Purging Disorder

"An Iowa researcher is hoping to bring more attention to a new eating disorder she's coined as "purging disorder." Purging disorder is similar to bulimia nervosa in that both conditions involve eating, then trying to compensate for the calories consumed. But women with purging disorder don't have the large, binge eating episodes that bulimics experience.Instead, these normal-weight individuals eat small to normal amounts of food, then purge, often by vomiting, said Pamela Keel, an associate professor of psychology at the University of Iowa."

{see the full article at the des moines register}


It's long been recognized within the community of eating-disordered individuals (myself, admittedly, being one of them) that the classification system for eating disorders was pretty bunk.



There's anorexia, but a person must meet strict physical criteria--including a body weight 15% below ideal and a loss of menstrual periods for three months (amennorhea). Often, people that struggle with anorexia do not meet one or both of these criteria, though their eating disorder is as legitimate as someone who does.

Bulimics must also meet certain behavior criteria. Often, an anorectic that purges is immediately labelled bulimic (rather than the purging-subtype of anorexia; usually due to a professional's inexperience with eating disorders). Or, what about a bulimic person that doesn't binge or doesn't binge often enough to meet the standards?

There is currently a third eating disorder recognized by the DSM-IV-TR, which is an eating disorder not otherwise specified (EDNOS). Essentially, anyone who isn't a prototype for anorexia or bulimia gets labelled with EDNOS.

Binge-eating disorder is temporarily in the DSM-IV-TR, however, it hasn't been fully studied and thus fully included.


What I like about this article is that it is 1) from a local newspaper in a community that doesn't consider itself to have eating disordered individuals, 2) it provides a list of resources, 3) it discusses the possibility of including more people (which would provide more insurance coverage, and more knowledge and possibilties for mental health professionals) in the in an eating disordered category.


What I don't like about this article is its title: "When Normal Women Purge". It gives the illusion that the rest of us--the ones who are anorexic, bulimic, binge-eaters, or 'not otherwise specified'; the ones who are under- or over-weight--are simply not normal and are fucked up. A road apple to whomever created the title of the article.

I'm a little quirky, yes. But eating disordered women (and men!) do live normal lives: they work, they play with their kids, they have families and parents, they date, they're straight and gay, they're republicans and democrats, they're Latino/as, they're African-Americans, they're Christian and Muslim and Jewish and Pagan, they're...pretty much like everyone else, minus the fact that they have an unhealthy relationship to food.



What is a "Normal Woman" anyway? Thoughts?

Caucusing and Questioning

As my civic duty, I participated in the caucuses yesterday. Being as it was my first time, I was a little apprehensive about the process. I did the work, read the position papers, visited websites, and listened to the ads. I was impressed at the amount of media coverage. The nation pretty much ignores Iowa except when they need corn, methamphetamine, or hogs. But alas, there were reporters from California and New York at my precinct meeting place. I want to know what the candidates are going to do for me. Me, personally. To enrich my life, help me out, whatever. I've read their views, but there are things that I wish I could ask them. What are you going to do to make it easier for me to get federal aid as a college student? I currently cannot receive gift aid because my parents (whom I do not live with, and whom do not support me) make too much money, I have been sexually responsible and am thus childless, am not married, and wouldn't do well in the military. What are you going to do so that immigrants--my friends and my neighbors--are able to lead successful, productive, and legal lives in this country? How are you going to decrease involuntary youth homelessness? What about our public schools? They need more funding, not funding taken away. The teachers need to be paid a living wage for their given educational achievements, the students need to be supplied with paper, textbooks written in the last five to ten years, and each student must have a desk. How will you raise the minimum wage to account for inflation? I would like to see a living wage paid to every worker--so that they can afford healthcare, rent or mortgage, reliable transportation, food, clothing, and a beer at the end of the week. What will you do to increase accountability for insurance companies to cover mental heath (reactive and preventative care) and mental disability? I want my social security. I refuse to work until I die. With the way social security is going, I will be. Do you have any short-term plans for aiding in this future crisis?

The reason that I caucused for Barack Obama was quite simple: he never discounted my opinions, abilities, intelligence, or power because of my age. Oftentimes, candidates focus on the middle- and upper-classes, Caucasians, families, and those entangled in corporations. But there are many just like me. In fact, it was estimated that 40-60% of the caucus-goers were first-timers (typically young, from a minority ethnic group, previously uninvolved, or poor). Take that, for strength.

Barack, I hope that our first time was as good for you as it was for me.

What is a Flavored Existence?

Somewhere between birth and now, I lived a little bit. My life has thus far been well-seasoned; It's a comedic tragedy, of sorts. Or a trashy romance novel, or a Lifetime Movie not yet made. It could be a child's book or a psychological thriller. I'd even go so far as to say it could be a book from the local library's "westerns" section. I've been a wealthy and privileged child; I've been homeless and meandered the streets. I hopped Greyhounds unsure of my destination; I've been sure of things that never panned out. I did drugs and gave up, I spent some time being constantly nude, and enjoyed playing tricks on psychologists back in the day. I was suspended for a bomb threat I never made, I spent fifteen years in Catholic school uniforms, and I still haven't found faith. I'm a community college student doing time for psychology, a waitress at a corporate barbeque joint, an equestrian sans horse, a hypochondriac, and a bit of a pessimist and fatalist. I like to gamble but I'm not old enough, I like beer but can't tolerate more than two, and I have a bizarre relationship with food. I am a fiend for knowledge and thought, argument and logic, philosophy, experiencing everything, mathematics, and stuff thats fuzzy with four legs. I'm a curious sort of girl that asks too many questions and doesn't always know when to shut up.

I like to savor life. I'm pretty much an experience-packrat with a salt shaker.