Brother's wife has a problem.

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-18-2006
Brother's wife has a problem.
3
Tue, 05-01-2007 - 4:40pm
My boyfriend's brother's wife is clearly anorexic. We hadn't seen her in months and she looks like a skeleton--you can see almost all of her ribs through her shirt, her vertabrae is portruding, and her eyes are sunken and there are heavy dark circles. We've been to a couple parties and she drinks a diet soda and eats a half a cup of lettuce. Last time we saw her she seemed lethargic and barely able to keep her eyes open. My boyfriend took the angry approach and reacted to this in a negative way. I told him not to say anything to his brother unless he expresses concern for his wife. I ended up saying something to him--asking if she was okay, she looked anorexic. He was aware and they had made a deal that she gain 5 pounds or so, and he tells her how beautiful she is, etc..Since then she's looking worse. I think she's getting to the point where she'll have to go to the hospital.
Is there anything I should do? Suggest to her brother that she get counselling? I'm worried about it but I also don't feel like I should but in any more than I have, however I don't think anything is being done if she looks worse every time I see her.
iVillage Member
Registered: 10-16-2006
Thu, 05-03-2007 - 1:28pm

Here are some tips for talking to someone about their eating disoder from www.something-fishy.org. Maybe you could pass them on to your brother.

http://www.something-fishy.org/helping/whatyoucando.php

http://www.something-fishy.org/helping/yourapproach.php

I hope that this helps.

iVillage Member
Registered: 09-06-2005
Mon, 05-07-2007 - 12:37pm

Hi,


I have a link for you to another board on iVillage, for parents (or friends) of people with ed's


http://messageboards.ivillage.com/iv-prteened


Check it out!


 

 

~Diana~

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-15-2007
Mon, 05-07-2007 - 2:15pm

Your post sounded as if I was your brother's wife. I have lost a consirable amount of weight after I had my son in January 2006. I was 170 lbs when I delivered him (am 5'2") and now weigh 100 lbs. I battled with bullimia from age 17 to 20 then miraculously stopped after I met my husband. I relasped after I had my son and 13 months later I'm still struggling with bullimia although each day gets better. Every time I visit my family and friends, everyone always gives me a hard time about my weight. I know I have a problem, and I'm dealing with it. My husband knows I have a problem, and he is supporting me. He gets very angry with others when they make a big issue of it and so do I. So my advice is to let this alone. If she is as skinny as you say she is, your brother knows it. And it'll only make him angrier if you get involved. Your sister-in-law is an adult, and she probably knows that what she is doing is not healthy. But you have to let your brother and wife deal with this themselves. Hope this helps.

Brandy
AJ: 1/22/2006
www.myspace.com/brandygamboa`