Anorexia and Bulimia Meet Bigorexia
I have experience in my family with anorexia and bulimia. Several of my sisters had a mixture of both for 10 or more years. I never struggled with this disease but I had my own mental ailments that drove me to seek treatment. Now as a parent of a son I am being introduced to a very similar disease: Bigorexia.
Charles Stanley wrote on the source of self-rejection. He says, "The bondage of self-rejection can often be traced to feeling unaccepted by someone close. Trauma like divorce or a loved one’s death may also contribute to a distorted self-image. Once internalized, this type of thought pattern can lead to negative behaviors."
Of course, I think: How did I do this to my child? What makes him not realize that he is loved exactly the way God created him? Did I criticize him too much? I know I never said anything about his body. Having sisters so concerned with weight and eating, I intentionally tried hard to never make food or weight an issue. In our family we really all of healthy body mass weights. As a mom, I also enjoy good food so I tried to make fresh food items when I could that tasted as best as possible. Our diet did slip during my mental health recovery and healing years. There were many days that my children were fortunate to get a bowl of cereal, peanut butter sandwich and quickly warmed up meal at night.
But from experience I know this disorder is not about the quality of food eaten or lack of it. I know it is about how a person views their self-worth and it has to do with gaining areas of control in one's life. I can't help but be sad to know that even trying to be a loving, consistent parent I was unable to instill this confidence into his soul. Also, I have to realize that parents and family are not the only input in a person's life. I person can feel rejected by groups. I know my son felt deep rejection at our church from his "Sunday school class." I also know he was picked on and belittled in other groups.
Most people are familiar with the eating disorders called anorexia (a person eats little food and often exercises a lot but thinks she is never thin enough) and bulimia (a person binge eats and then makes themselves vomit so they don't keep the calories; they also can exercise a lot and they do think they are never thin enough).
Well, bigorexia is a growing disorder among males 19-35 and it is a condition in which a person focuses 5 plus hours a day on diet and exercise (body building/muscle building) using supplements and steroids but never think they are big enough. Bigorexia is a mirror image disease of anorexia. The pscyhological thinking that creates this mental/emotional disorder is quite similar. Both struggle with fitting in, being accepted, looking good enough and feeling in control of their life. When parts of their life spiral out of their control they learn that they can fully control eating, exercising and supplements.
Unfortunately for men today big bodies are very glamorized in movies, magazines and among the guys. Heads turn toward the guys who are beefed up. So where a guy might have not been noticed before, ignored or even rejected, after 6 months to a year of intensely working out, dieting and supplementing (usually with steroid drugs) he is able to garner the height of attention. People, even strangers, start approaching him for advice and lavish complements. He is wanted to hang with guys for the attention he bring from girls who are attracted to his muscular body.
Once the fire of acceptance is lit, he is driven to improve, to get bigger, to be more defined, to compete with others and himself. Food becomes an obsession taking up to 6 hours a day to prepare meals and snacks to sustain the calorie intake needed to build and keep huge muscles. He starts with health store "natural" supplements but is freely offered steroids and human growth hormones by others. Once he sees the jump in size from using drugs it will not be long before he will be shooting himself with injections to keep the muscles bulging, cutting, and defined.
Of course, steroids are mostly illegal but they are not considered as drug-use among culture, friends or even treatment clinics. Since they are not physically addictive to the body, a person can stop without going through harsh physical withdrawals, but they are psychologically/emotionally and mentally addictive. Sadly doctors are prescribing way too many steroids and human growth hormones that are not medically necessary. And, what a person cannot get prescribed legally they can easily buy from black-markets in Asia on the internet.
As a mother, I hope this is a phase my son travels through as he is trying to figure out who he is. I wish he would find his identity and acceptance in God and not from others, even himself. In reality he knows we accept him and love him at home, he is longing to be accepted by the world and has found being big a way to at least not get picked on. I admire someone who is physically fit, but naturally fit is the key to a healthy life both physically and mentally. It is hard to watch someone you love struggle with body issues.
Charles Stanley wrote on the source of self-rejection. He says, "The bondage of self-rejection can often be traced to feeling unaccepted by someone close. Trauma like divorce or a loved one’s death may also contribute to a distorted self-image. Once internalized, this type of thought pattern can lead to negative behaviors."
Of course, I think: How did I do this to my child? What makes him not realize that he is loved exactly the way God created him? Did I criticize him too much? I know I never said anything about his body. Having sisters so concerned with weight and eating, I intentionally tried hard to never make food or weight an issue. In our family we really all of healthy body mass weights. As a mom, I also enjoy good food so I tried to make fresh food items when I could that tasted as best as possible. Our diet did slip during my mental health recovery and healing years. There were many days that my children were fortunate to get a bowl of cereal, peanut butter sandwich and quickly warmed up meal at night.
But from experience I know this disorder is not about the quality of food eaten or lack of it. I know it is about how a person views their self-worth and it has to do with gaining areas of control in one's life. I can't help but be sad to know that even trying to be a loving, consistent parent I was unable to instill this confidence into his soul. Also, I have to realize that parents and family are not the only input in a person's life. I person can feel rejected by groups. I know my son felt deep rejection at our church from his "Sunday school class." I also know he was picked on and belittled in other groups.
Most people are familiar with the eating disorders called anorexia (a person eats little food and often exercises a lot but thinks she is never thin enough) and bulimia (a person binge eats and then makes themselves vomit so they don't keep the calories; they also can exercise a lot and they do think they are never thin enough).
Well, bigorexia is a growing disorder among males 19-35 and it is a condition in which a person focuses 5 plus hours a day on diet and exercise (body building/muscle building) using supplements and steroids but never think they are big enough. Bigorexia is a mirror image disease of anorexia. The pscyhological thinking that creates this mental/emotional disorder is quite similar. Both struggle with fitting in, being accepted, looking good enough and feeling in control of their life. When parts of their life spiral out of their control they learn that they can fully control eating, exercising and supplements.
Unfortunately for men today big bodies are very glamorized in movies, magazines and among the guys. Heads turn toward the guys who are beefed up. So where a guy might have not been noticed before, ignored or even rejected, after 6 months to a year of intensely working out, dieting and supplementing (usually with steroid drugs) he is able to garner the height of attention. People, even strangers, start approaching him for advice and lavish complements. He is wanted to hang with guys for the attention he bring from girls who are attracted to his muscular body.
Once the fire of acceptance is lit, he is driven to improve, to get bigger, to be more defined, to compete with others and himself. Food becomes an obsession taking up to 6 hours a day to prepare meals and snacks to sustain the calorie intake needed to build and keep huge muscles. He starts with health store "natural" supplements but is freely offered steroids and human growth hormones by others. Once he sees the jump in size from using drugs it will not be long before he will be shooting himself with injections to keep the muscles bulging, cutting, and defined.
Of course, steroids are mostly illegal but they are not considered as drug-use among culture, friends or even treatment clinics. Since they are not physically addictive to the body, a person can stop without going through harsh physical withdrawals, but they are psychologically/emotionally and mentally addictive. Sadly doctors are prescribing way too many steroids and human growth hormones that are not medically necessary. And, what a person cannot get prescribed legally they can easily buy from black-markets in Asia on the internet.
As a mother, I hope this is a phase my son travels through as he is trying to figure out who he is. I wish he would find his identity and acceptance in God and not from others, even himself. In reality he knows we accept him and love him at home, he is longing to be accepted by the world and has found being big a way to at least not get picked on. I admire someone who is physically fit, but naturally fit is the key to a healthy life both physically and mentally. It is hard to watch someone you love struggle with body issues.
Comments