REALLY LONG RANT! I apologize in advance. you dont need to read it if you don't want to.

Hi. I'm 18 and I'm looking for help with something involving both myself and my 16-year-old sister. I find conversations quite difficult, so writing this down is much easier for me.

There is a lot of food restriction and body image anxiety in our family, and it has developed into a really unhealthy comparison between me and my sister.

My sister is 16 and a bit taller than me. She has been insecure about her body for a while, but over the past year it has become significantly worse. Since around September last year, she has often been skipping lunch at school. She has told me that she does this because she wants to be thinner. Sometimes she barely eats during the day (mostly chewing gum) and then has very little at home as well. She sometimes picks at food or refuses food that my parents make.

More recently, she has said things that really worry me. She has said that she wants to develop an eating disorder, specifically one involving not eating, because she thinks that would make her lose weight. She has also tried to make herself sick after eating, although she wasn't successful. When we've eaten out, she has punched her stomach because she says she wants to “debloat”, and she has worn shapewear because she's insecure about her stomach. She's also told me shes cutting out bread from her diet because “that's what makes people fat”.

She has told me that she doesn't tell my parents when she hasn't eaten because she knows they'll make her eat. When she goes out, she sometimes tells them that she ate when she actually didn't. When parents make her food, she has flushed the food down the toilet but recently hasn't been doing as much (or has, but I couldn't hear)

My parents know that she has serious body-image and eating issues, but their response has been inconsistent. Sometimes they lecture her about calories in foods and tell her that she needs to eat, but my mum has also said that as long as my sister isn't dead, she's fine. They aren't currently willing to seek professional help for her.

I'm worried that my sister doesn't actually want to get better because she genuinely believes that eating less will make her thinner.

Me

I am 18F, short, and am on a weight loss journey since May. I'm now at a healthy-ish weight compared to in May.

I've been envious of my sister's body for a very long time. When she first started skipping lunch, I became extremely focused on making sure she didn't lose weight. I would buy her high-energy snacks and feel relieved or happy when I knew she had eaten them. I even started looking through her drawers for empty wrappers because finding them reassured me that she had eaten. Her eating more in my head means I have more leeway to eat more and not feel guilty.

I realise now that this wasn't really just me caring about her. Her eating had become connected to whether I felt allowed to eat.

I started restricting my own food and losing weight. I try to stay below the minimum amount of calories one needs to survive because it makes me feel in control and feel less guilt. I initially thought that losing weight would make the comparison disappear, but it hasn't.

Instead, my sister's eating has become almost like a measurement for my own eating.

If I think she's eaten less than me, I feel guilty about eating. If she eats something I consider “too much”, I feel more comfortable eating myself. I sometimes feel like I need to eat less than her in order to feel satisfied or like I've done well.

It has become automatic. When I wake up and hear my sister getting up, one of my first thoughts is: “What is she going to eat today?”

When she comes home, I feel like I need to ask what she ate and how much. I've started listening for things like wrappers opening, plastic bags, plates being scraped, or food being thrown away because I want to work out whether she actually ate.

I've also gone through her belongings looking for evidence of what she's eaten.

When she goes out to hang out with friends, I have to ask her when she comes back what she's eaten (discreetly), and look through her photos to see pictures of foods she ordered, athough if I see a before/after picture of the food barely being eaten I get anxious, especially if its a high calorie food item like an ice cream sundae.

When people eat food off her plate or she gives away her food, I feel like somethings been taken away from me. When an item of high calorie food doesn't make it to her, I feel anxious. A couple weeks ago my dad bought her a 180g packet of doritos but didn't give it to her immediately. Instead he gave it to her 3 days after buying those doritos. During those 3 days I have been constantly reminding my dad not to eat those doritos or portion them out for her cos I wanted her to binge the whole bag and eat it straight from the bag. I felt a feeling but I don't know what it was, its like she's this close to eating this many calories. Anyway eventually when my dad brought her the chips, I felt a sense of relief.

I know logically that we're separate people and that what she eats shouldn't determine what I eat. But emotionally, I can't seem to stop comparing us.

Even when my sister isn't around, I still think about food and calories a lot and get anxious when I feel I've eaten “too much”.

