder before it gets started.

Eating Disorders vs Disordered Eating – Defined

Eating disorders and disordered eating are defined by EatingDisorders.org as: “…a wide range of abnormal eating behaviors, many of which are shared with diagnosed eating disorders. The main thing differentiating disordered eating from an eating disorder is the level of severity and frequency of behaviors.”

This has an assortment of implications. First, it implies that disordered eating is an early version of an eating disorder. Second, it seems very simple to fall into. After all, who hasn’t gone on a quick diet to fit into an outfit? Maybe there was another diet for a date night, and you skipped a meal or two the next day to make up for eating out and drinking. If these things happen often enough, and you focus on getting thinner or controlling your food in an effort to feel good about yourself, there could be an issue.

Overall, approximately 75 percent of women suffer from some sort of disordered eating. When you’re busy juggling a career, family and stress, the desire to lose weight can sometimes spiral out of control, resulting in unhealthy habits. These habits can take various forms, but there are several clear warning signs you can watch for, both in yourself and others.

Warning Signs

• Frequently skipping meals
• Binge eating, sometimes in conjunction with strange food combinations
• Obsessive calorie counting
• Obsessive weight tracking
• Forced purging – vomiting or misuse of laxatives and diuretics
• Constant dieting
• Excessive exercise
• Basing all or part of your self-worth on your weight

Some of these warning signs are closer to an eating disorder than they are to disordered eating, such as purging. If you notice these behaviors have become a part of your life, it’s important to seek professional advice.

Yo-Yo Diets

A yo-yo diet is when you go on a diet, lose some weight and gain it right back when you come off the diet. That’s no fun for anyone! These sorts of diets are usually pretty restrictive. Think no or low carbs, zero sweets and nothing but water, all at the same time. Although that particular diet means you can have steak and eggs for breakfast, it won’t stop your 2 p.m. sugar craving.

This type of highly restrictive diet isn’t usually considered a long-term problem by health professionals. However, its pattern is reminiscent of binging: There is a period of denial followed by a period of giving in and eating a large portion of the foods you had been avoiding.

No matter what kind of disordered eating pattern you or your loved one(s) may be experiencing, you should know you aren’t alone. After all, the majority of women have experienced this at some point in their lives. Thankfully, there are plenty of things that can be done in order to move forward.

Getting Healthy

Treatment for disordered eating can be a combination of self-care and help from a professional. The first step, however, is realizing what’s going on and wanting to create healthier habits. This, of course, is the step that takes the most time and courage. Disordered eating and anxiety about eating isn’t a good way to spend your time, and it’s certainly not the most fun for those around you. Instead of continuing to live life with food in the back of your mind, take some steps to live in the moment.

Establish Healthy Eating Habits

Many people fall back on diets because they don’t understand how to eat healthy as part of their regular lifestyle. Sometimes it really can be hard to do, but if you find yourself stopping at a fast food joint once a week instead of once a month, you might want to reconsider your habits.

It seems easy to diet because it’s a short-term solution. Working on changing your eating habits to reflect a healthy eating lifestyle, however, is a big change; so don’t try to do it all at once. Break it into steps. Stop drinking soda for a week. Then include broccoli two times in one week, and avoid soda. Instead of cutting things out, limit them. Small steps can make a big goal seem easy.

Listen to Your Body

When you have cravings, it’s usually for a reason. Address your cravings head on – acknowledge that you have them, and agree to yourself that if you still want cake after you’ve had an apple, you can. By acknowledging them but refusing to allow them to run your life, your cravings become easier to handle. This can help prevent purging and allow you to think about if you really want cake or not.

Additionally, if you skip breakfast, you’re probably hungry earlier than most of your co-workers. It might be hard to start eating breakfast every day, so bring a snack with you to eat when you do get hungry. Eventually, your body will start to realize that you can eat earlier, and you’ll get hungry accordingly.

Trust Yourself

You are the only one who knows what is inside your mind, so you are the only one who can really confront and conquer disordered eating. Learning how to trust yourself is something that can only be done with practice and by listening to your body. Eventually, you will know to eat when you’re hungry, and only eat until you’re full. For now, simply learning that you can trust in what your mind and body feel is enough.

Practice Mindful Eating

Mindful eating is simple because all you have to do is pay attention to what you’re eating. It means that you don’t watch TV while you eat, or read a book, or scroll through your phone. You simply eat. You talk to the people you’re with, you try to identify the flavors in your food. And you eat slowly, pausing frequently to take a drink or join in a conversation. Those pauses also allow you to assess yourself, and to see if you’re still hungry or if you’re getting full.

Use these tips to take control of your eating instead of letting food control you.  If you feel you need professional assistance, consider an outpatient eating disorder treatment plan.  The important thing is to take action and make changes that will lead to a healthier you!