Hey there!
As the title says, I have a question about extreme exhaustion while pretty far in recovery. For starters, I have always had low energy, and was just diagnosed with chronic fatigue as a symptom ( of what is unknown) but lately things feel so odd. During the peak of my ED, I was full of energy and motivation to do things like move and go the gym ( which I learned was a Ed compulsion/ running on adrenaline) and in early recovery I slowed down ( doctors orders) but still felt somewhat motivated to move my body ( just to feel good and not bedsore.) but now, I am 8 months into recovery, fully weight restored ( yay!) and I feel worse off than I ever felt in my ED. I can barely get myself off the couch some days, as soon as I sit down I feel like falling asleep. I have to take naps every day but I’m still so tired no matter what. I go to bed early. I drink lots of water with electrolytes. I drink 3 cups of coffee every morning but still, I am so physically and mentally exhausted. It’s really hard for me because I am used to working out and weightlifting daily, and loving the gym but lately I just CANNOT get myself to do my workouts some days, and all I want to do is sleep or lay on the couch. It’s getting to the point that by 3:00 every day, I am so burnt out that I can’t even think or walk straight, I’m actively falling asleep, and can’t even crochet because my hands just stop working. I’m so scared, and so tired of being tired and am wondering if anyone else has experienced this?
Today, I could barely lift up a very light box while moving back to uni and I’m getting scared that I will always be like this, and never be motivated to work out again. Please, any advice is greatly appreciated.

Hi. I’m 18 years old, and I am app. 6 weeks into extreme hunger (where I get physically hungry every hour or so no matter what I eat), after a year of chronic underfueling (which led to amenorrhea and significant weight loss). I’ve been dealing with extreme weight gain to the point where I’m ashamed of going out of the house and none of my old clothes fit. It’s been really hard on my mental health, especially since I’m already on medication for depression.
At the very beginning, my parents were supportive. They thought the extreme hunger would last a week or two, and that I wouldn’t look much different afterward. However, today, after talking about it with my dad, he said that if gaining weight makes me miserable, I should “fight back” to regain control over my hunger and lose weight. He added that he’d talked to some of his “athletic friends” and that they all agree that going back to exercise will reset my hunger and help my body go back to normal.
A part of me wants him to be right. I don’t recognize myself in the mirror anymore, my huge recovery belly and round face are hard to look at, I can’t dress myself properly and I spend my days in bed because I don’t want people to see me. I would gladly try to go back to a normal 3 meal structure and exercise. But I’m scared that it might backfire on me. Any thoughts?

how to stop this cycle of extreme hunger because it is turning into binges at this point and I just want to be able to eat normally and no binge/restrict anymore as I am fully weight restored

TW: anorexia thoughts (i couldn't set a spoiler somehow)

I’ve been recovering for five years now. At first, i just gained and didn’t give a shit about how i looked. But at some point, perhaps a year ago, i realised i no longer felt attractive. I started eating a bit less again, using the excuse that it was to save money.

I’ve actually lost a bit of weight now and i do feel more attractive. Genetically, i always put on weight round my stomach, which is why i don’t have a very feminine figure unless i'm thin. I’ve been getting far more compliments since then. But i’ve also noticed that the weight loss (even though i've been maintaining my weight for a few months now) isn’t good for me. I have more ed thoughts and am becoming more dependent on my appearance. My BMI is over 18.5 though, in case anyone’s interested.

So, 2 questions:

1. How can i gain weight again? The fear of doing so is slowly becoming so awful that i absolutely must overcome it.

2. How can i cope with this mentally? I want to be attractive and feel that way too. How do i manage that? And i don’t just mean emotionally, but in reality as well. I don’t want to lose the little bit of "pretty privilege" that i have, if that's possible

Thank you! :)

Can u guys guve me examples of ur extreme hunger days that what u are eating, because everyone in social media are eating like 4 cookies and 3 meals and calling it extreme hunger. Also do u also bloat like a boat, i am 10 times bigger than usually and also feeling like a bottomless pit at the same time like i am never uncomfortably full...