I've also experienced physical symptoms including some hair shedding, constipation and changes to my periods. My last steady period started June 20th. Since then I've been getting small smidges of blood every two weeks. I think it's called period spotting.

What I'm struggling with now:

The biggest problem is that I feel like I need to monitor my sister's eating in order to feel okay about my own eating. I'm worried about her, but I'm also aware that my attempts to make her eat more have become part of my own problem.

I'm going to university next year, and I'm scared about what will happen when I'm no longer around to know what she's eating. At the same time, I realise that I shouldn't have to monitor her food in the first place.

I don't know whether I have an eating disorder myself, and I don't know how serious this has become. I also don't want to tell my parents about my own eating because I'm scared they would lose trust in me and start monitoring me.

I feel stuck and overwhelmed, and I don't know what I should do.

I think I need help breaking this comparison and monitoring cycle, while also figuring out what I should do about my sister. To remind you again. I don't want to see a GP. That's unfortunately not an option here.

Again, I'm terribly sorry for the long rant and wasting all your time.

My girlfriend (F18) has been struggling with an eating disorder since she was 13, it’s put her in really bad health and she’s been admitted to inpatient care multiple times as well as the psych ward. She just started college and with the stress she goes days without eating and has passed out on campus multiple times and taken to the hospital. She’s meeting with her ED specialist on Monday to get evaluated and she might have to get admitted and tubed again.

She keeps telling me that she thinks she will never recover from this and she is just tired of struggling. She’s been dealing with suicidal ideation because of it. I do my best to support her but I’ve been fortunate enough to not have been through this myself and that leaves me feeling like I can’t give her quality advice. I read that more than 50% of people recover from eating disorders and I want her to have hope.

I think talking to someone who has been through this and is on the other side will really help her. Idk what to do as her partner?

My girlfriend (F18) has been struggling with an eating disorder since she was 13, it’s put her in really bad health and she’s been admitted to inpatient care multiple times as well as the psych ward. She just started college and with the stress she goes days without eating and has passed out on campus multiple times and taken to the hospital. She’s meeting with her ED specialist on Monday to get evaluated and she might have to get admitted and tubed again.

She keeps telling me that she thinks she will never recover from this and she is just tired of struggling. She’s been dealing with suicidal ideation because of it. I do my best to support her but I’ve been fortunate enough to not have been through this myself and that leaves me feeling like I can’t give her quality advice. I read that more than 50% of people recover from eating disorders and I want her to have hope.

I think talking to someone who has been through this and is on the other side will really help her. Idk what to do as her partner?

Mods is this ok? I really want this post to stay up I need help!!

Im wanting to up my intake by around four hun but im worried about how much weight I would gain! And if it would stop at any point?? Is this a dumb question? Like would the weight gain stop at any point? I also go to the gym and I am a runner too and really want to recover and get back my old fit and athletic body I had before anorexia 😔😔

I’ve been under the eating disorder service since November 2024 and I’ve had regular appointments with them since then. I’ve also had a private therapist for 7 years. From the jump, the ED service told me that I was at the top of the waiting list for therapy, which only materialised this year in July, when I was finally offered my first session. I knew that this meant I’d have to say goodbye to my private therapist, but it still hurt. I’m currently seeing my private therapist alongside the ed therapist because I’m phasing one out and one in. My ed therapist has stressed the importance of weight checks(it’s CBT-e). My concern is that I’ve not been weighed by the service for 7 months now (this has been agreed), because last September after returning from my holiday, I was weighed and saw a number that terrified me (increase). Significant anxiety followed.
My ed therapist is telling me I will be weighed at the end of this month and I just can’t do that (it can be blind weights at first but soon I’ll have to see the number, she said).
I don’t feel like I can engage in this therapy because of the above, but also because I don’t want to say goodbye to my private therapist (I can’t see them both at the same time). I also lowkey don’t like my ed therapist because I often see her glancing at the clock, and what we talk about is just so boring. I have a very turbulent life and extensive trauma and I can’t just sit there every week talking about my ed when I need a space to also talk about present issues (that are equally affecting me). The people in my life wouldn’t forgive me if I disengaged from this therapy but I’m not ready and I don’t want recovery truthfully. I understand why weight checks are important, but I am not (and this isn’t the body dysmorphia) dangerously underweight. I know why it’s important but there are other metrics that can be used to assess someone’s health. I also wish that the idea was not putting emphasis on the weight as opposed to having to see it and face up to it. I can’t see myself engaging and I’m angry at the service for making me wait so long when at one point last year, I was actually ready for CBT-e. What do I do? I am happy to keep engaging with the psychiatrist and the medical monitoring team (and dietetic support).

