I too have been thinking about having baby #2, because during that time I also was MUCH better than I am now. I can understand the other side of it though, until we are recovered fully we cannot be the best parents anyway, so trying to kick it in the ass now would be the best scenerio. Its a hard one though......I am hear to talk!

You absolutely need to take this time (with one child and a husband already) to focus on YOUR recovery. Your body doesn't need the added stress of a second child, nor does your mind.

True story: One of my best friends in treatment could have been my mom- she is 53 years old, and had bulimia for 32 years. That's right- 32 years. By the time she got into serious treatment (residential at Oceanaire in CA), she was severely underweight and after routine blood tests came back, doctors said they were surprised she hadn't suffered a heart attack as her potassium was fatally low.

Okay, so why does this apply? During these 32 years, she used the excuse of getting pregnant to keep food down. Well, as she put it, "it was by the grace of god that I started eating to keep the fetus healthy." As soon as she had the child, she would begin the cycle all over again. In total, she has FIVE children and has been married...once. She never went through a divorce, though before she went into treatment, she and her husband were estranged and her kids didn't know what to say when it came to her illness. She was the kindest woman, with energy, devotion, and a powerful sweetness...but only when she began to accept her recovery. I will never forget the first night she was there: she was a skeletal frame, with timid eyes, uncertainty, and suspicion. She wasn't smiling, she looked ashen, and the life was sucked right out of her.

Now that we have established that you need to get better for your own stability, let's focus on your child (and other future children): do you want to subject them to the horror of watching their mother slowly kill herself?

I hope this post has helped. Please seek inside yourself to forgive the past traumas you may have endured, and accept yourself for who you are. Only after years of recovery should you perhaps try for another child, but why not try to make these the best years of your (new) life for your husband and child that is here NOW?

i was ill before having my third baby, i felt better while pregnant and ate better and even for while after, once i stopped breastfeeding i started all over again, try and recover first if you can

i agree with everyone else , i got preg with our second and the minute breastfeeding the ed came back full throttle.trust me im going through it now! , even while i was making milk, which even then it didnt stop me restricting what i ate, but what we are all trying to say is that the baby may just be a bandaid for now.

im not sure but to be honest having my son is the best thing that ever happened to me and if you want another baby have one because it isnt up to your therapist its your choice,at the end of the day i had my doctor telling mei shouldnt go through with my pregnancy and if id have listened to him then my beautiful son wouldnt be here now

I had 4 kids in the past 6 or 7 yrs and my ED was in remission for all of them. I seem to be able to use it for an excuse to eat what I want and not worry about it but I gained too much weight (40-70lbs) with each one. Now that I'm not having anymore (tubal) I'm back in my ED strong. You might want to get healthy before you have another baby but the decision is yours.

So, you will have nine months of health and energy.

What happens then?

When you have a three month old and your therapist and husband look at you and tell you that you're slipping again, will you go into IP then?

Or will you say, "I can't leave my baby right now."

Will you have the physical energy to look after two children when you are suddenly concerned about getting back to a pre-baby shape? I'm sure you'll have the emotional energy, but it is hard to play with kids like they really NEED to be played with when you feel like you're going to pass out.

It is definitely, definitely up to you. Your egg, his sperm. Just some things to take into consideration.

I will say, that considering they are recommending inpatient for you NOW, if you plan on getting pregnant - you better rev up your nutrition pre-conception. Not only are there fertility issues, but there are birth defects associated with lack of nutrients.

The baby might help you to eat better...
but if you become pregnant now, with this shadow, you're risking your future child's health. Women who are undernourshed, whether by making poor food choices, restricting, purging, or even eating a more typical american diet (meat and carbs, with few vitamins) have deficiencies in certain vitamins or minerals. It takes a while to correct these. to become pregnant while you are still suffering would put baby at risk for the same deficiencies, and possible defects related to them.

I know i sound preachy: it's something i've thought about, A LOT. i've been in recovery, trying hard for about 3 years, and still am worried about my diet. I am going to go to a nutritionist before i get pregnant, because i fear.

Thank you all, you all helped me. xo.