by Kevin Caruso
Anorexia, also known as anorexia nervosa, is an eating disorder in which a people are significantly below their healthy body weight because they do not consume enough food.
Additionally, regardless of how thin people with anorexia are, they see themselves as fat.
So a woman who should weigh about 120, could weigh 70 pounds and see herself as fat. (When
she looks in the mirror she could see herself at 200 pounds.)
So anorexics have a distorted body image. They simply do not see their bodies as they actually are.
The disorder is most common in adolescent females, but can affect anyone.
People with anorexia also have an intense fear of becoming fat.
Serious health problems can arise in anorexics, including organ damage, due to insufficient nutrition and caloric intake.
And many people have died from anorexia.
So the disorder is VERY serious and requires immediate treatment.
Many anorexics will hide their thin bodies by wearing loose clothing, or several layers of clothing.
Anorexics also tend to be perfectionists and set unrealistically high standards for themselves.
Additionally, most anorexics have low self-esteem and feel that they have little control in their lives; and by controlling their weight, even in an unhealthy way, they feel that they are in control.
And most anorexics do not think that they have a problem they live in constant denial.
And because of this, they are hesitant to reach out for help.
If you are anorexic, or think that you MIGHT be anorexic, you need to get help now.
And if you know someone who may have anorexia, make sure that they get help.
Please become familiar with the symptoms and medical complications of anorexia so you can spot them in yourselves or others.
Here they some of the symptoms and medical complications of anorexia:
- Extreme thinness
- Dizziness
- Headaches
- Abdominal pain
- Hair loss
- Brittle hair
- Osteoporosis
- Fatigue
- Shortness of breath
- Muscular atropy (reduction of muscle mass)
- Swelling of joints
- Clinical depression
- Inability to think clearly
- Lethargy
- Low blood pressure
- Seizures
- Yellow skin
- Dehydration
- Fainting spells
- Slow thyroid function
- Anemia
- Constipation
- Anxiety
- Weakened immune system
- Irregular heartbeat
- Lowered body temperature
- Intolerance to cold
- Low blood sugar
- Dry Skin
- Excess hair on face, arms, and body
- Slow heart rate
- Loss of menstrual cycle
- Cold hands
- Cold feet
- Edema (Water retention)
- Infertility
- Kidney damage
- Lung damage
- Cardiac Damage
- Cardiac Arrest
- Death
Remember, if you have anorexia you MUST get help now.
God bless you.
I love you.
Take care,
Kevin Caruso
Suicide.org
Founder, Executive Director, Editor-in-Chief
(Eating Disorder Help.com is a Suicide.org website.)
