DANGEROUS SYMPTOMS

CAUSED BY EATING DISORDERS

Liver – white nail beds – nausea – itchy skin – swollen abdomen – yellowing skin/eyes – fatigue – confusion – pale / clay-like / bloody / tar-like stool – vomiting – pain in the upper, righthand abdomen – joint pain – spider angiomas (coloured skin spots that resemble spiders, due to clotting issues) – dark urine – swollen legs / ankles – bruising easily

Heart 

– tachycardia (fast resting heart rate, over 100 beats per minute) – bradycardia (slow resting heart rate, under 60 beats per minute) * note that a very high fitness level can cause a lower heart rate – irregular heart rate – if your heart rate is under 40, you could be in immediate danger, and remember that your heart rate will drop even further in sleep – shortness of breath / shallow breathing – chest pains – fatigue – dizziness – swelling in ankles / feet / legs – swollen abdomen – choking sensation – coughing up pink liquid / goop – unable to concentrate – sudden weight gain – fainting – palpitations – feeling your own heart – hearing your own heart – chest / arm / sternum pain – anxiety – sweating – vomiting – lack of energy – coughing up white

Kidneys

– vomiting / general nausea

– changed sleeping patterns / problems sleeping

– fatigue

– swelling of ankles / legs / feet / just general swelling

– hypertension (high blood pressure)

– shortness of breath

– itchiness

– chest pain

– metallic taste in mouth

– muscle cramps

– hyperkalemia (high levels of potassium)

– stiff joints

– less urinating than usual

– bloody / dark / foam-like urine

– confusion / mental fuzziness

– rashes

– leg pains

Osteoporosis (severe bone weakness)

– back pain

– bad posture

– weak bones (weak grip / bones fracture easily)

– receding gums and bone loss in jaw

– general pains in muscles or even bone

– dropping fitness levels

Cathartic colon (from laxative use)

– bloating

– abdominal pain

– chronic constipation

– intense feelings of fullness

– incomplete bowl movement / ‘fecal evacuation’

Hypokalemia (low potassium levels)

– weakness in limbs, especially the sort that causes numbness or cramping

– nausea

– vomiting

– bloating

– abdominal pain

– low blood pressure

– fainting

– physical numbness

– emotional changes

– palpitations

– excessive urination

– constant thirst

Other common side-effects of EDs

– muscle spasms, weakness or twitching (electrolyte imbalance– very common in bulimia, and can be very dangerous)

– anemia

– irregular menstrual cycles / infertility in women

– low blood sugar

– depression and other mood disorders may develop / worsen

– insomnia

– eye damage and diminishing vision

STAY SAFE. A COUPLE OF SYMPTOMS MAY NOT BE LIFE-THREATENING, BUT HAVING MULTIPLE FROM THE SAME ORGAN CAN BE. 

I am no longer active on this account. I have reached a stage of recovery where it’s better I avoid this type of content. 

However, I still get e-mails about the replies on this post in particular. 

The #1 response is always “this is goals tho”. Because yeah. Depression and chronic illness is totally worth feeling confident in thigh-highs. Please seek help.

The #2 response scares me. It’s “I have these but I’m not going to tell anyone”. Please. Please, please, please seek help. This isn’t a joke. This will kill you. 

The #3 response tells me “you’re just worrying ppl for no reason”. I’m sorry you think someone’s life is a non-reason. As much as I wish these symptoms were 1 in 100, they’re not. Please. Seek. Help.

I don’t mean to sound harsh, but this is serious. This is your life, your ana-buddy’s life, and the lives of everyone around you. Please believe me when I say thing’s can get better, and that you deserve for them to get better. 

recovery isn’t letting go of control

recovery is realising you were never in control anyway

it is taking control away from your eating disorder

and regaining your life

we have to recognise that sometimes the expectations we set for ourselves are just too high. be kinder to yourself.

Some key notes I made during the last 20 minutes of this “Evening with Marya Hornbacher”.  A MUCH needed reminder that full recovery IS possible.

Well worth a watch.

The last one hit home

this is your reminder that it’s never too late to learn something new. just because you’re thirty does not mean you’re no longer allowed to learn a new language or learn how to paint. nobody’s ever too old to study history, get a degree, or crochet. learning knows no barriers, no time, it is for everyone and there’s always a huge space for improvement.

I fucking hate it when you’re in such a fantastically giddy mood and then you see one simple little thing that makes you think, “oh” and then you just get this empty feeling in your chest and you get nauseous and the world just crumbles and you want to just lay under a blanket and close your eyes and fall asleep and never wake up. 

From what my therapist told me, this happens because our emotions aren’t really on the ‘opposite’ ends like we tend to think of it. Happiness is not ‘up’ and sadness is not ‘down’-. In a way they’re actually right ‘next’ to each other.

