Just found out my sister is Bulimic

[GoneForever]

She's 27, and told me the last 3years she's been a mild bulimic. A while back she went through an anorexic spell. From around 14yrs old to 17 she was pretty bad and but never looked bad. Always stayed lean but not freaky looking like gross and shit. She went through treatment like 5x what cost my parents 1000's of dollars and they dont do shit. It would be like a steroid treatment center. That shit never works.

Anyway the past 3years she has been purging only like once every week or two but the past 2months she's been doing it almost 5x daily. She told her husband and they are together 24/7 so she is rarely out of his site and she said she would only do it in the bathroom. They now have a pact that she will always leave the door open so he's watching her nonstop. I know her well and know that she is gonna stop for good now. I hope. She is very uncomfortable eating but she now eats about 4 pure protien bars daily, about 2 servings of nuts and some veggies, so at least she's eating now. Her main problem is the "full" feeling of having something in her stomach. She says the hardest thing to get over is the feeling that something is in her stomach.

Anyway, she has come to me for supplement advice to repair any damage she has done. She always has flawless bloodwork and she never has heartburn. SHe has had 3 EKG's the past 3years all with perfect results. So, I looked at a few forums for bulimia and so far this is what she is taking.
1 multivitamin with iron
50mg 5HTP 2x daily
1 Fish oil gel 3x daily
150mg Coq10 at night
100mg L-theanine 2x daily(evening times)
3mg Melatonin at night

Anyone have expierence in this or know any other supps she should take?

 

[M21SL]

hey bro, first off, it sounds like you are a loving responsible guy and she is in the right hands between you and her husband. Props to you. I dont know a ton about this kind of situation, but just wanted to ask: You said the main thing that bothers her is the feeling of something in her stomach. It seems like she is doing pretty well with those pure protein bars but do you think just some simple whey shakes would work in that situation too, as usually they dont even dent the stomach. Or does the full feeling apply for liquids to? I was just suggesting this because I find a small shake probably the least filling thing along with veggies. Keep us posted man, keep up the great work helping out. God Bless.

 

[Big Bapper]

I feel for ya buddy. You dont need to be told this but I make a point of telling anyone thats asks my advice about all these wacky deits floating around that put you on 450Kcal ED. I tell them they should be eating small meals more often to speed up there metabolims and I use anorexia or someone who is bulimic as a example. What happens when they start eating again. They blow up like bloons because the body thinks its going to be starved again so it stores fat.

It all goes back to the to when we had to hunt to eat, we would hunt a animal eat it, there were now supermarkets. So the body would store the exess as fat, so we would have enough energy to hunt our next meal.

So mabe trough your experence as a bodybuilder could advice, a proper deit and training to speed up the metabolims.

 

[GetBigger83]

hey bro, wanted to say its hard what ur sister is going through. i think one of the best things u can do is make her feel comfortable about eating again. im not surprised that her test results came back with good results. i saw on the discover channel yes the discovery channel that being in a calorie deficient state is good for the heart and may actually help u live a lot longer. obviously being bulimic is beyond a calorie deficient state. anyway if u were able to find her BMR and explain to her that she would be able to eat this amount everyday and not put on any weight. it might give her some comfort. good luck bro and keep us updated!

 

[inoverdrive]

First off my prayers will be for you and your sister for a full and healthy recovery.
I dont know but if she is feeling that fullness and does not like it, what about something like LBA's to help her get what she needs also?

 

[BULK_CITY]

hey bro, wanted to say its hard what ur sister is going through. i think one of the best things u can do is make her feel comfortable about eating again. im not surprised that her test results came back with good results. i saw on the discover channel yes the discovery channel that being in a calorie deficient state is good for the heart and may actually help u live a lot longer. obviously being bulimic is beyond a calorie deficient state. anyway if u were able to find her BMR and explain to her that she would be able to eat this amount everyday and not put on any weight. it might give her some comfort. good luck bro and keep us updated!

sorry to hear about that bro, hope she gets well soon


but i'm also curious about what getbigger said. Have you tried explaining to her that working out/cardio/proper diet/supps will make her feel/look a lot better than just purging it?
if so, what was her response?

i've never had to deal with someone having a food disorder so i've always thought they were just ignorant about training/diet... I mean, if you truely knew and believed that proper diet/training will make you healthier/live longer/look better/etc and that it's actually FUN then i don't see how bullemia or anorexia would be an issue (but i don't know how these people think nor can i relate. I'm just curious)

 

[muscledoc1]

I am sorry to hear that,but in my honest opinion to get a good recovery and help-get a good eating disorder psychologist,sometimes its the only way.