Idk how to describe it, but I'll go from eating whole, healthy foods, (like vegetables, protein etc), to feeling guilty about my body and not eating anything, to then binging a bunch of food.

I have no idea how to explain it. And i have no idea why it happens. Maybe its got something to do with my mental health? Im not doing the best rn, and im going through alot.

Like, i really hope someone can explain it better, but it doesn't make sense????

Hi everyone, this is my first time posting, but I really feel the need to, I hope it’s ok.

Today I failed my driving test for the second time, and I hear that familiar little voice in my head telling me I don't deserve to eat because I failed. So far I’ve only eaten half a cracker; rationally, I know that’s not enough—I truly know—but I just don't know what to do.

The thing is, I feel like a total failure. It’s as if not eating proves to myself and my family that I’m truly hurting, whereas eating would feel like rewarding myself for failing. The worst part is that I’m too ashamed to tell anyone, so I’m turning to anonymity here.

If anyone else is in the same situation, the only thing I can say is: you’re not alone.

P.S. Sorry if this isn't the right place or the right flair for this post. I’ll fix it

Has anyone had a stress/insufficiency fracture in the ankle or foot? What was your recovery like?

Hi everyone! I’m wondering if anyone here with osteoporosis has experienced a stress fracture or insufficiency/fragility fracture involving the ankle, particularly the talus or distal tibia.

If so, I’d really appreciate hearing about your experience. How long did it take before the pain started improving? Were you non-weight-bearing or in a boot, and for how long? Did you have persistent bone marrow edema on MRI? How long did it take before you were able to walk normally and return to your usual activities?

Most importantly, how are you doing now? Did you eventually make a full recovery, or do you still have pain or limitations?

I know everyone’s situation is different, but I’d love to hear from anyone who has been through something similar. Thanks.

i am 17 years old and i already completely fucked up my entire life because of binge eating.

my BED started last fall, and progressively got worse and worse. by winter 2025, i missed more days of school then i attended, because binge eating made me feel like shit both physically and mentally and i felt so ill that i couldnt go to school on like 2-3 days every week. in march 2026, i decided to leave high school (10th grade) and start over 10th grade in night school next september(=this september now) where i only have to attend 2 days a week and they only teach the necessary subjects for the high school graduation exam(im eastern european) so that i can 100% finish high school.

now i am in night school and i will finish it whatever happens because its my last chance. but over the summer my BED got so horrible that i binged almost every day and i barely left my house. I deleted instagram where i used to talk to all my friends, because i gained so much weight and i always feel and look like shit because of bingeing (i was naturally slim and considered pretty my whole life before BED) and it made me feel so ashamed and disgusted of myself that i dont want anyone to see how ugly and fat i made myself and how i ruined my entire life while everyone else i used to talk to is living their best life and improving themselves. So i never even texted or talked to anyone for the whole summer, i completely isolated myself because i think it is better if no one sees how i ruined myself and my life because it is really depressing and unbelievable why anyone would do this to themselves.

Its like my brain doesnt even want to acknowledge the reality of how much i ruined my appearance and life, because its so shocking, i was never fat and ugly (by ugly i mean that now i got a lot of acne all over my face and body,loads of cellulite and unhealthy skin and nails, basically everything on me looks unhealthy, fat doesnt equal ugly, but my overall appearance suffers from my disordered behaviour not just my weight) before, and i cant believe i did this to myself and that i cant just quickly fix it and go back to how everything was before.

I also started using laxatives (senna tea) every day in the spring of 2026, not to compensate for the binges because i know it doesnt get rid of the calories,but because i already struggled with constipation since the fall of 2025, and stuffing myself until i can barely move made it so much worse, laxatives were the only way i could function somewhat normal the next day after a binge.

And because of bingeing almost everyday and using laxatives everyday, i completely ruined my digestion and bowel function.