If you’re super happy, it can turn into super sad very easily, because your emotions are already highly elevated and it’s only a very minor shift as far as your brain is concerned.

Knowing this can help you fight it, and it can help you be more aware of what’s going on while you’re happy and help avoid shifting towards misery.

I used to always wonder why it seemed like my happy days ‘couldn’t last’ or that bad things would ‘always’ happen when I was happy. It’s not that happiness is doomed to fail, it’s that emotions are volatile. I hope that helps people who experience this too- when you understand what’s going on more it’s easier to manage.

Therapists aren’t people who you “pay to pretend to care about you”, therapists are people you pay to teach you how to care for yourself

Me: I am violently depressed.

Therapist: Oh! Sounds like you need to do YOGA! That will help!

Me: *signs up for yoga*

Me: *is violently depressed in Downward Dog*

Me: I hate myself and only see my flaws

Therapist: ok lets refocus on things you like about yourself. This week i want you to try and journal about good things you’ve for yourself and others.

Me: *does the homework* yeah but i still hate myself but feel bad cause i shouldn’t

Therapist: feeling like you shouldn’t hate yourself is a step in the right direction. Mental health is complex and isn’t something that will ~magically~ improve. We have a lot of hard work head of us but I’ll be here to help you.

TL;DR stop perpetuating the idea that therapy is unhelpful because the results are not instantaneous.

FUCKING THIS.

As a psychologist the amount of bullshit on this site, the amount of fucking dangerous bullshit on this site about how therapy is neurotypical bullshit and isn’t worth it and how exercise is pointless and good diet is pointless and that therapy homework is pointless DRIVES ME UP THE FUCKING WALL

Exercise is fucking important. good diet is fucking important therapy is fucking important. WHY???

because pills alone don’t help. they improve the hormonal imbalance (as does exercise and good diet which ALSO are a form of very real self care as your physical being is sorta connected to your mental one but go fucking figure right?), but guess what? the suicidal thoughts, the thoughts of harm, the thoughts of hating yourself, they’re still there.  suicides actually increase when medicated.  why? because suddenly you have the energy to fulfill thoughts of harming yourself.  which is why you NEED therapy alongside pills.

it has taken you years, or decades to create your maladaptive thought processes and behaviours.  that shit doesn’t disappear overnight. core beliefs don’t change overnight. these are the very fucking core of your personhood, your being and personality. THAT TAKES TIME TO CHANGE

STOP ACTING LIKE THERAPY IS SHIT IF IT DOESNT WORK IN TWO SESSIONS

^This!!!!!

The stigma that therapy isn’t worth it if you don’t feel better after the first couple sessions is such bullshit. It took me 8 months to tell my therapist anything personal but I kept going because I wanted to get better. I thought it was bs too when she kept telling me to think about other things and to distract myself when I have intrusive thoughts (not exact words whatsoever). Now it’s 2 and a half years later and I can successfully switch from thinking about all the ways I could kill myself to the song Slippery by Migos and immediately start laughing. You need to let it help you.

Y'all just need to find a good therapist and actually let them help, and help yourselves.

I needed to see this 

why isn’t anyone allowed to be wrong anymore? it’s okay to be wrong. no one should be terrified of every tiny little mistake they might make. being wrong, and realizing you were wrong, is how you learn and grow and change.

please eat. your body needs it and i promise it’s not bad for you. you deserve to eat and you deserve to be healthy. 

shoutout to mentally ill people who forget to go to the bathroom, eat, or any other “mundane” activity

shoutout to mentally ill people who can’t bathe, brush their teeth, do laundry, or any other “mundane” activity

you’re not gross, you’re not awful, you’re worthy of love and respect

if you’re ever scared you’re not a good person, remember that bad people don’t care about being better 

i need to hang this on my wall this just fixed my whole mood today

Honestly the sooner you figure out that just because something’s fun or easy doesn’t mean it isnt worthwhile, the better off you’ll be.

Like

You don’t have to hate your job or classes for them to have meaning. If you like them, they are still important.

I don’t know how I got tricked into believing I had to suffer to give back to the world, but it’s something I work everyday to counteract.

You’re never too much, whether it comes to taking up space, eating, asking for help, speaking up or simply existing. You don’t need to make yourself smaller, less loud, less visible. You’re not a bother and you’re allowed to be human just like everyone else.

you are not an exception. you deserve the same happiness you wish on everyone else. you are just as worthy as them. please never forget that.

Do not “wait to get worse”.

I don’t care if you’ve “been worse”

Your body is tired of this.

You deserve help in this moment.

I needed this today, thanks.

Additionally: It doesn’t matter if other people “have it worse”.

