May 13, 2012
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All Women Suffer From an Eating Disorder
Recently I was having a conversation with a friend and she said that all women have suffered from an eating disorder at some point in their life.
Have you ever suffered from an eating disorder?
Comments (95)
yes
No. I’ve had some disordered eating, but nothing to actually qualify for an official diagnosis.
No, just poor body image.
No, not all women have suffered from an eating disorder. I’d say that many women probably have suffered from disordered eating, which is an entirely different thing. I’d say I’d fall into that second category.
No. I used to overeat but that’s just cuz I have a sweet tooth and like tasty food! But it wasn’t an eating disorder, I didn’t emotionally eat or anything like that. I just ate a lot.
i think many women suffer from eating disorders which is why there is so much obesity. perhaps if they would stop eating so much they could be healthier and more attractive.
Saying that everyone has suffered from something trivializes it. Has every woman struggled with her body image? Probably. Has/will every woman diet at some point/have an unhealthy relationship with food at some point? Sure. But that’s not a disorder.
Never had an eating disorder, I doubt I ever will.
Personally, yes. Unhealthy feelings toward food. Obsession with exercise. Body image issues/distortion. A little induced vomiting when I felt I’d gone too far.
But you can’t say that EVERY woman has. Many, but not all. All of us have at least had issues with self esteem related to body image I think.
@pikachooseyou - This.
@iones_island - Klassy.
Never. I’ve never even really dieted. But maybe I’m just weird that way.
That’s false.
Yeah, but mines quite a common one. It’s called
“why yes I will have another piece of pie!”
Yes. I just ate a muffin. Pretty sure I have fat-assimia.
NO! I love food. It gives me things my body needs to keep working! I would never turn any kind of food down. And if anyone is trying to guess what I look like. I am 5’5 and 128lbs! I am a healthy weight for my height! And when I was in school, girl just did NOT do things like this. We grew up too broke to turn down a meal! We sure new how to make a jaw breaker last!
Extreme generalizations FTW.
That’s a ridiculous thing to say
Yes. But I don’t think that every woman does. That seems to misunderstand what eating disorders are.
Maybe your friend was exaggerating. Yes i had a type of eating disorder. Food did not taste anything for long periods of time. Now i’m ok.
Yes, I have an eating disorder.
No, not all women have eating disorders or disordered eating.
thats funny, because i’ve never once had an eating disorder or even thought about it … that’s a pretty extreme thing for your friend to generalize about the whole female population. body issues & the feeling of not feeling your best is normal, but that’s not an eating disorder in any way ..
That’s ridiculous.
Yeah! I can’t f-ing stay alive unless I eat! Go figure! Seems pretty disorderly to me!
no. I have two friends who are naturally skinny and they never worried about things like that.
I have an eating disorder, its going to McDonalds. That will kill me!
i feel like i’m fat all the time.
@kristinabean - that’s me, consummate gentleman and respecter of the ladies.
I’m not sure where your friend is getting her facts from, but that’s insane!
I don’t really consider the idea of specifically ‘eating disorders’.. but i think we’re all been prone to ‘human disorders’.
Acceptance of ourselves and others, by ourselves and others, both give us strength or wreck us. thus, order or disorder.
By standard definitions of an eating disorder, nope, I’ve never had one. Maybe your friend is working with a different definition than the one most of us use.
Link There appears to be a blog dedicated to this subject.
Yes, different ones, multiple times.
No. I did spend most of my high school career with my finger down my throat or skipping meals but I don’t think it ever got to be a big enough issue. If I ever told myself I wasn’t going to throw up my dinner I just wouldn’t.
It really doesn’t seem like you write actual posts. You can write whatever you want..I guess I just don’t get why so many respond when there’s hardly a post there? Maybe because we all like to answer the questions and talk about ourselves…just an observation.
kinda
Obviously.
I totally disagree with whoever you were having a conversation with. I have personally never had any type of eating disorder, I’m a 31 year old mother of two. I have 4 sisters. One of them had/has(?) food issues, but they aren’t classifiable as a disorder – which would be a condition in need of treatment. Heck, I have never even dieted. I sometimes go on a “I need to eat healthier” kick, but that’s isn’t a diet as it’s normally defined.