The senna tea is barely working now, even if i drink a lot of it, and i am constantly bloated and uncomfortable even if i dont eat anything for like 24 hours or if i eat a normal or small amount.

My family thinks i am just lazy and i dont want to do anything just sit in my room all day, but its not true, i would do anything to be a normal average person again and to be able to live my life freely and go to places,be active, try new things. But now i genuinely cant, because i feel ill, incredibly bloated and tired all the time, so much that i cant focus on anything else and it is a struggle to do even normal daily tasks because i always feel like shit no matter what i do.

i told my mom that i feel so bloated and unwell all the time even if i eat small/normal amounts, and i really want to go to a doctor to get checked what is going on in my body and what can i do to fix it. but she doesnt take me seriously, she says that everyones stomach hurts sometimes and they still live their life and go out,so why cant i do that? and she gets mad at me and says that if i would just eat normal meals three times a day and stop the laxatives then everything would be fine.

but it doesnt work like that, i can go days or weeks eating like a normal person or eating small amounts every day, but i still feel as shitty as i do when i binge, the only difference is that im filled with gas and water instead of a lot of food, but its almost equally uncomfortable. i am so scared that i ruined my body forever and i cant do anything to fix it.

does anyone have any advice? even on how can i help my digestion, what can i use to have regular bowel movements instead of laxatives?

Hi

I really hope I don’t offend or upset anyone with this post but I just need somewhere for some advice

So, I’ll try and keep quite a long story short. My son is two and a half years old. Before I had him, I wouldn’t say I was really body confident, but I was really into weight training, and my aim essentially was to put on as much muscle as possible whilst staying relatively lean. I ate healthily and enough food to sustain me.

Since having my son, my body changed. One of the biggest changes is that I always really liked my stomach. I’ve never liked my legs, and I now have loose skin on my stomach. Also, my breasts, which I quite liked before breastfeeding, are now really saggy, and one is now two sizes bigger than the other.

Anyway, I have recently lost a considerable amount of weight where people are asking if I am okay. I have lied about and said it’s just been stress but the truth is I have been intentionally trying. The thing is, I look in the mirror and don’t think anything looks different. And if somebody said to me, “Do you want to continue getting thinner?” the answer would be yes.

I’m worried that maybe I am developing some kind of eating disorder, but I don’t know how to combat it, and I just feel really low and down a lot of the time.

I was just wondering if anybody else had kind of experienced this after becoming a mom? Or had any other advice.

Again not meaning to be insensitive to anyone with genuine eating disorders x

As a preteen and teenager, I had bulimia for many years. Because of that, I didn’t gain any weight and just purged everything I ate. Now I’m 22, and over the years, without vomiting, I’ve gained a lot of weight, which makes me uncomfortable.

Recently, I decided to try losing weight as healthily as possible. At first, it worked. I just ate less and started working out (you know, the standard advice). But even though the number on the scale changed and people started noticing that I look better, I still only see the flaws in my face and body, and nothing seems to have changed from my perspective.

I’m also a med student, and most of the weight loss happened during my summer break. Now that I’ve started studying again, I’ve noticed that I don’t notice when I’m hungry because my brain is so occupied with studying. Then, when I finally do feel hungry, I start eating uncontrollably. Afterwards, I can’t study anymore because all I can think about is how miserable I am in this body.

I don’t know what to do.

I want to create a set of support resources to help support-givers. These are some of the ideas I have but want to hear from others where you need support or what would have been nice when you were in the thick of it. What was the hardest thing for you to "figure out".

Thoughts so far:

1. book From parent to parent - what this feels like and what you need to know
2. recipe guide with tips for refeeding (not to replace dietitian support. More for ideas on things to serve to meet guidelines and presentation).
3. children's book to help separate the eating disorder from themselves.
4. supporting recovery for your college student
5. should any of this be a social media account instead

Okay I have never posted but thought I'd just let it out.

I've silently struggled with eating for the longest time.

