Are you struggling with an eating disorder?
While eating disorders are typically thought of as impacting your diet, they are much more than that. These disorders focus on the themes of chasing perfection, control, and approval. Unfortunately, they are on the rise in today’s society.
If you or someone you love is suffering from an eating disorder, keep reading for information on the connection of eating disorders and mental health.
Anxiety
Anxiety is one of the many mental health issues that can be present alongside eating disorders. Eating disorders are often rooted in unhealthy thought patterns and behaviors, as well as an inability to cope with emotions and overwhelming stress.
For those struggling with anxiety, it can be incredibly difficult to maintain a healthy relationship with food, as well as to engage in healthy self-care behaviors. This can lead to tendencies towards disordered eating habits or even full-blown eating disorders.
Depression
Eating disorders and mental health are intricately connected to depression. These can both be caused by similar underlying issues. Poor body image, low self-esteem, and negative thinking patterns can lead to both disorders.
Emotional issues such as unresolved trauma, feelings of guilt and shame, and relationship issues can all feed into the cycle of depression and disordered eating. Someone with depression may be more likely to have an unhealthy relationship with food and body. In contrast, someone with an eating disorder treatment may develop deeper levels of depression as they cope with their disorder.
Self-injury
Eating disorders and mental health are intricately connected with self-injury. People who struggle with eating disorders and mental illness often find themselves engaging in self-injurious behaviors such as cutting, burning, or otherwise hurting themselves as an outlet for their emotional pain.
The destructive behavior associated with eating disorders and mental health issues can cause severe, lasting physical and mental harm and can even be deadly. Self-injury is often a sign that a person is overwhelmed with emotional pain and is trying to cope by hurting themselves.
Borderline Personality Disorder
Eating disorders and mental health are intimately connected, particularly in individuals with borderline personality disorder (BPD). BPD is a mental illness defined by patterns of instability in moods, behaviors, self-image, and interpersonal relationships.
Although someone with BPD might not display symptoms of an eating disorder, the presence of such disorders is very common in individuals with BPD. People with BPD often use food to cope with overwhelming emotions and may struggle with extreme guilt and shame related to eating.
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
Eating disorders and mental health have been found to have an intricate connection to Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder manifests through different behaviors, such as obsession with food, fear of weight gain, compulsive behaviors involving food intake, extreme preoccupations with cleanliness and order, and more.
These behaviors have been linked to elevated levels of psychological distress, making them more dangerous than previously thought. Studies demonstrate that people with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder are at a higher risk of developing an eating disorder while suffering from an eating disorder can exacerbate Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.
The Connection of Eating Disorders and Mental Health
Eating disorders and mental health are intimately intertwined, and it is essential for us to become more informed and work to cultivate healthy relationships with our bodies.
Read more about eating disorders and mental health to arm yourself with the knowledge needed to stay safe and healthy.
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