I actually think that your friend may have a low opinion of the entire female gender if she believes we are all psychologically ill at some point in our lives. It goes right along with the word “hysteria” coming from the idea that females (who have a uterus/womb, thus the latin prefix hyster-) are inherently emotionally unstable because of said womb.
There have been times when i have intentionally not eaten for the sake of getting skinnier. But, I don’t think I’ve ever actually had a full on eating disorder.
maybe only in america
No, I never have. I had a cousin who did and I think that seeing the havoc it wreaked on her kept me from trying anything like that.
story of my life
Everybody calm the fuck down, I got this.
The answer is no.
Now give me some fucking pie.
Such an ironic statement, because it clearly proves that she’s never had one.
Nope. Though there are definitely times when I don’t like how I look (like right after having a baby). That doesn’t mean I go and starve myself though.
@f5ye_angel5 - Pretty much. Or only in first world countries.
No. I love healthy eating lifestyle, with more veggie and less meat.
I think the term ‘eating disorders’ is somewhat misused these days. Are there any celebrities left who haven’t opened up about their battle with eating disorders? Like someone already stated, I think the proper expression for it is ‘disordered eating’. Most women have had some strange thoughts concerning food or gone through a phase of dieting but that’s entirely different than having an eating disorder. There are certain criteria that need to met in order to receive the diagnosis, that’s why so many fall under the category EDNOS.
i suffer from veggie-itis. i can’t seem to eat them
Yes, but so do men. I don’t think it’s fair to say that all women will get an eating disorder. Or have one.
Yes, but my addiction to gorging seems to makes my husband very happy.
I think body image issues are more common than eating disorders.
yes I have in the past,now It’s all about being fit & healthy.
Yes I have, but I went through some very intensive treatment and worked through it, but I will never be “over it”. I always have to be watchful. Although it feels like I’m over it. I used to binge and purge a dozen times a day, give or take. It took a good 5 inpatient eating disorder units, 3 stints of partial hospitalization and 3 years of individual outpatient therapy to finally be able to stand on my own two feet. I think your friend has the wrong idea of “eating disorders”.
Maybe disordered eating, but I think she’s undermining the amount of pain someone with an eating disorder goes through by saying that it’s just a typical thing that everyone goes through. It’s not. It makes a person very sick inside. And not just physically.
These days I am happy to not have to deal with that anymore. The pain involved in it. It’s a mental illness. It’s not a trend. People these days seem to think eating disorders are a trend. They aren’t…they make you very, very sick, mentally.
not true. i never had an eating disorder.
i live to eat not eat to live.. is that a disorder..
Nope I love food. I just exercise to stay fit, but eat normally and what I like.
@iones_island - woooooow. don’t you think that’s a little bit harsh? & maybe you should get more information on a topic before making assumptions because eating disorders aren’t just about over-eating. there are many different types of eating disorders. plus, who the fuck says bigger women aren’t attractive? i’m sorry but closed-minded comments like this seriously piss me off.
thats extremely untrue. Like most are saying..a lot of women suffered from poor body image, but an eating disorder is way more than just cutting calories every once in awhile…
Is your friend dumb?
yes.
Only when I run out of donuts.
This is a dumb thing to say, and I think that you should get new friends Dan.
Your friend is very misinformed.
Anorexia, both types of bulimia and exercise addiction.
Disordered eating, yes. Eating Disorder, never.
Poor body image. Recovering bulimic.
every day of my life
Yes I have personally…. But i do not agree with the said ‘fact’ that all women do have eating disorders at some point in their life! I know many older women that have never had an issue & I know others that have (and MEN!! ) it’s not always women & girls that have eating disorders! Men do too!
