Symptoms
People with bulimia nervosa consume large amounts of food and
then rid their bodies of the excess calories by vomiting, abusing
laxatives or diuretics, taking enemas, or exercising obsessively.
Some use a combination of all these forms of purging. Because
many individuals with bulimia "binge and purge" in secret
and maintain normal or above normal body weight, they can often
successfully hide their problem from others for years.
Family, friends, and physicians may have difficulty detecting
bulimia in someone they know. Many individuals with the disorder
remain at normal body weight or above because of their frequent
binges and purges, which can range from once or twice a week to
several times a day. Dieting heavily between episodes of binging
and purging is also common. Eventually, half of those with anorexia
will develop bulimia.
As with anorexia, bulimia typically begins during
adolescence. The condition occurs most often in women but is also
found in men. Many individuals with bulimia, ashamed of their
strange habits, do not seek help until they reach their thirties
or forties. By this time, their eating behavior is deeply ingrained
and more difficult to change.
Specific Symptoms of this Disorder:
This disorder is characterized by recurrent episodes of binge
eating, occurring at least twice a month for a minimum of three
months, which consists of:
eating, in a discrete period of time (e.g., within any 2-hour
period), an amount of food that is definitely larger than most
people would eat during a similar period of time and under similar
circumstances
a sense of lack of control over eating during the episode (e.g.,
a feeling that one cannot stop eating or control what or how much
one is eating)
Individuals who suffer from this disorder often engage in behavior
in order to try and prevent themselves from gaining any weight.
This behavior may include such things as self-induced vomiting;
overusing laxatives, diuretics, enemas, or other medications;
refusing to eat (fasting); or excessive exercise.
Recurrent inappropriate compensatory behavior in order
to prevent weight gain, such as self-induced vomiting; misuse
of laxatives, diuretics, enemas, or other medications; fasting;
or excessive exercise. A person's self-image is usually directly
correlated with their weight, with a great deal of attention focused
on how their body looks.
This disorder can only be diagnosed if it is not better accounted
for by anorexia nervosa.
There are two major sub-types of disorders found within bulimia
nervosa:
Purging Type: -- The person regularly engages in self-induced
vomiting or the misuse of laxatives, diuretics, or enemas
Non-purging Type: -- The person has used other inappropriate compensatory
behaviors, such as fasting or excessive exercise, but has not
regularly engaged in self-induced vomiting or the misuse of laxatives,
diuretics, or enemas
Treatment
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