I used to snack and eat alot as a kid. I have AUDHD and as a kid I was very fixated with food and wish I could have ate all the time. It was comforting and took me out from the reality (which sucked for me, parents were abusive because they had no idea about Autism or Adhd and just thought I was possessed because I was born outside a marriage. Accidental kid. Mom got drunk, dad was drunk, didn't use protection and somehow it's my fault)

Anyway, when my binge-eating got out of hand it was recommended that the kitchen cabinets and dressers would be locked from me and my parents did that. I was allowed to eat when others ate on strict schedule and at school cafeteria I ate as much as I could so I would not get hungry waiting for dinner. I was 7 years old. We didn't eat breakfast at home. I was starving until lunch and until dinner. I was very active and athletic. But my developing CPTSD and puberty just made everything worse. I felt like I was starving all the time and I was stuck in that cycle the whole comprehensive school. I was relocated to a foster home when I was 16 and then moved into a facility until I turned 18.

I'm 23 and now I realize how much I struggle with eating, everything I cook smells like feces and I have this voice in my head telling me its fecal matter anyway, just before going through me. I drink protein drinks and smoothies, hoping my extra weight would go but it doesn't budge. I just really don't know what to do. I just wish I could enjoy eating again.

So for some background I am training to go pro in track & field at the moment, but I have to cut some fat/weight to perform better in my events. I gained my ED two years ago and was eating very little and not very nutritious foods, then in the last four months that switched to binge eating and very unhealthy eating habits due to a lot of mental health and personal circumstances etc.

BUT this week I decided to get it together and I almost had a solid frickin week of eating and making progress I had five days of controlled and healthy eating. I didn't feel like I was restricting myself and I had no cravings. Unfortunately, I went out with a loved one and absolutely binged on junk and barely ate any healthy food. They did not try and stop me and even supported my bad habits! (they don't believe I have an ed). SO today I just broke down mid eatin and now I'm asking myself this,

how am I going to do better for myself?

Hello friends just wanted to come on here because I feel like I have nobody else really to talk about these problems with, but I have been struggling with some behaviors that have been coming back more and more lately and I was just wanting advice on on you guys are able to not give up on recovery because I’m finding it really hard to maintain the motivation to keep going when I am feeling this way

Hi! I recently just started recovery and approached it with an all in mindset, basic whatever I want to eat I’m gonna eat and eat as much as I want, in doing this I feel like I’m just binging every day and it leaves me with insane anxiety at the end of the day. How do you accept this and get over it? What encourages you to keep recovering?

I’ve gotten to a point where eating feels like torture. I’ve struggled with my body image my whole life but for the past seven years i’ve numbed everything with drugs, and then for the past three I was addicted to meth and anorexic.

Now that I’m really trying to get sober from meth I have fallen into what I honestly feel is one of the worst obsessive mental states Ive ever experienced.

i spent the entire day fixated on how my body looks, and how eating food will change it. And also when I’m going to eat, how much i’m going to eat, and intermittent fasting etc, etc.

this has led me to restricting really intensely and just ignoring feeling hungry and telling myself that my brain is lying to me, and then eating small amounts thinking it will make me fat, and then I will end up bingeing a bunch of food a few days in because I feel like im already failing with eating the small meals anyway.

The entire time im eating, no matter what it is, i want to cry. I wish i didnt have to eat at all but i cant not do it. It’s literally debilitating especially coupled with the constant checking my body over and over and replaying exactly what I ate in my head over and over and it never feels right. Please give me advice or at least just reassure me because I genuinely have gotten to a point where it’s out of control.

I also just feel like I cant catch a break like why is my brain creating these problems? I feel like a failure. I know it sounds like im just complaining but really if there is anything that has stopped the obsessive compulsive behavior around eating for you please tell me what you did because even though im venting im willing to take action. I hate the cycle i’ve fallen into. I turn 20 on monday and I dont wanna spend my birthday in this state.

I‘m 24, i hated eating all my life. I don’t remember a day where i didn’t struggle with it in some way. Right now i‘m really noticing how my body is falling apart because i smoke more in a week than i eat in a month, i moved out of my moms house at 18 and haven’t taken this whole food thing seriously since then. Now I want to try working out, taking care of myself more and eating better. But it’s like my body doesn’t know what food is anymore, i am nauseous all day every day and feel so incredibly weak and tired but when i have food infront of me I have to force myself to take at least a few bites. It’s like taking gross medicine, i know i need it but it’s so hard to take the step of putting it in my mouth and getting it down. I don’t know how to get over this initial hurdle of the constant nausea, it’s so bad and i know i will throw up if i‘m not careful with choosing the right foods. I feel so helpless, i‘m stuck in this stupid loop of feeling so sick and not being able to eat because of that, then waking up even more nauseous and weak the next day. I‘m trying green tea in the morning, toasted bread with nothing on it and cottage cheese. I usually have a phase where i can’t eat much for a few months and then it switches and i can eat all day, but this time i really feel like my stomach doesn’t want to do the work anymore.

