Escaping Control: Jen’s Recovery Story, Part II

This two-part article was written exclusively for EatingDisorders.com by Jenmac18, a member of SupportGroups.com. In this article, Jen discusses how her eating disorder began due to the pressures her father put on her and what has finally helped her overcome anorexia.

Click here to read Part I.

I followed my meal plan for a few days, but because of my depression and anxiety I started to restrict. Since my time in the inpatient program in 2007 I lost those 15 pounds I had gained, and then gained an additional five pounds on top of that. Now I rarely have bulimic tendencies, but I still have problems with counting calories, weighing myself and measuring my food.

Finding the Right Therapist

I have been to a few therapists, but I never stay long enough. I think that at the time I was not ready to get rid of my disease. Currently I’m proud to say that I gained eight pounds in two months all by myself. I think what pushed me to gain weight was when my doctor wanted me to see an oncologist because my white blood cell count was extremely low. I also had a lot of bruising on my legs, I was feeling very weak, and I had problems with my inner left ear.

When I went to see her, she didn’t do any tests on me, she took one look at me and told me that all I needed was to gain 10 pounds in a month. The doctor was convinced that all of my symptoms would disappear if I did. She wanted me to promise her I’d do that. She told me that she wanted to see me back in her office in four weeks with my extra padding. I think her concern for me, and belief that my symptoms would go away, was the kick in the butt that I needed.

Regaining Weight and Health

Sure enough after gaining some weight, I no longer felt weak and my ear problem and the bruising had disappeared. I still need to gain more weight, but just knowing that this made a difference in my health, gave me hope and strength. I still count calories, weight myself and measure my food, but I am gaining weight now. I just recently went to my first therapy appointment with a therapist that specializes in eating disorders. I’m heading in the right direction.

I have had this disorder for 17 years, but there is hope. I can’t believe how this illness just takes control of you. If you’ve had an eating disorder for just a short while I highly recommend you seek help now, because the longer you wait the harder it will be to tackle later on. If you’ve had it a while, trust me you can definitely overcome it. I will pray for all of you struggling. We all need to have hope. Let’s try to recover together. Never give up!