Bulimia ruled my life for many years. I was ashamed of it, but it was mine and I didn’t want to let go of it. I was open about my issues with depression and anxiety as a teenager, but guarded with discussing bulimia because it was the one thing providing an temporary fix.
I didn’t care about the sore throats, stomach ulcers, arrhythmia, dizziness, etc. None of that matter. So after an inpatient stay, I finally became open about it (mostly because I couldn’t purge like I wanted to) and was told I didn’t have an eating disorder because I didn’t fit the “typical case.”
You may ask. What is an typical case? Middle to upper class white female in her teens. I had two psychiatrists explain this to me and my parents. My parents reached out to organizations to get assistance over the years. NEDA was one of them. They provided resources for them to understand eating disorders and how to best support me through recovery from one.
I will always be grateful for the knowledge this organization has provided me and parents. As an 2019 Collaborator, I want to share that recovery is possible and an eating disorder does not have to rule your life.
Mental Illness Taught Me 