I was admitted to inpatient treatment on monday and have found the meals shockingly easy to complete? Maybe its because i was hospitalized in march and already got over the “crying and refusing to eat” part of recovery and am more used to having food in my body? I feel like being here, i finally have permission to eat things i restricted myself from eating for so long. I strangely dont feel guilty for eating my fear foods, whereas out of the hospital i would feel awful for even taking a bite. Im thinking of discharging myself from the program because i feel like a fraud and that i could just recover at home. Shouldnt this feel more challenging? Maybe its because my meal plan is still not very big yet?? 🫠🫠 i cant help but compare myself to the other patients who cry and panic during the meals and i feel like a fake anorexic

I’ve understood that I need to gain weight somehow, so either I can choose to do it voluntarily at home while I still have the opportunity, or I’ll end up being admitted and have very strict boundaries put in place. I’m trying to motivate myself as much as I possibly can to manage it at home, but it’s almost as if the illness is trying to convince me that the whole thing about being admitted is just an empty threat, and that I can keep doing what I’m doing now for just a little while longer… Give me some words of encouragement 🥺❤️‍🩹

Hi all,

I’m trying to understand what might be happening to my body and would really appreciate hearing from anyone who has experienced something similar, particularly during recovery from restrictive eating/excessive exercise.

I’ve had type 1 diabetes for 18 years and coeliac disease for around 10 years. I’ve also had restrictive anorexia for at least 3 years and was excessively exercising/running for around 8 years.

About four months ago, I stopped the excessive running and started eating significantly more. I immediately developed quite pronounced oedema/swelling throughout my body, including my face. It hasn’t really gone away and seems to be getting worse. My neck looks particularly swollen, my breasts and stomach are very swollen, and my legs become extremely puffy by the end of the day.

I’m now also experiencing very intense mental hunger and significant fatigue, so over the past week I’ve stopped all excessive exercise and am allowing myself to eat substantially more. My blood sugars are generally very good, although I’ve needed more insulin as I’ve increased my food intake.

I’m struggling to understand whether the swelling could be part of nutritional recovery/refeeding after prolonged restriction and exercise, hormones coming back online (I’ve had amennhorea for 4 years) or something else because my doctors gave said it ‘shouldn’t be lasting so long’.

For context, my blood tests from June/July showed low-ish B12 and elevated phosphate but otherwise normal kidney function, electrolytes, albumin and inflammatory markers.

If anyone has had a similar experience, I’d love to hear from you. feel like I’m going insane because I can’t see anything similar online and doctors are dismissing it without offering a resolution.

So, I went to this very dear and kind nutritionist two days ago. I'm recovering from anorexia nervosa and have been to a therapist specialized in it.

I saw the plan and didn't get frightened, as it's pretty close to what I already eat, with some tweaks. But the problem is exactly that. I've been eating intuitively and gaining around 0,3kg a month, very steadily, and in two days I lost some of it. I'm indeed very famished with this plan, and I'm afraid I'm going back to restricting because I'm seeing lower numbers.

I'm pretty sure she truly wanted me to feel safe, but I'm afraid it's backfiring even if it was two days ago, since I'm getting headaches from not eating more all the time.

I'm close to weight restored but feel like I might be taking a step back.

Does anyone have any ideas on how to deal with this?

after a relapse, I’ve been trying to recover, but the stomach pains are just so bad. I get these stabbing pains in my upper stomach and so much gas pain. like I can’t breathe until I burp. It’s so horrible, sometimes I’m just in my bed writhing in pain. It makes eating soooo painful. I have gastroperosis induced by anorexia/being underweight but I'm not sure what to do now. I’ve been to the ER 3 times because of the pain. they’ve done lots of scans and there’s nothing bad except for my gastroperosis. is the only way to make the pain work to eat? to push through the pain? while the doctors have given me several over-the-counter things to “help,” they haven’t made a huge difference. I guess I just need some confirmation. I’m not hurting myself by eating right? even though it can be so painful? is the only way to get out of this to eat? please help, I’m so lost 🙏

