eternaljustice Posted August 10, 2006 Share Posted August 10, 2006 Has anyone else here experienced an eating disorder and is also now a vegan? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathryn Posted August 10, 2006 Share Posted August 10, 2006 No, but there does seem to be, for some people, a link between eating disorders and veganism (veganism as just another way of limiting what one eats). An unfortunate link, IMO, because it can make non-vegans associate ALL veganism with eating disorders. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Posted August 10, 2006 Share Posted August 10, 2006 well I used to be fat, I guess that's an eating disorder, I used to eat too much. But that was back when I was vegetarian, I lost the weight while I was still vegetarian, then became vegan later. I still do have to control myself with regards to food, I am usually hungry and could eat more and more but I stop myself when I think I've eaten 'enough'. I knew someone who suffered from anorexia and was vegan. They are still vegan but not anorexic any more, but they had lots of other anxiety issues too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 10, 2006 Share Posted August 10, 2006 I have a problem in that I'm never hungry yet never full. I can go days without food and never get stomach pains(it growls but I don't feel like I need to eat), or I can eat endless amounts of food. Its hard for me to not eat everything infront of me if its available to me but then again I don't put much food infront of me at home so I don't need to worry about it and I crave nothing when I do this. I'm not sure how to describe this but surely something is wrong with me for being able to eat nothing or eat a ton. My diet is also purely for the purpose of performance and I'm pretty much willing to eat anything vegan so long as it makes me perform better so I've been on a constant hunt to find the perfect diet for myself which isn't what I would call stressfull but I can safely say that thinking about my diet consumes a large part of my day which isn't really a good thing since I know I have an effective diet I just think it can be more effective so I'm not gonna stop until I get to what I feel is the perfect diet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloom Posted August 27, 2006 Share Posted August 27, 2006 YEP... my E.D and veganism go hand in hand... i find i can cope better with life and eating disorder whist being vegan. This way i think i allow mysel to eat a little more and feel less anxiety. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Odidnetne Posted August 29, 2006 Share Posted August 29, 2006 I seem to have that eating disorder as a vegan where I don't listen to what the dairy & meat industries say, and seem to not crave their products... Oh wait, I'm just thinking for myself, sorry, I get those 2 mixed up. No seriously though, I'm like VeganPotter. If there's food in front of me, I can slam it down with no second thoughts or hesitations. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
epilogue Posted August 31, 2006 Share Posted August 31, 2006 I've recovered from 3 ED's. My eating disorders are in no way related to my choice to be a vegan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Metalbabe Posted October 16, 2006 Share Posted October 16, 2006 I've been struggling with an eating disorder for a while now but it has absolutely nothing to do with my vegan diet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 16, 2006 Share Posted October 16, 2006 In all reality my eating disorder may have even been made worse by my vegan diet in the sense that I ate a ton before I went vegan and when I did go vegan...knowing it was healthier I figured I could eat much more...and I did. I ate around the same rediculous 8-12000 calorie diet but it took alot more food to do that since I was never a big fan of fatty vegan food outside of peanut butter. It was functional for me to eat like this but I know now that I didn't have to since I've met some big vegans that barely eat half that much food. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dandylioness Posted October 18, 2006 Share Posted October 18, 2006 i've heard of people using veganism as an excuse to hide their eating dosorder. in fact, when i went vegan i lost a lot of weight. my family thought it was an eating dosorder, but really i have never been more healthy in my life. that was the frustrating part. they dont think that anymore, by the way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 18, 2006 Share Posted October 18, 2006 My Dad thinks I have one now...he knows how I train but he complains about me eating too little. I think he only sees me as eating too little because he remember how I used to eat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Odidnetne Posted October 19, 2006 Share Posted October 19, 2006 My Dad thinks I have one now...he knows how I train but he complains about me eating too little. I think he only sees me as eating too little because he remember how I used to eat. It might even be worded like that because you're vegan now. I eat more calories than ever, and more protein than ever, and my mother says I don't eat enough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
