Quod Me Nutrit Me Destruit

How have eating disorders evolved throughout the years with the help of advances in technology and medicine since eating disorders were given their own diagnosis?

All mental disorders have a diagnosis that is listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM, current edition is IV-Text Revision). There are three types of eating disorders and each has its own diagnostic number in the DSM-IV to have a short hand for psychiatrist, therapists and psychologists. Anorexia Nervosa (307.1)characterized by a refusal to maintain a healthy body weight, obsessive fear of gaining weight, and distorted self image. Bulimia Nervosa (307.51) is characterized by binge eating, lack of self control during the binge eating session, and unhealthy behavior to prevent weight gain including self-induced vomiting, misuse of laxatives, diuretics and other medications. The third type of eating disorder laid out in the DSM-IV-TR is Eating Disorder not otherwise specified (307.50) also known as EDNOS, whose characterizations are a mix of Anorexia and Bulimia or meeting most of the criteria for either disorder but not all criteria. Some people try to adhere Binge Eating Disorder to being overweight, however it is not currently a psychiatric diagnosis.

Eating Disorders have the highest mortality rate of any psychiatric disorder and can affect both men and women of any age, race, or ethnic background. Although it is evident that eating disorders may have been around since the beginning of culture, it was first stated as a diagnosis in 1870.

Since the invention of the internet, people with eating disorders have been able to report their progress and be supportive for those who wish to follow the same path. These websites are commonly called “thinspo” or “pro-ED” sites because they give inspiration to keep restricting or purging in the form of pictures of very thin men and women and words like “stay strong” and “quod me nutrit me destruit” (what nourishes me, destroys me). Even people without eating disorders can negatively affect the health of a person with an eating disorder via the internet. Common phrases seen on social networking sites and blogs are “I need to lose [X] pounds in [X] weeks” and “I'm so full I could just throw up”. These phrases and others involving exercising may look like nonsense, and most people would just scroll right past that blog post or status update. But us men and women who have eating disorders can linger on those words for a long time, we think “I could lose [X] pounds faster than [X] weeks” and take it as a challenge to ourselves to beat that person in weight-loss. Diet sites like Weight Watchers open a whole new world for those suffering from eating disorders.

Men and women from around the world on these pro-ED sites support each other, and give one another advice on the quickest ways to lose weight. “Eat something in the morning so you don't get hungry later on and binge,” or “negative calorie foods like celery will fill you up while not costing you a single calorie".

Word count: 490

The Girl With The Eating Disorder

The topic of my eating disorder can be attacked from so many different perspectives that I could almost write every college paper on a completely different aspect of it. I am intrigued not only by my own eating disorder but also that of others. I have found that no two eating disorders are the same, and no two people suffering will be able to recover with the same recovery techniques.

Those who have not personally experienced or known someone who has experienced an eating disorder will find my interest in such a topic boring and irrelevant. I can however explain what intrigues me so much that I feel the need to discuss eating disorders in every class that I can manage.

We are all sick. Us with eating disorders, but our bodies react differently. A young woman who had been suffering for ten years was told by her doctor at the hospital that she had osteoporosis and that her bones would always be brittle and weak. A military man on the unit had “contracted” his eating disorder when he injured his Achilles tendon and could not exercise like he had in the past. My own eating disorder was brought on by my lack of self in middle school where I filled the social norm that people told me I had (anorexic). In treatment, my blood test results were never out of the ordinary and my blood pressure and heart rate was higher than the norm, which is abnormal because those with eating disorders usually have lower blood pressure and heart rates.

What I have come to question about eating disorders is how they are “contracted” as mental disorders and how they affect the body medically.

Word Count: 294

Test Blog Post

This is obviously not my first blog that is due on Thursday September 8. I just wanted to make sure my blog worked.

I guess, I'll explain my profile photo. I visited England this past summer as my dad is currently stationed there. Having grown up in England, I wanted to travel as much as possible and visit places I hadn't gone to as a child. We came across the small town of Melmerby in Coverdale (there are two Melmerby's in England, the other is in Ripon or Cumbria) and decided to stay at a Bed&Breakfast called the West Close Farmhouse (a must stay if you happen to be in Melmerby in Coverdale). The town of Melmerby in Coverdale is so small that you can see from one side to the other along just one street. We spent the evening walking around and seeing what livestock we could find on the farms. We found cows which I can be seen petting in the photograph below. Farther up the road we found a dead rabbit. I am fascinated by dead animals on the side of roads so my father took a picture of me proving that I found a dead rabbit.

Boring story, that will not be edited since this is not an actual blog post and I'm just trying to entertain while I still have the chance.