I saw this artical today and found it interesting. ED strikes older women too. Finally! The medical profession is seeing what I already knew.
http://theweek.com/article/index/229721/the-surprising-prevalence-of-eating-disorders-among-older-women
There is a lady in my small town that had gastric by pass surgery. She is VERY thin. Skeletal and feels like a million bucks. Trust me, I know the feeling. Every pound lost makes you feel better. And it is always just one more pound. Just one more and I will be the perfect weight. I know this but I worry about her. She is too thin, doesn't feel good and seems to be leaving her family behind in the process. The hardest part is that her children are paying the highest price. She went from morbid obesity to the other end of abnormal.
My message? Ladies, you are beautiful in the skin you are in. Beautiful comes in all shapes and sizes. It isn't limited to skeletal models or bean poles. And don't let a few pounds change who you are. It is better to be fat and happy than thin and mean. Live life to the fullest no matter what size you are.
My weight yo-yos. Up and down. I need to get this lesson. I need to learn it too.
D's Rose, I did not get a handle on my weight until I was more at peace about myself on the inside. Until I learned to identify feelings and process them without the crutch or diversion of food in the mix.
ReplyDeleteI remember years ago I said something to my oldest son about having an "unbalanced relationship with food" and he said "Mom! That's just it. You're not supposed to have a relationship with your food!" OMG did that hit home! I had to learn to separate food from feelings...not easy. Food is for fuel, sometimes for pleasure. Feelings need to be worked through in healthier ways than reaching for or staying away from fuel for my body!
It's still a challenge, and of course I slip...but the more I focus on my inner self, my real feelings, the easier it is to maintain a good healthy weight.
Sara
AT 16 I filed for a divorce from food. It still stands. I don't like food and don't like to eat. I eat to live and that is about it. Dragon makes sure I get more than enough calories to sustain.
DeleteMy challenge is to accept the skin I am in. I won't be loosing very much of this weight if he has his way. And he usually does.
Very good post. Thanks for the reminders.
ReplyDeleteYou are welcome! Many people think ED is just a teenager thing. It isn't!
DeleteSo true, and a great song as well. From having to be fed thick cereal feedings as an infant, when I should have been on breast milk or formula, to the dietary restrictions I abide by now to stay healthy, food has always been an issue for me. I wish it wasn't and sometimes I wish I didn't actually have to eat, even though I do enjoy food. I guess like Sara, I have an unbalanced relationship with food...when I shouldn't have a relationship with my food at all. I'm working on it, but it's not always easy.
ReplyDeleteIt isn't easy. One meal at a time. That is the only way to beat this. And looking in the mirror. Beautiful women come in all shapes and sizes!
DeleteDragon's Rose: It's been an all life battle but I have noticed that in my adult hood my weight directly relates to my self confidence and self esteem. Whenever I feel great and things are really going well I drop the weight. I get to a certain point of course and I get worried if I will be accepted at my goal weight.
ReplyDeleteComments start and I get scared that people will start to become friends with me because of my looks. Self sabotage at its worst.
I've also seen friends and family members struggle at all weights. It should go without saying that I don't see weight on other people at all! I just wish that I could see myself on the outside the way that others see me. *small smile*
It seems that all of us have something to overcome. So glad you shared this. (Didn't mean to ramble!)
~Addy
Stress and my weight drops. Not even Dragon can make me eat right now. 8 lbs so far but it is weight I need to lose. Depression is when I gain. I don't eat but I don't move ether and the pounds pack on.
DeleteI am living on crackers and dry cereal for now. Give me a few weeks for my appetite to return. I need a roof over my head first.
Amen. I still deal with my struggle, and I also have a bad relationship with food. I know it will be there forever though. One day at a time! Thanks for sharing the article.
ReplyDeleteMe and you both. I have a week in July that I will be on my own. No Dragon and no kids to feed or to remind me to eat. My plan is to get Dragon to help me make a menu and stick to it!
DeleteI know exactly what you mean. This something I struggle with but I realized a lot of my eating issues come about because of past issues, so I had to delve deeper inside myself to start freeing myself from my eating disorder.
ReplyDeleteI was a ballerina growing up, which naturally meant I had an eating disorder. 20 years later I still suffer from digestive issues. I never would've thought the two were related, but my acupuncturist thought to ask me, knowing I grew up dancing, and she said it sets up an energetic pattern.
ReplyDelete