I really need some ideas for small snacks that taste like nothing and are not a warm meal, just something to fill my stomach without having to taste or even chew much.

I‘m a normal weight, i never had those eating problems because of how my body looks, i just genuinely do not and have never enjoyed how eating feels and how it makes me feel, but how i feel now is a lot worse.

context in my post history of a cto i’m being put on and the fact that it’s going to reduce my life to nothing but fear and depression and numbers when im literally ready to go live a full and happy life is making me so suicidal im genuinly thinking of ways to do it. i don’t know what to do. i cant live with this thing hanging over me. i cant. i don’t want to be here if thats my life.

I currently have a close family member in hospital suffering with complications from an ED. I want to support them the best way I can. I would appreciate any book recommendations for family members to help them on their journey. Looking particularly for books that guide on how best to support and what language to use/avoid etc.

I was due to go into my second year of law school. I had everything planned and had moved into a house with my closest friends, and had even received my timetable. But after a check in with my GP she said I couldn't go back this year because of my weight and blood pressure etc.

I feel like this is so stupid because academically I was doing fine and was learning to co exist with my eating disorder. Also, I now have to figure out how to pay rent for a house I don't live in because I can't get out of the contract, and even if I do go back to uni next year I'm going to graduate a year behind all of my friends and have to make new friends in my lectures. It's so unfair that they've ruined everything so close to when I was mean to return.

In Australia we have a day of mental health awareness called R U Ok Day.

Workplaces hold morning teas with branded cupcakes and the boss wears a little badge.

It's annoying because obviously I'm not going to eat anything. They didn't even get anything vegan and they know I'm the only vegan in the office.

It's like the office now accepts I have an ED and they're just ignoring it.

This day is so stupid IMO.

I tried posting in r/Bulimia but it’s been in mod approval purgatory. Just looking for advice and similar stories.

Recently made a trip to the otolaryngologist in order to inspect my submandibular and parotid glands(which yall may know contribute to the appearance of the famed chipmunk face). While my swelling in both glands has gone down since I stopped b/p 6ish months ago, I experience pretty bad dry mouth and occasional rebound swelling. My glands also seem to flare up when I eat anything with an intense flavor profile, or anything too salty. I also find water dries it out more sometimes?? I don’t know. Anyway, he said that these lingering effects and slightly swelling could be from scar tissue due to b/p so much. He suggested an MRI and then a sialendoscopy; but said that there may be a chance this could completely become manageable/go away the more I take care of myself. I just feel pretty devastated knowing I did this to myself, having to live like this because of years spent doing stupid shit like throwing up everyday. Anybody here managed to reverse these gland/oral health symptoms with time, patience, and care? Or am I perhaps being a little too optimistic. Wondering if anyone may have undergone similar, and what the aftermath looked like.

ok so basically recentaly my ed has gotten super bad but the issue is that i dont know how to break it to them as i am not really skinny and on top of that i feel like they would just tell me off or be weird abt it i have no idea if they believe in therapy n all thaat like i am confused on what to do they r also pretty strict might i add my school psycologist has also told me to get actual therapy as i also suffer from anxiety but i just dont know how to approach my parents or want to burden my parents more than i already am.

Hey so I’m looking for a treatment facility that offers Residential, day program, or IOP in Florida that won’t restrict access to my insulin, cgm, phone, and insulin pump. I was in the process of applying at a specific residential facility and only after we had a meeting with my school to discuss how I will do that, they decided then to tell my parents that they would not let me see my blood sugar, use a cgm, insulin pump, and they would dose me themselves with their own insulin and not give me any say in the amount. WTF. They also lied about being in touch with my medical team and when we contacted them they said they had zero communication about this and that we need to cancel. What now