You deserve help.

hey guys remember to drink plenty of water today or else :)

“I’ve never been to war. I can’t have PTSD.” Yes, you can.

“I’m not suicidal. I can’t have depression.” Yes, you can.

“He’s never hit me. It can’t be abuse.” Yes, it can.

Suffering is not a contest. Your experiences are valid. Seek out the help you need.

SUFFERING IS NOT A CONTEST

SUFFERING IS NOT A CONTEST

“If youre not hiding anything youll let me look through this” is a gross manipulation tactic

You have every right to keep your stuff private, it is natural to not want people, no matter how close they are, going through your phone/papers/conversations/pictures.

Dont let them trick you into feeling bad because youre a human who wants privacy.

TICK PSA

Alright you guys, ‘tis the season again and I’ve already seen bullshit float about so here we go: what to do and what not to do when you happen to have a tick attached to yours truly.

WHAT NOT TO DO:

DON’T cover the tick in anything. Vaseline, nailpolish, whatever. Doesn’t matter. It’ll all suffocate the tick, making it panic vomit germs into your blood stream. That’s the opposite of what you want.

DON’T burn the tick. Same problem, plus the additional option of giving yourself a burn wound in the process. 

DON’T squeeze the body of the tick when you try to remove it. Again this empties the tick’s digestive system into your body. Bad. 

DON’T wait for the tick to detach itself. The longer it stays on you, the higher the chances it’ll transmit anything to you. Plus when ti detaches it may again vomit germs into you. 

WHAT TO ACTUALLY DO

STAY CALM. A tick hanging on you is not a reason to panick. You’re not going to keel over just like that, and if you’re unsure what to do, there are many resources on the internet on how to safely remove a tick, like this one from the CDC (aka the professionals)

USE APPROPRIATE TOOLS. These can be suitable tweezers (the pointy kind, not blunt tipped ones), tick removers (there are cheap ones out there, those you can buy at the vets are totally fine for use on humans, too!). Ideally you can remove the entire tick in one go, however if that doesn’t work and the mouth part breaks off in your skin, that’s not a terribly big deal and you can totally remove it separately after you got the body remove. Again, don’t panic.

KILL THE REMOVED TICK. But not by squeezing it. Flush it down the toilet, submerse it in alcohol in a container etc. Ideally if the tick has bitten you and not your dog, keep the tick around in a sealed container in case you start having symptoms and someone needs to identify the tick species. Also IF you start getting symptoms like the tell tale Lyme disease rash, HIT A DOCTOR RIGHT AWAY AND TELL THEM ABOUT YOUR TICK BITE. Do not wait this out, ticks can transmit a whole host of diseases beside Lyme, so be mindful of that, too! 

Some of those diseases you can actually get vaccinated again, such as tick born encephalitis. Check with the local authorities if you live in a risk area, and if so, get the shots to protect yourself. 

Excellent post! I would like to add that ticks hide in tall grass and bushes mostly. They do not drop down from trees or jump to other people’s heads etc. Ticks aren’t designed to jump, they latch on somewhere on your leg and then crawl upwards in most cases. 

So be careful with bare legs and tall grass!

Ticks will crawl from the cuffs of your jeans all the way up to your hair, where they cannot be seen, and nor could a bite rash be seen (ask me how I know HAHA). 

If you walk through an area that may have ticks for any length of time, check yourself for them! Especially after you get home. Strip down, check your whole body, even your belly button, armpits, between toes, behind ears and ESPECIALLY YOUR HAIR. Long hair in particular is beloved. Comb all the hair, and check your scalp. Deer ticks are tiny. Wood ticks are just under the size of a pencil eraser and can easily be felt.

I just spoke with a friend who also contracted Lyme’s disease as a kid and it’s no “yeah I guess that’s bad?” disease. Chronic untreated Lymes can lead to crippling arthritis and lifelong psychological issues and doctors are just starting to take it seriously. 

CHECK YOURSELF FOR TICKS. IF YOU LIVE IN AN AREA WITH DEER TICKS GET TESTED FOR LYMES IF YOU SUSPECT ONE BIT YOU.

So this is deffo different from what I learned growing up in the woods! Read it all, friends!

If you’ve been bitten by a tick recently and start developing symptoms (sudden joint pain, flu like symptoms, rashes - bullseye or otherwise, anything weird) ask your doctor to treat for Lyme even if your test is negative.

The tests for Lyme are terrible and inaccurate at best. You can test negative a dozen times and still have Lyme disease, which is why prevention is key.

Also, draw a circle around the bite! About 1cm diameter will do. There’s always a little bit of redness, but if you did contract any infections, the rash will spread. The circle can help you determine if it did (and if it does, visit your doctor asap).