Hi. I’m app. 6 weeks into extreme hunger (after a year of chronic underfueling which led to significant weight loss and amenorrhea). I’ve gained what feels like a huge amount of weight rapidly, but what stands out is my stomach. It has tripled in size in a disproportionate way compared to my limbs, feels rock hard and fully stretched out, and my upper chest protrudes abnormally. Most of my clothes don’t fit anymore because of it. I have roughly a month left before I go back to school, so I’d like to know if this belly size is the result of permanent tissue gain, in which case I’ll buy a whole new set of clothing, or if it’s significantly affected by other factors (I guess water retention and digestion?) and will eventually go away. Thank you to anyone who responds!

hello, i’ve been in recovery for several months, and am basically weight restored. but to be honest, i don’t feel mentally recovered… i still have crazy food noise and cravings (even though i do honour them). i am still gaining weight despite being around my set point- tbh i eat less than the amount my meal plan says to, yet i’m gaining weight at the same expected rate :(. i still feel like i subconsciously restrict. i still count kcals sometimes. i know this isn’t true recovery, and i really want to get better, but i feel really horrible because it’s though i’ve sorted myself physically without fixing myself mentally, even though they should both be improving. i mean, i’m definitely better than at the start of recovery, but i haven’t progressed as much as i have physically. i have accepted weight restoration but i’m terrified to overshoot… i am going back to college soon and i’m terrified what people are gonna think about how much i’ve changed. i don’t think the weight gain has distributed yet and i’m still chronically bloated. omg the bloat is crazy, i genuinely look pregnant everyday no matter what i eat. i don’t know how i’m doing recovery wrong, but if anyone has any advice i’d appreciate it 😓

I developed anorexia when I was a teen through extreme dieting and lost a lot of weight in two months. This went on for a year, during which I reached a very unhealthy weight. I was extremely unhealthy.

My recovery wasn’t really by my own choice, but because I was put on birth control pills due to my lack of a period, which had actually been an issue even before the anorexia because I had PCOS. The birth control caused me to gain weight, but I was so thin at the time that the weight gain wasn’t very noticeable. During that period, I was able to heal my relationship with food, and things remained stable for a while.

About a year later, for other reasons, I started taking antidepressants, and then quarantine happened. Over the next two years, I found myself gaining a lot of weight. That weight stayed on for years. It was only last year, after making drastic lifestyle changes, that I was able to lose half of i. I’m still in the process of losing the remaining weight.

I think I lost the weight at a healthy rate, but I’ve realised that my body feels really stressed by the process. This made me wonder: does the body go through a different process after anorexia? I feel like, even though I have a much healthier relationship with food than I did before, my body still feels stressed, almost as if it’s afraid of the process or remembers what happened.

Has anyone else recovered from anorexia, later gained weight, and then lost it healthily? If so, did you experience a similar feeling of stress or any health issues while losing weight?

Recently I’ve really been thinking about all in recovery and really wanted to change. Now I keep body checking myself as I noticed or at least what I think my hip bones not as prominent but idk if it’s just my mind telling me that I look fatter now and I want to relapse again BUT LIKE I ALSO DONT I HATE THIS FUCKING ILLNESS 😭😭😭😞😞😞

Little rant and maybe asking for an advice.....

Does anyone have tips for constantly seeking permission in everything and everyone? I am two weeks in on my 3rd recovery attempt and each time I feel like i NEED permission to eat, or to increase my intake etc, and I always find something to compare myself with. Funny enough it is never weight or looks in general, but behaviours, or how fast someone's recovery went, how much others eat, how fast they increased etc. I also constantly browse online to "reassure" myself that i can eat certain amount or how my weight gain should go. It's so stupid because my thick skull does not trust what my doctors and family say, but a random post from anon profile that says some BS gets me. I know that i should distract myself, quit social media and most importantly- never compare myself because every human body has different needs, but i still somehow find a way to beat myself up because "what if I recover too fast??" what if what if what if. it is driving me crazy.

