When it comes to battling personal illnesses, sometimes it takes all of your strength and pride not to share your pain or deep issues with friends and loved ones. However, it can be painful having friends and loved ones suffering in silence, or in the cases of eating disorders, lying to themselves and you that everything is fine. While it’s easy to identify full-blown eating disorders like anorexia and bulimia, you might be surprised by how easy it is to miss some of the most common warning signs that friends and loved ones might have an eating disorder.
Understanding what Eating Disorders Are
According to major medical studies, eating disorders most commonly begin during adolescence and young adulthood. Eating disorders are much more common among girls and women. But eating disorders can affect individuals of all genders, body sizes, ages, socio-economic statuses, and ethnic backgrounds. Someone’s appearance does not tell you if they have an eating disorder.
For example, over 1 million Australians have been medically diagnosed with an eating disorder. Even more serious is that there has been more than a 20% bump in diagnosed Australians with eating disorders since 2012.
Many medical experts believe that eating disorders are a result of biological, psychological and even genetic factors. Studies show that there are also very strong genetic roots to these disorders. Eating disorders can occur along with other mental disorders like mood disorders, anxiety disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and addiction. Eating disorders, unfortunately have the highest mortality rate for the mental illness sector, which includes suicide.
Getting Help Early
It is possible to recover from an eating disorder with early detection and treatment. Treatment begins by addressing the physical concerns related to malnutrition and low weight. However, emotional and mental imbalances can also trigger eating disorders. Therapy is used to treat dysfunctional thoughts and behaviors and to replace them with healthy habits around food. Many people who suffer from eating disorders do not want to seek treatment.
However, in the technological era of advanced telehealth services. It is easier than ever for loved ones to help get help for loved ones who are in the early stages of eating disorders before they potentially become fatal. In the United States, the National Eating Disorders Association specializes in virtual clinics and remote meal coaching for patients who can’t access in-person consultations.
In the United Kingdom, the NHS leads with national helplines and telehealth support groups. In Australia, a country with more rural areas than most, patients or their loved ones can rely on expert websites like Medicompare to find the right national telemedicine doctors or specialists for the specific eating disorder.
Emotional Warning Signs for Eating Disorders
Besides noticeable weight loss and gain, the root of many eating disorders is also emotional. If you notice sudden mood swings with your loved ones, there might be more to it than meets the eye. It is not uncommon that the root of the sudden mood swings without a clear explanation could be coming from an eating disorder such as bulimia nervosa.
Sudden Depression and Anxiety
A classic sign of depression, including eating disorders, is more social withdrawal. If you notice a friend or a loved one constantly avoiding gatherings and functions, it could be someone grappling with an eating disorder like anorexia nervosa.
Physical Warning Signs of Eating Disorders
Besides dramatic weight shifts, there are many surprising physical signs of a loved one in the throes of an eating disorder. Below are some interesting and common physical signs to detect food disorders.
Loss or Thinning Hair
While hair loss isn’t necessarily the result of an eating disorder, missing the proper nutrients can thin hair and cause those with eating disorders to lose it. Malnutrition effectively shuts down the cycle of hair follicle regeneration and growth.
Losing weight too fast from undereating, or disorders like bulimia, where you vomit up the undigested food, can lead to dramatic weight loss. This, of course, robs the body of the proper nutrients like iron and vitamin D to regrow hair.
Chronic Fatigue and Dizziness
Chronic fatigue is also linked to chronic depression. However, it is also another chilling warning sign of an eating disorder in progress. If a loved one is having one too many fainting episodes and dizzy spells, you might want to speak to licensed mental health official to see if this is possibly due to an eating disorder.
Avoiding Eating Around Others
If you are having a family or group meal, and you notice your friend or loved one purposely not eating or playing with their food, this is a classic sign of an eating disorder. They might also take super small bites and overchew their food. This is not normal behavior.
Eating too Much and Eating too Fast
It’s one thing to wolf down a good meal. It is another thing entirely to constantly overeat in a single seating and leave the group. The sudden move could be them making too many bathroom runs to vomit up the food, or using laxatives to get rid of the undigested food.
When to Seek Professional Help
All of the signs listed above are classic signs to encourage a friend or loved one to get help. If they are over-obsessed with fitness or cooking food they don’t eat, it is time to seek professional help. With the rise of telehealth services, especially in mental health, why not schedule a telehealth doctor’s appointment for your loved one who needs help? Sometimes, being with a friend who cares in a familiar setting can be the nudge they need to get long-term care.
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