What is Eating Disorders
An eating disorder is a compulsion in which the main problem is a person eats in a way which disturbs their physical health. The eating may be too excessive (compulsive over-eating...
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ED and bipolar
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I've recently started wondering if I just have plain ol' ED or if I might be bipolar. If I am, it's a mild case, but I've become interested in the relationship between the two disorders.
I definitely know that I use behaviors to regulate overwhelming emotions. If I've had a binge day, I get sad and down on myself, and become much more introverted and not motivated to really do much. To "fix" this, I put all my effort into restriction and exercise. After a few days of restricting, I can feel myself becoming more excited about life. I want to do things, make plans, write, see friends, etc. I don't know if feeling like this is "normal" (meaning not depressed) or if it's hypo-mania. At any rate, it's not a good solution because I'm not eating, at some point all the doing and committing overwhelms me, and I binge to calm myself down. (I also get into the binge/restrict cycle for other reasons, but this is one pattern I notice.) I'm being treated for anxiety (tons and tons of Prozac) and it's helping, but it does have side effects. I know if I mention this my docs will have me on lithium in a matter of seconds (I have a strong genetic predisposition to mood disorders, addictions and anxiety), but I don't want to just go try another med. I have great respect for them because they alter your brain chemistry. :) So instead of just taking another pill to see if it might work, I'm trying to figure out what's really going on here. Anyone feel like discussing this topic? Posted on 11/07/09, 04:11 pm |
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I understand exactly what your saying, I feel asthough I do the same thing I will binge and then hate myself so I throw up so I can feel clean again...and then I will restrict myself so I can feel happy an in control again but it is terrible cause it just turns into a vicious cycle and then I feel out of control!! 
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I can so relate. I am diagnosed bipolar and I've been stable on meds for ten months now. That's the longest I've been stable in 25 years. I have found that using the restricting of food and watching the needle on the scale drop down makes me ecstatic and when I eat, I'm depressed and angry and all other sorts of negative feelings. I like and missed that feeling of euphoria since I don't have it with my bipolar anymore. Any of this sound familiar?
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Thanks for replying, guys.
Yes, what you both say is all too familiar. Sometimes I'll even binge on purpose so I can "reward" myself by restricting afterwards to get that ecstatic feeling. (I need to maintain my wt, not lose anymore). Then I get too ecstatic so I binge again to bring myself down. I know this is ED, but it sounds like something else, too. It's all driven my the need to regulate my moods. I don't think "normal" people need to try so hard to regulate their moods. :(
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I can so relate to reply #2. I am bipolar also and have been fairly stable the last year. I hate myself when I binge and then feel very happy when I deprive myself and the scale goes down, but then I binge again and it is a vicious cycle. My biggest problem is night eating. I wake up several times in the middle of the night and eat. I also weight myself about 10 times during the day and every time I get up during the night. I also miss my feelings of euphoria. But I stay on my meds and keep trying to muddle through one day at a time.
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