Do I have a problem with atypical eating disorder?

Understanding and admitting that you have a problem with atypical eating disorder, or disordered eating, is the first big step towards seeking help, finding appropriate treatment and getting your life back. This is, in itself, an important milestone, and we understand how difficult it can be.

Atypical eating disorder, or disordered eating, refers to behaviour or eating patterns that are characteristic of some or all eating disorders, including anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder and compulsive overeating. For example, an individual may purge (rid themselves of food and therefore calories they have consumed) through vomiting or using laxatives, however, unlike a bulimic, he / she does not binge eat. A person with atypical eating disorder may not experience these behaviours as frequently or severely as individuals whose eating patterns meet the diagnostic criteria for particular eating disorders. This can make it difficult to identify and diagnose atypical eating disorders.

The symptoms of atypical eating disorders are largely focused around unhealthy eating patterns and distorted body image. When considering your current eating habits, self-esteem and lifestyle choices, do any of these issues apply to you?

See how you can start treatment at Life Works.

Eating patterns

• Your eating patterns may fit some but not all the criteria of a particular eating disorder – for example, your behaviour may be characteristic of anorexia but you are still menstruating.
• You may be able to relate to a number of behaviours that are each characteristic of different eating disorders - for example, anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder and compulsive overeating. [link these ED words to the relevant Do You Have A Problem pages]
• You have binged (overeaten in a short time) or restricted your food intake (cut out certain foods or avoided eating altogether) to try and control your weight.
• You may have had periods of being underweight and overweight, or you may have ‘yo-yo’ dieted, where you lost weight and then put it on again later – and you often repeat this cycle.
• You have noticed that your eating patterns often change considerably when your life has become more stressful.

See how you can start treatment at Life Works.

Social

• You are doing less of the things that were important to you, for example, seeing friends or family, going out or enjoying hobbies.
• You have missed family birthdays or meeting up with friends so you could avoid food or having to eat in front of others, or so that you could be alone and eat what you wanted, away from other people.
• Your relationships are suffering as a result of your difficulty around eating – your partner or spouse is dissatisfied with your relationship and you are spending less and less time with valued friends.

See how you can start treatment at Life Works.

Body Image

• Are there aspects of your physical appearance that you really dislike?
• Do you focus more on what you dislike about your physical appearance than on what you like?
• Do you spend a lot of time worrying about what others think about your physical appearance?
• Do you believe your looks determine your self-worth?
• Do negative thoughts about your body keep repeating in your head?
• Do you avoid certain social situations or activities because of how you feel about your body?
• Do you spend a lot of time, effort or money trying to 'correct' your body?
• Do you rely on clothes or make-up to cover up your perceived flaws?
• Are you continually searching for the ultimate diet, exercise regime, clothes, make-up or hair-cut?
• Do your thoughts and feelings about how you look affect how you feel about yourself?
• Do you have difficulty accepting your body as it is?

If you can relate to any of these, it may be time for you to get help to deal with your disordered eating.

At Life Works, we believe that disordered eating has become a problem when you continue to restrict, binge, purge or overeat in spite of negative consequences – whether they are health, relationship, professional, financial, legal or other problems.

See how you can start treatment at Life Works.

As a leading private behavioural health clinic for the treatment of disordered eating, Life Works is able to help you.

If you need help or advice about your disordered eating, please call us on 0800 081 0700 to speak to one of our counsellors in confidence or email us for more information.

We can answer any questions or concerns you may have, and help you find the right treatment.

Not sure if you have a problem?

Denial is common and symptomatic of atypical eating disorders, so you may deny that you have a problem both to yourself and to others, through:

• Minimising the impact of your disordered eating on your health.
• Criticising those around you for making too much fuss about your eating habits.
• Concealing your disordered eating from your loved ones
• Placing the blame for your disordered eating on other people or situations in your life, such as “I restrict my eating because my job stresses me out”.

It is worth considering why you feel the need to do any of these things, if you don’t have an issue with food. It is likely that you have a problem with disordered eating but you are not ready to admit this to yourself or to anyone else.

