Disordered eating
How To Spot Warning Signs of an Unhealthy Relationship with Food
Have you found yourself asking if your food behaviors are “normal?” Do you sometimes wonder if your once innocent sounding diet and exercise routine have evolved into something more serious? Disordered eating encompasses a wide range of unhealthy attitudes and behaviors toward food. The term in and of itself can be a confusing one – what really constitutes an “issue” with food? If I don’t have an eating disorder, doesn’t that mean I’m fine?
In a culture that normalizes and often supports unhealthy ways of relating to food and our bodies, things can become all the more unclear and unhealthy habits easily rationalized. As a result, many people suffer in silence and secrecy, experiencing the distress associated with disordered eating but not knowing what it means, what to do about it, and perhaps questioning if they’d even want to do anything about it.
“Many people suffer in silence and secrecy.”
Common Behavioral, Emotional and Cognitive Symptoms of Disordered Eating
Check out the list of behavioral and cognitive symptoms below that often signal more serious issues. This is not an exhaustive list, nor is it intended to diagnose. It might, however, lend some insight into the complex nature of a person’s relationship to food and to ourselves (maybe your own or a loved one’s).
- Obsessive thoughts: Preoccupations with food, weight, dieting, body, and/or exercise. These thoughts consume a primary focus of a person’s attention, interfering with other activities and responsibilities.
- Food rituals: Preparing foods in a specific manner or eating them in a certain order; excessive chewing; making separate meals from what others are having; eating in secret
- Impacted functionality: The need to prioritize food interferes with expected functioning and obligations. A person might withdrawal or isolate. They might avoid going out to dinner with friends or other social activities, particularly those centering around food
- Feeling out of control around food: Restricting food intake … or eating well past fullness
- Food rules: Designating good foods (allowed) vs. bad foods (off-limits)
- Guilt: Feelings of guilt after eating which may or may not lead to compensatory behaviors (restriction, exercise, self-induced vomiting)
- Defensiveness: Becoming defensive or irritable when asked about food intake by others
- Excessive exercise: Maintaining a rigid exercise schedule and/or exercising more than once a day; viewing exercise as a way of earning food
“Just like formally diagnosed eating disorders, disordered eating can create significant distress, impacting a person’s overall health and quality of life.”
The Impact of Disordered Eating on Health and Quality of Life
Do any of these sound familiar? If they do, you might wonder why you should take stock of these behaviors in the first place. “Eating disorders are destructive and complex physical and mental illnesses that permeate most areas of a person’s life. We know that the sooner you recognize and seek help for problematic cycles, the better the outcome and recovery are” states Christine Menna, a therapist at Downtown Somatic Therapy.
Just like formally diagnosed eating disorders, disordered eating can create significant distress, impacting a person’s overall health and quality of life. It can also easily lay the foundation for and evolve into an eating disorder.
Seeking Help for Disordered Eating
If you or someone you know is struggling in their relationship with food in some of the ways described here, you’re not alone. Consider reaching out to us for support. You may also want to work with a trusted therapist in NYC who can help you better understand these behaviors as a means of coping and help you to cultivated a healthier relationship with yourself, your emotions and thoughts, and food.
At Sōhum Therapy, we offer somatic therapy in NYC. If you’re interested in learning more, please contact us.
Christine Menna
Christine specializes in working with motivated clients who feel disconnected from themselves, desire more fulfilling relationships, and seek to live their most authentic and value-driven lives. Christine takes a compassionate and direct approach that focuses on clients’ goals. She incorporates mindfulness-based techniques and somatic exercises to deepen the therapeutic experience and help clients achieve their desired results.