 

[hotttsauce]

She's 27, and told me the last 3years she's been a mild bulimic. A while back she went through an anorexic spell. From around 14yrs old to 17 she was pretty bad and but never looked bad. Always stayed lean but not freaky looking like gross and shit. She went through treatment like 5x what cost my parents 1000's of dollars and they dont do shit. It would be like a steroid treatment center. That shit never works.

Anyway the past 3years she has been purging only like once every week or two but the past 2months she's been doing it almost 5x daily. She told her husband and they are together 24/7 so she is rarely out of his site and she said she would only do it in the bathroom. They now have a pact that she will always leave the door open so he's watching her nonstop. I know her well and know that she is gonna stop for good now. I hope. She is very uncomfortable eating but she now eats about 4 pure protien bars daily, about 2 servings of nuts and some veggies, so at least she's eating now. Her main problem is the "full" feeling of having something in her stomach. She says the hardest thing to get over is the feeling that something is in her stomach.

Anyway, she has come to me for supplement advice to repair any damage she has done. She always has flawless bloodwork and she never has heartburn. SHe has had 3 EKG's the past 3years all with perfect results. So, I looked at a few forums for bulimia and so far this is what she is taking.
1 multivitamin with iron
50mg 5HTP 2x daily
1 Fish oil gel 3x daily
150mg Coq10 at night
100mg L-theanine 2x daily(evening times)
3mg Melatonin at night

Anyone have expierence in this or know any other supps she should take?

There is no such thing as a mild bulimic or anorexic, like most alcoholics, it is something they will battle the rest of their lives in one fashion or another regardless.

It is VERY obvious you love your sister and it is fantastic you are there to support her. The thing she needs to do is get into a psychologist (not a clinical program, they are for extreme cases and are only valuable if they are staying there for 6 months or more at one time and being monitored closely, i.e. blood sugar levels tested, monitored eating and digestion, etc. ) to deal with this, a support group and also have you and your family there to provide help.

I know she must have had a bad experience or lack of success from the past clinic she went to, but have you looked for 1 on 1 therapy (moer successful in the type you seem be dealing with)? It is not easy to talk about those subjects so you and she must be close but for the people suffering from it, they hide their binging very well and often do not even realize it.

 

[hotttsauce]

sorry to hear about that bro, hope she gets well soon


but i'm also curious about what getbigger said. Have you tried explaining to her that working out/cardio/proper diet/supps will make her feel/look a lot better than just purging it?
if so, what was her response?

i've never had to deal with someone having a food disorder so i've always thought they were just ignorant about training/diet... I mean, if you truely knew and believed that proper diet/training will make you healthier/live longer/look better/etc and that it's actually FUN then i don't see how bullemia or anorexia would be an issue (but i don't know how these people think nor can i relate. I'm just curious)

One thing you have to be careful of is the obsessive/compulsive nature of this disease. You could stall one problem and create another (her doing cardio 20 times a day, etc., believe me it happens), best to deal with one issue at a time and then a gentle move into something else.

 

[lucian]

......

bro i feel your pain. way before supps she needs to get to a good therapist and find out the cause. there is no mild for of bulimia. she has some sort of control issue. whether it is with a former wt problem or something stemming from childhood, but there is no use in her husband keeping her on lockdown. its not solving the problem causing it. SHE needs to want to find out why it is happening. many people go through this and it is something she can beat. but please let her know it can hurt everyone around her just as much as her. she can beat this disease and thats exactly what this is....a disease. therapy and possible medication in combonation can turn her world around. just try and keep her from getting defensive when you talk about these things. it could really send her in a spin. if she feels out of control of her life or this disease it could get worse no matter who is watching her.
good luck and we will pray for you and your family to beat this.
we are here for you.
god bless
lucian

 

[dragonfire101]

Bro ,


Is she seeking mental health services. I had a friend and a ex girlfriend who had Bulimia and Anorexia. She will need to see someone who specializes in eating disorders to get over this. It usually is associated with deep rooted mental health issues and the need to have control. When you can't control environmental or external factors in regards to ones life you resort to controlling your own body as a result in such incidences of developing anorexia or bulimia.
My ex girlfriend was on a behavioral modification program were she had to work with food actually. Look out for stimulant use such as diet pills also. I use to have to go through my ex girlfriends things to confiscate them from her.

This can be a serious life threatening condition. My friend is now on beta blockers and other heart medications for the rest of her life because of her anorexia. The doctors also said her life would be shortened. She ended up getting to about 70 pounds from 125. She was 5 6'. She is back about 110 last time I seen her, but like i said always will be on heart meds now.