See how you can start treatment at Life Works.

Why admitting you have a problem can be so hard

Denial is a key characteristic of disordered eating. It is one of the few illnesses that perpetuates itself, as one of the symptoms of disordered eating is that it tells you that you don’t have a problem. This is one of the reasons why individuals stay trapped with disordered eating for a lifetime. We advise you to stay open to the feedback from others and professionals and look at the evidence.

See how you can start treatment at Life Works.

Why it is so important to get help

At Life Works, we know that disordered eating is an illness. This is central to our Clinical Philosophy and underpins our approach to treatment. We use the latest neuroscientific thinking to inform our understanding of how problems with disordered eating affect the individual and how we can provide effective treatment of these problems.

Having disordered eating habits means that you have an illness which affects different parts of the brain and seriously impairs your ability to make choices. This means that over time, your decision-making ability and your behaviour become increasingly focused on your disordered eating habits, to the detriment of everything else in your life – your partner, your job, your family and your friends. Your preoccupation with food becomes your number one priority.

Feeling ashamed, guilty or disgusted with your behaviour can be incredibly difficult and often increases your need to restrict, binge, purge (through vomiting, laxatives, diuretics or over exercising) or overeat, if only to help you feel better. But the satisfaction or relief you feel from doing this becomes more and more short-lived and, over time, this will worsen the problem for you, increasingly isolate you from those who care about you and leave you with feelings of loneliness, fear and desperation. Sadly, many individuals do not ask for help when they really need it, to the extent that their disordered eating worsens to the point of crisis - medically, physically and emotionally.

See how you can start treatment at Life Works.

Is it really a problem?

Disordered eating is a progressive, life-threatening, psychiatric illness. If left untreated, it causes serious long term health problems – for example, high blood pressure, heart disease, high cholesterol, obesity, type II diabetes, gallbladder disease, gastro-intestinal problems, malnutrition, osteoarthritis, joint and muscle pain and sleep apnoea.

In some cases, individuals with disordered eating die. Eating disorders have the highest mortality rate compared with any other psychiatric illness.

Being in this situation can often be terrifying, exhausting, depressing, upsetting and deeply shaming. The future may seem totally bleak and pointless and the only thing that seems to make you feel better is restricting, bingeing, purging or overeating.

See how you can start treatment at Life Works.

What is recovery?

There are many misconceptions about what being “in recovery” means. Recovery is commonly misunderstood, especially by people who have not received treatment and also among their friends and families.

At Life Works, we truly understand that the prospect of recovery can seem frightening. You may believe that recovery offers you nothing but a lifetime of having to live with your own problems, frustrations and feelings without even feeling that you have control over your weight, body shape or eating habits. Imagining your life like this may seem incredibly daunting and overwhelming. Faced with a choice between your life as it is, or recovery, it is understandable why you may have reservations about recovery.

However, by finding the strength to seek professional help, you will get the support and guidance you need to start reaping the benefits of the first stage of recovery.

We believe recovery is about so much more than eating food again. We define recovery as getting your life back, especially those aspects that are valuable and precious to you. It also means putting more into your life than you may have previously and finding meaning either once again, or for the first time ever. Recovery means creating a healthy, fulfilling and meaningful life that is characterised by healthy eating habits, more effective tools for coping with the stresses of life, and a greater connection with yourself, those close to you and the larger community.

At Life Works, we strongly believe that recovery is not about what you are taking out of your life, but rather what you put back into it. Disordered eating is a disease of isolation and the life of someone with disordered eating tends to get smaller and smaller. Recovery is about expanding and enhancing your life.
By taking that first step and receiving treatment for your disordered eating at Life Works, you will be able to start leading the new life you deserve.

See how you can start treatment at Life Works.

Life Works is a leading behavioural health facility for the treatment of disordered eating.

If you need help or advice about your problem with disordered eating, please call us on 0800 081 0700 to speak to one of our counsellors in confidence or email us for more information.

We can answer any questions or concerns you may have and help you find the right treatment.