I'm new and need advice. I'm scared.

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
I'm new and need advice. I'm scared.
3
Mon, 03-15-2004 - 10:26am
I have been bulimic for about 6 years. For the first 2 years, I purged only a few times per month. And then the third year, I began purging about once or twice a week. The fourth year, it was a few times per month, but I went through a period of time, about 2 months or so, where it was about twice a day for about two months. The fifth year, it balanced out to about 2-4 times per month. Now, on the sixth year, it's been about 4-6 times per WEEK. I'm in recovery now, but it's the beginning of it. I'm just talking to a therapist about my behaviour. Anyway, last weekend, I had done it three times in one day, and after the last time, I felt really light headed and I started shaking. I felt freezing cold, and then really hot, and then cold, and then hot. I was shaking and finally I drank pedialyte to balance out my electrolytes. I just layed down and eventually, I felt OK. The next day however, my stomach felt kind of weird and and upset. I ate normally and didn't purge at all. The day after that though, I went on a binge and ended up purging one time that day, as well as the next day. The day after that, I was good and did not purge my food. However, the day after that, which was Friday, I ended up binging and purging, as well as on Saturday and Sunday too. I did it a LOT this week. The reason why I'm scared is because Thursday, I started getting REALLY BAD headaches. I've been having horrible headaches every day since then. I have them off and on throughout the day on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Today too. I've been feeling tired too. I don't know if this is related or not. My stomach feels a bit sensative too. Do you think I've injured myself? I went for a full physical two weeks ago and my doctor is aware of my condition and she checked my liver, kidneys, urine, blood, etc. Everything came out fine. But, it seems like I may have done some damage to myself. What do you think?? Has anyone ever had severe headaches every day for almost a week, being caused from this? I'm so scared.
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2003
Mon, 03-15-2004 - 3:54pm

Hi Kristy,


I am so sorry you are hurting and worried. I know it can be very scary. If your doctor says that you were fine 2 weeks ago I doubt that you can do that much damage, however, purging is very hard on your body and there is always a chance you could have hurt yourself. I can definitely see how you might be having headaches. Since your doctor knows about your bulimia, can you go see her again and be honest with her? Like I said, it may not be anything serious, but it's better to be safe, right? Plus it will ease your mind rather than worrying about it.


I hope you will talk to your therapist about the increase in purging, too. Sometimes when we start recovery things can actually get worse before they get better, but don't let that discourage you. I am so glad you are in therapy and working on your recovery. It does get better if you keep working on it. I would never go back to my old way of living and I did it for 22 years. Recovery IS possible.


Hang in there and go see your doc if you can.

Love & hugs, Kristina


The opinions I have expressed here are from my own experience and are not intended as medical advice or to take the place of your own physician's advice.

Love & hugs, Kristina

iVillage Member
Registered: 05-01-2003
Mon, 03-15-2004 - 6:49pm
Hey Kristymay,

Sorry to hear things are so rough right now. Recovery is hard stuff. Keep moving forward.

The "episode" you described with the light-headedness, shaking, and hot/cold flashes definitely sounds like hypoglycemia. Especially if you've binged/purged on sugars or carbs, it's not hard to produce that effect (blood sugar levels jump around and eventually fall too fast or too low). Drinking pedialyte works fine to bring them back up, and juice would work just as well. I'd recommend having a protein snack with that or shortly after so that you're not setting yourself up for another round of sugar cravings once the juice/ pedialyte burns off.

A word on electrolytes-- things will stay FINE for as long as possible and then numbers drop rapidly. The body fights incredibly hard to maintain homeostasis, and when things go wrong, they go wrong quickly. I had this experience with my potassium levels once and had to get an IV. My levels came up "fine" a few days earlier, but dropped down. Not randomly, but because I chose to continue dangerous behaviors. All that to say, don't assume that your body isn't feeling the effects just because your tests come up "normal." Your body fights to stay normal, but don't compromise its ability to fight. I'm sure you know all that, but it's good to keep it in mind.

Headaches can be a result of multiple things related to binging and purging, it's hard to say what is causing yours. Dehydration is almost a given. Could just be more hypoglycemia. Same thing with stomach pain... it's hard to say what might be causing it for you. Could be the foods you b/p'ed on, the volume, or the frequency of purging. Bottom line, though, your body HATES binging and purging!

In my experience, the more you do it, the more you'll continue to do it. I hate breaking the cycle, but it's really the only way. It makes me cranky and feels impossible, but the more you eat well, the more you'll continue to eat well and the more comfortable it will be. That sounds obvious too, but just remember, it's okay to get cranky and to expect to be uncomfortable >:-(... :P And equally okay to feel good when you treat your body well.

Alright, done rambling. I really hope you feel better and continue to fight for your health. If you can't explain the headaches/ pain and they persist, definitely get it checked out.

Love and prayers,

Starfish

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Tue, 03-16-2004 - 9:25am
Thank you so much for your replies, they mean a lot to me!!! :)