princessbee Posted October 19, 2006 Share Posted October 19, 2006 dieting and exercise consume my daily thoughts, but i have never had a common E.D. When I first went vegan i still ate plenty. I can binge, but after only a short while i am very full, i can't eat endlessly, but i definitely recognise bingeing patterns in the way i eat, from being very controlled and focused for a period of time to a couple of days of not constant eating - because i can't - but eating whatever i feel like. i used to feel extremely self-conscious eating junk food like chips in public because i would think everyone would be looking at me thinking someone that fat shouldn't be eating those... even though i have NEVER been fat. in fact just reading this thread is giving me feelings of guilt that i'm about to eat some roast mushrooms and just ate three dates... i feel uneasy, like i've done something wrong. like i should be more controlled, somehow. veganism/vegetarianism is now just a way of life for me, even though i am obsessed with loosing weight,the two aren't linked. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 19, 2006 Share Posted October 19, 2006 I'm obsessed with losing weight too but I've given up hard dieting and I just "hope" my training makes the weight dissappear...if it doesn't then big deal. I' miss my food way too much...I just have to make sure I keep eating reasonably Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merched Figan Posted November 21, 2006 Share Posted November 21, 2006 I've had anorexia with a couple of relapses. And--this is true for anyone with any eating disorder--there's always at least a piece of it that never goes away. That's definitely true for me. For instance, I never use scales, know of/look at/have anything to do with numbers because they're "trigger warnings" to me. Nobody can understand an eating disorder unless they've experienced one themselves. Anyhow, I wrote a non-fiction/autobiography for a creative writing class I took last spring--I loved the professor and keep in touch with her regularly. Here's the link to my autobiography. Don't worry, there are no numbers used--I try to be just as sensitive to others as to myself. Here's the link: http://vegan-lucky-3.livejournal.com/1739.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eternaljustice Posted December 8, 2006 Author Share Posted December 8, 2006 Thank you all for your replies I think that personally my food choices at first had very much to do with my past eating disorder..it's a food control thing, but in no way did I feel that that happened with everyone, which is why I was asking in general. I actually got the chance to read the autobiography of vegan_lucky_3 and was really taken aback with the very end line explaning how a vegan lifestyle had in fact given them the ability to take control of their eating "eating to live, not living to eat" and honestly, that made me look at what I had done in a completely different light because right around the time I had decided to become a vegetarian was the exact time that I started getting healthier. Interesting... As for the things that veganpotter posted lol, they're quite interesting. I read what you eat on a daily basis in one of the other enteries and yes, you do love your food! lol but it's a passion and it doesn't seem like it's taking over your life (from what I've read anyways) so I don't think it's quite an eating disorder at all, more so a great love of food Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 8, 2006 Share Posted December 8, 2006 Sometimes I think that but sometimes I don't because those are eating habits I want to continue every day but my self control keeps me eating far less than 1/3 of that. I'm also never happy when I'm done eating unless I'm eating like I used to eat. Maybe I'll just get used to this...I sure hope so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eternaljustice Posted December 16, 2006 Author Share Posted December 16, 2006 The only thing I can say in reply to that vegan potter, is that the past is the past. Old eating habbits are that of it. old. From what I can tell your dedicated to fuelling and nourishing your body and that's what counts when it comes down to it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 17, 2006 Share Posted December 17, 2006 Ehhh...I've definately strayed. I did it last night for my girlfriends birthday and I manage to do it whenever I hang out with forum members. Plus I'm actually looking foreward to eating like that again when I'm retired from cycling...it something I enjoy but know its not good for me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Odidnetne Posted December 17, 2006 Share Posted December 17, 2006 Ehhh...I've definately strayed. I did it last night for my girlfriends birthday and I manage to do it whenever I hang out with forum members. Plus I'm actually looking foreward to eating like that again when I'm retired from cycling...it something I enjoy but know its not good for me It's okay, you said yourself that the stress you put on your body isn't optimal for your body, but you enjoy it so you do it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acatherine13 Posted January 15, 2007 Share Posted January 15, 2007 i also have a history of eating disorder--both compulsive overeating and anorexia. however, i believe being vegan is an antidote to an eating disorder, if you do it right. because vegan is finally healthy eating. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ukhoffer Posted January 18, 2007 Share Posted January 18, 2007 I struggled with an eating disorder several years ago, but my choice to be vegan was based entirely on ethics. For me, it represents a large part of my recovery, as I am healthier now than ever. Interestingly, I did just read an article about this and doctors are propsing a new disorder based not on weight but on the concept of "pure food." They say some of the symptoms are eating only healthy food and say that it is difficult to treat because...um...they are healthy.[/i] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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