We all know how a big part of EDs is not feeling sick enough. Nothing is ever enough for your eating disorder, including your health.
When I was in the depths of my ED, most of my labs (EKG, blood tests etc) came back borderline or normal. This used to make me furious! Because if my blood count was good; if my heart was healthy, it meant I was failing. Due to ED logic, if my health wasn't bad enough, it meant I wasn't thin enough. I felt so alone and thought no one believed me or understood how much I was struggling.
However, after doing some research, I have discovered its very common. In a forum of over 30k people recovering from eating disorders, 90% of them stated their labs were fine whilst they were at their sickest. So how come when screening for an eating disorder, doctors are told to solely focus on blood tests etc? Brain damage and organ damage can't be found through blood work, yet they are hugely affected by EDs. An eating disorder is a MENTAL HEALTH condition. Surely we should be preventing any physical complications rather than waiting for them to happen?
After being diagnosed with an ED, my eating disorder clinician stood back and allowed me to keep losing weight in a short amount of time. Due to COVID, I had weekly sessions over video call with them. At the start of a session my family member had to email my weight to them. Every week, I was losing more and more weight. Yet because I was a healthy BMI, it wasn't an issue to them.
It was the same story two years later, except the outcome differed. I was underweight, and if I even lost a kilogram in a week, I was sent to hospital for an examination. The damage I was doing to my body was the exact same in both situations. The only variable was BMI. Its well known what starvation mode does to your health and it can occur at any weight. Starvation mode happens when their is prolonged starvation, or your body loses too much weight in a short period of time. I explained the affects of this here.
Please note that it does not only occur in Anorexia Nervosa, like stated previously it can happen to anyone even those who may not suffer from an ED.
Medical professionals tell patients to get worse to receive help. This feeds into the 'sick enough' mentality and disordered thoughts. Unfortunately this isn't just the case with EDs but with other mental health issues and chronic health problems too. The medical profession need so much more training and insight into eating disorders, and realise it is so much more than a weight problem. It starts in the mind; a constant warzone inside our heads telling us what we should and shouldn't do and that we aren't good enough... Any health problems are a result of this battle and shouldn't be the requirement to receive help.
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