Is this an eating disorder?

iVillage Member
Registered: 02-11-2007
Is this an eating disorder?
2
Sun, 03-18-2007 - 1:26pm

...or am I just one of those controlling types?

I'm 5'3" and weigh 100 pounds without clothes. I'm small-boned, and even at that low weight, I am still curvy. Being a pear shape, most of my weight is in my butt, and so I definitely do NOT look like I have an eating disorder of any shape.

I exercise a lot, though, because I love it. I run (it's my therapy) 30-35 miles per week; take walks; do Pilates; and lift weights.

I also count calories, obsessively. Generally, I take in 900 to 1200 calories--very rarely do I go over 1300. However, I have not lost any weight (I've always been light) despite my ever-present fear of doing so.

Last summer I realized I may have been controlling my eating too much, so I upped my calories to 1500-1700 a day. I gained weight, and even when I gave myself time to get "evened out," the weight stayed on. So, either my body just needs fewer calories than most people, or my metabolism is shot without a chance of recovering.

The past year or so I have noticed more hair growth, especially on my face and arms. Occasionally I will find dark hairs on my chin, which my mother has, but I even have it on my neck and chest! It scares me :( I had my thyroid checked and I'm fine in that area. I eat lean meat three times a week.

Is this an eating disorder, or am I just paranoid? How come I can't eat a normal amount of calories? Is this just my body type?

By the way, because of my body shape, I wear a size 4. So, I'm not scary skinny at all. I've actually never had anyone tell me I'm "too" skinny.

Thanks for any advice...!

iVillage Member
Registered: 02-12-2007
Wed, 03-21-2007 - 9:49pm

U sound like you are on the edge right now. U might want to talk to your doctor about the hair growth. Even though you aren't eating a extremely low amount of calories, it's still not normal to count calories obsessively. It seems like if you only eat 900-1200 calories that is not nearly as much as you need. Expecially if you exericse. It really doesn't make sense that you gained on 1500-1700 a day. You might want to talk to a doctor to see exactly how many calories you need to consume. I just recomend asking a doctor these questions. It would really help. Really try to stop obsessing about what you eat. It can take over your life and fast and it is a miserable life to count calories and obsess about food. Talk to a doctor! Hope you gets thing figured out!

~Alex~

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-28-2007
Wed, 03-28-2007 - 7:46pm
I agree! Whenever you obsess about anything, it should raise a few red flags! It sounds like you can still do something before it gets out of control.