Bulimia Nervosa

When most people hear of someone with an eating disorder, they automatically assume that the person has a problem with food. Eating disorders, however, are not a sign that a person has a problem with food, but rather eating disorders are actually only the symptoms of underlying problems in the person's life. One of the most serious eating disorders is Bulimia Nervosa, or Bulimia.

Bulimia is when a person binge eats then usually vomits to lose calories. It is a constant seemingly unending cycle of binging and purging to try to get rid of unwanted calories. A binge may vary from person to person. For one a binge may be 1000-10000 calories, or for another a cookie may be a binge. A few obvious signs of bulimia is binge eating or eating in secret, visiting the bathroom every time after eating, fasting, mood swings, feelings of no self worth, avoidance of planned meals, fatigue, depression, and excessive exercise. A few less obvious signs are tooth decay, irregular heartbeats, muscle weakness, sore throat, broken blood vessels, swollen glands, weight fluctuations, and pill and substance abuse.

A bulimic person usually doesn't realize that they have a potentially fatal disease. They may not see that this eating disorder not only affects their weight but also that there are physical complications. For instance tears in the esophagus, low blood pressure, edema or swelling, dehydration, kidney and liver damage, parotid gland enlargement, hair loss, electrolyte imbalances, anemias, pancreatitis, cardiac arrest, and even death. These physical symptoms often leave the person feeling depressed, lonely, anxious, self-doubting, or angry because they don't understand what's happening to their bodies. A bulimic person usually tries to put on a brave, strong face but they are constantly reaching out for support and approval from others.

When people think about bulimia, they visualize a teenage girl making herself throw up. However 4% of college age women have bulimia. Also bulimia has been found in children as young as six and in people as old as seventy-six. 10% of all people with bulimia are male, but this percentage is increasing rapidly. About 50% of all the people who were once anorexic, developed bulimia or bulimic type patterns. Without treatment 20% of the people with eating disorders die, but 60% of the people who seek help recover. Over half of the teen population are, or think they should be on diets, but about 3% go too far by becoming bulimic or anorexic.

Teen life is one of the most stressful times in a person's life. Teens feel that it is so important to fit in and to be liked. Many turn to dieting to make themselves look good in the eyes of others and to make themselves