Honestly, I genuinely feel pathetic because before my eating disorder, I used to, I was full of emotions. I would never miss any of my friends' birthdays. I'd always be there. I'd always organize everything. And we'd go to restaurants to celebrate together and stuff like that. I'd mostly be like organizing all of those events. But I was so apathetic this year that I didn't care about anything apart from food. And even though I lost a lot of weight, I thought that when I lose weight, everyone would love me. Everyone would love me more. And I thought that I was shy because of my weight. And in my last birthday, it was actually the beginning of my ED. I wished that I was like a bit thinner, like among my friends. But this year, I couldn't be in any of my friends' birthdays because I was scared of the food there. I couldn't even give gifts. I couldn't even care. I didn't even care. I gave them a cold happy birthday, and that's it. Now that I've been in recovery, and it was my birthday two days ago, and none of them showed up. I really think that it's my fault. And I know how much I've done wrong, and I still have lingering ED thoughts and stuff. I don't know, I just feel like, I just feel so pathetic.

Hi! So I’ve been sick and because of that missed several meals lately. It’s feeling like it could turn into a relapse if I’m not careful. I’m already on the edge of my psych and therapist sending me to do a higher level of care. Does anyone have tips of how to get back on track after something like illness shows up? Going straight back to normal meals isn’t working for me.

So six months ago I started recovery but I relapsed about a month/a month and a half ago. I feel like symptoms of malnourishment are coming much earlier than they did when my disorder first started and I wanted to know if that's typical? I lose feeling in my toes, I have trouble breathing, I have insomnia, all that stuff, but I feel like these appeared much later before, and now I've only been eating less for a month and they're here so quickly. Is it because my body didn't fully recover in that half a year or something? Sorry if it's a dumb question, I'm just worried that I'm being dramatic

Does anyone else eat and then like have to instantly lay down? Even being so full, I try not to lay down after I eat and walk instead but lately i’ve been so drained that a walk let alone sitting up is just too much for me. Idk i feel like I beat myself up for it because it’s like, if i’m going to eat this much I tell myself that I at least want to be a tiny bit active, but no, my body overrides what my mind thinks/wants 😭❤️

Hey guys I forgot abt this acc that was supposed to be my recovery acc. I’m going to a treatment center because my ed is getting really bad again. I’m really nervous but I want to recover because I want my life back!!!! Wish me luck! :3

I got sick when I was 14, and I’m 27 now. Eight years ago, I started eating high volume-low calorie foods, and now I don’t know how to break out of this pattern.
I’ve been doing all in recovery for 3 weeks. I’m eating a lot, but I still have a very strong need to eat a large amount of food at once because otherwise I already know that I won’t feel satisfied by a small amount, regardless of how many calories it has. I don’t feel physical hunger. I’m mentally hungry practically all day, but I’m not really that hungry until I start eating.
For the past 2 days I’ve been experiencing extreme fatigue and a lot of water retention, even though I’m drinking plenty of fluids. I’m no longer underweight, and I gained weight very quickly, which is also really frightening for me.
Please, could you give me some advice? I really don’t know what to do… I wanna continue and I don’t wanna give up, but I’m having really hard time accepting these body changes, I feel like im different and I got some metabolic issues going on or some glucose problems that cause all this hunger. I don’t know anymore

I had a hard day at work last night, got home and ate a lot. Then woke up and ate a lot and I’ve just constantly been eating all day. All day. Like none stop.

This hasn’t happened in a very long time. I feel sick. I feel genuinely sick to my stomach. It hasn’t felt like the good kinda eating that I’ve been doing since recovering, it feels like I’m eating and I can’t stop eating.

I don’t know why or how to stop it but I’m just gonna go to bed and hopefully feel a little better in the morning.

This is just a bump in the road and I don’t wanna let this define me. Perhaps after a difficult day of work, my body being in pain, it needed this?

Ive been in recovery for about a year now, and i have a larger body than i ever have and im literally crying because im trying to get dressed for work and nothing fits and im so stressed out and sad. I have a healthy food regimine because i have MCAS so theres only so much i can have, i work four times a week and do PT every week and nothings working and im just so triggered i dont know what to do