Ex girlfriend hand controlling parents that wanted to control every aspects of her life. They also were going through a divorce at the time she was dealing with anorexia and bulimia. Her mother use to act as her friend a lot of times to try a trick her to know every aspect of her life to try to control her and also use her against her father.

My friend was molested as a child, which I did not know until she told me a few years back. She also got married at 16 years old through an arrangement I think her parents pushed her into. Her mother was Jehovah Witness and her father Catholic. It always seem she was pulled between them and made to practice beliefs in both religions, but her mother took more control over her life and shaped it how she wanted it to be for her.

 

[UglyDucklingSyndrome]

Sorry to hear about this man... Its truly a sad situation... My first real girlfriend had the same issue.... she was so embarrassed she had to change schools... she ended up going to Arizona for treatment.... I think it cost her parents upwards of 70 GRAND!!!! UNREAL... thankfully the time spent at the treatment center did help her and she has now been healthy for about 10 years....living with a hole in her stomach.

So, this is way out of left field but if it is the feeling in her stomach that makes her want to purge.... is it the immediate bulgin of the stomach region after eating that gives her the impulse to purge?? my girlfriend and I both believe there is something psychological about this disease. however, I know ive read that people on here have had success with colonics and colon cleansing in how their stomach no longer bulges out after eating. So I was thinking maybe if she did a cleansing and her stomach stopped bulging it could possibly subdue her mental feeling of the food in her stomach.

sorry for the ramble and so so sorry to hear about your sister... shes truly blessed to have someone that obviously cares about her!!!

 

[dragonfire101]

Maybe OUCH will chime in.

 

[OuchThatHurts]

"mild bulimia"??? You sound like a caring brother so good on ya for that but very obviously she should get professional help. In fact, whether you believe it or not, you may actually be hurting her by giving her advice. Your advice is, in a very real way, giving her approval to continue indulging in her pathological condition when what she really needs in reality is someone to tell her that her behavior could be seriously hazardous! She needs someone to work with her in getting help so she doesn't have to go it alone. Saying she's "mildly pregnant" is also somewhat dismissive IMO. She has an eating disorder (or multiple disorders). There is effective treatment available and she should be encouraged to seek it out.

Now I know that there are websites (much like this one) for bulimics and anorexics to go to to get advice on how to be sick the "right way" but these sites just add to the problem and go further in justifying and approving of this behavior. The statistics are daunting. It's a widespread problem. There is absolutely NO health benefit (physical, mental, or spiritual) to what she is doing. HRT and TRT to those who need it is beneficial and that is well documented. However, just like steroids, it can become a severe obsession given the right set of circumstances and personality types.

I cannot in good conscience give you any advice whatsoever on how to make your sister a physically healthy bulimic. Sorry. I know you have good intentions but I think they are misplaced right now. Get her vitamins for her mind and spirit and when those are healthy, her body will follow.

Good luck with everything you can do and while I can't prevent it, I strongly recommend that the members be careful giving advice in this situation - unless the advice is to seek mental and physical counseling which is the one and only correct course of action at this time.

 

[Tyrone]

Even if she thinks she's done with it, relapse of anything can occur...She'll most likely need extensive help with many things...sorry to say.

 

[GoneForever]

Thanks guys. She is trying some 3week thing on the net she read and has gone a few days now doing fine. She really wants to quit and said if she purges once she is flying home and our dad is putting her in an old program she was in a while ago(even though unfortunately they dont help much)

 

[OuchThatHurts]

Thanks guys. She is trying some 3week thing on the net she read and has gone a few days now doing fine. She really wants to quit and said if she purges once she is flying home and our dad is putting her in an old program she was in a while ago(even though unfortunately they dont help much)

What locality are you in? Maybe I can suggest a number or make a phone call. If she's done the program thrice and still hasn't improved then it may be time to consider going another way. Of course, my parents were completely obstinate so I understand that sometimes you have to take what you can get.

 

[GoneForever]

What locality are you in? Maybe I can suggest a number or make a phone call. If she's done the program thrice and still hasn't improved then it may be time to consider going another way. Of course, my parents were completely obstinate so I understand that sometimes you have to take what you can get.

MN... I think she has to go to a specific one b/c insurance only covers one of them. She actually went to the Methodist hospital in MN which is supposedly amazing and it still didnt totally work for her. She is trying to stop on her own and following this supp regimen with some natural healing before she goes to the actual clinic.
**broken link removed**