Speaking as someone who is currently in treatment for an eating disorder, I would have to strongly disagree with that. Say that is a major generalization and taking away the severity of what an eating disorder actually is….
that’s ridiculous, i’m sorry.
i used to be anorexic…. but to say that ALL women have an eating disorders is ludicrous. I think many women may have a hard time accepting who they are, but that doesn’t mean they’re eating disordered. ugghhh
Note: I’m a guy
I’d say i had an issue eating normally but not a disorder. I had an obsession during middle school of staying below 90 lbs. I fueled it by cutting out lunch and tried to eat as little as possible. I currently weigh 125 lbs but i eat everything in moderation and participate in cross country to shed fat.
My bar of dark chocolate and I say “no”
I’d say yes
People normalize themselves. It’s normal.
I had an eating disorder, and it wasn’t from poor body image, though the two got tangled. I was angry.
sometimes I’m a picky eater but it isn’t an eating disorder.
Eff that. ED is a mental disorder… that would imply that 50% of our population is mentally fucked. Not true.
Yes.
I played around with Anorexia and Bulimia for a bit at different times in my life
Does your friend also think all Asians know Kung Fu?
Um, no, just no. If they did than at least half the population would be more responsible in what they do and say around people with EDs!! Are the majority of women shallow and have disordered eating? Yes. Do the majority of women have their quality of life so impacted they can’t leave the house or have no friends, etc.? NO.
As someone with an ED this is EXTREMELY offensive.
Especially since EDs aren’t gender specific OR food-related.
I eat too much…I like good food…….is that an eating disorder?
No. I skip meals a lot, but that’s just cause I don’t feel like eating.
hell no i haven’t. i love food too much and having an extremely fast metabolism makes it that much better.
Yes. Since I was five; I’ve been in and out of several residential treatment centers and hospitals. And, no, not every woman has had an eating disorder. Distorted eating is common but not an official disorder. An ED is a mental disorder that affects EVERY part of your life. It consumes you. I am 24 and still deal with anorexia on a daily basis.
No.
I love it when fatass bitches say ‘oh I am suffering from a medical condition, which is why I am fat’. NO, you are fat because you eat like a fucking PIG! Get over it!
Or, when the bitches puke up their food in an attempt to make themselves skinnier, they claim it is a fucking ‘disease’. Bwaaaaaahhhhhaaaahhhhaaa. It is NOT a fucking disease, bitches. It is your own desperate attempt to make us males want you as you know we don’t want any fatass bitches. Do not insult those who truly suffer from REAL diseases by attempting to label your stupidity as a disease. I dare you ‘anorexic’ bitches to complain about your ‘disease’ in front of a dying cancer patient. You bitches should be ashamed of yourselves.
Nope, don’t think I’ve ever had one. I didn’t eat much when I was a child, but the only reason seemed to be that I just wasn’t very hungry. And it sorted itself out slowly.
I’m Italian – I love food too much to have an eating disorder. And I’ve always been a healthy weight too.
Honestly, I have.
That was pretty freaking terrible.
I could see like 1 in 4. I don’t think everyone has an eating disorder in their lifetime, though.
I did restrict/obsess to the point where I had amenorrhea for well over 6 months. I was diagnosed after-the-fact, but I’d say yeah. I have.
Yes.
♥L
-SM
@ShimmerBodyCream - That comment made me laugh.
Only most insecure women. Many love their curves and lovehandles.
Shouldn’t even be a topic… Same topic on thousands of websites. Someone asked me if I was anorexic… it was a fat person who asked me, and I’ve also been physically fit with sports and things. They asked me because while the rest of college prep was eating McDonalds and drinking pop, I chose to drink water and skip the fried gunk.
I don’t know whether I felt more sorry for the guy for such a low I.Q. or the fact that he just devoured the third Xlarge fries pack…
The only time I have ever been self conscious of my figure was when I was 13 and I was getting love handles. A girl pointed that out to me and I thought it was a bad thing having these ‘things’! Later on I found out it’s necessary to have children with ease and without them I would be a thin stick. The eating disorders are all about self consciousness & self esteem… and usually someone else telling them they would look better in a size 0 pair of skinny jeans rather than the beautiful curvacious figure of 1600′s portraits… (check them out they are none skin and bones)