What is Anorexia nervosa? 

Anorexia nervosa is when make yourself lose very serious amounts of weight. It’s more than just being slim and more than just dieting – not every slim person is anorexic and nor is every dieter.

People with anorexia nervosa avoid eating and lose a lot of weight. They often feel fat, even when they are very thin.

They may use other ways of staying thin, such as taking laxative tablets (which is dangerous and makes you go to the toilet more often) or by doing too much exercise. They can become very weak, and without special help some people with anorexia can die.

What causes Anorexia? 

Nobody really knows why it happens, but there are lots of theories:

• It may be because you are depressed
• It may be because you are stressed
• It may be because you don’t want to grow up
• It may be because you are scared of getting fat
• It may be a way of feeling in control
• It may be because you want other people to notice you

It’s unfortunately quite common - 1 in 100 teenage girls suffer from it (and 1 in 2000 boys). Not eating damages your body, but part of the problem is in the mind - how you see yourself and your body.

• Severe weight loss
• Periods stopping (Amenorrhoea)
• Hormonal changes in men and boys
• Difficulty sleeping
• Dizziness
• Stomach pains
• Constipation
• Poor circulation & feeling cold

• Wanting to be left alone
• Wearing big baggy clothes
• Excessive exercising
• Lying about eating meals
• Denying there is a problem
• Difficulty concentrating
• Wanting to have control

• Intense fear of gaining weight
• Depressed
• Feeling emotional
• Obsession with dieting
• Mood swings
• Distorted perception of body weight and size

• You lose a lot of weight by deliberately not eating
• You want to exercise all the time
• You get obsessed with the idea that you are fat and think it’s dreadful to be fat
• If you are a girl, you stop getting periods

• Your arms and legs will be very thin
• You have trouble sleeping
• You find it difficult to concentrate
• You feel the cold
• Your skin gets dry and hairy over your neck, arms and legs
• Your hands and feet get blue and liable to chilblains
• Your heart rate gets slower and slower
• You become increasingly sad and depressed
• Your body begins to die from starvation
• You keep on using laxatives (tablets that make you poo a lot, stop you from absorbing your food and can make you very ill)

If this is you - you need to think, ‘yes I have got a problem’, and that’s the hardest thing to do.

• Listen to them before you just say ‘no - not true’
• If it might be true, try and admit to yourself what’s really happening.
• Don’t blame yourself for this problem – it’s an illness, which can be treated
• See a doctor or nurse as soon as possible – the earlier you admit there is something wrong, the sooner you will get better and the easier the problem is to treat
• As you recover, people will tell you that you look better. Believe them.
• Getting treatment for anorexia will make you will feel less tired, and your body will work better. You’ll be able to concentrate again and be able keep at your schoolwork. And best of all – you won’t have to be worried about your weight all the time.

Website: Eating Disorders Association