Inescapable Foods

Mental Health Eating Disorders & Body Dysmorphia
1

I'm currently a junior in high school, so I still live with my parents (and am therefore subjugated to mom's cooking).

My mother has recently become extremely overweight due to various factors, not the least of which includes the perpetual fortress of ice cream stashed inside the freezer. My dad is likewise capable of eating bowl upon bowl of calories, but remains skinny. Unfortunately, i find myself stuck in the middle (I'm an only child by the way) with my moms snail-paced metabolism and my dad's bottomless stomach.

All the advice I've read for binge eating recommends getting rid of trigger foods, but I really have not much of an influence on what goes in the refrigerator. The worst part is that my mom constantly encourages me to eat more and more. How can I hold myself accountable for consuming horrendous quantities of food left lying throughout the house in such an "enabling" environment?

I'm constantly in pain, physically and emotionally, from this addiction yet I feel as if pasta and desserts have become family members at our somewhat lonely dinner table. I become obsessed with what my mom might buy or make for dinner, and daily plan out elaborate, doomed strategies to avoid overconsumption. What can I do to stop this feeling of insanity?

2

Hi Leah120, thank you so much for being here with us and for sharing, as this is a step in the right direction. I am so sorry that you are in a household of foods that enables and triggers your binge eating, I know that can't be easy. I found this site to be incredibly helpful, there is a phone number that you can call for help and guidance in the right direction; http://www.eatingdisordersonline.com/explain/bed.php. As well, we are here to help you through this.

Have you talked openly with your parents about all of your health and well-being? If you can educate them on health and nutrition by printing out informational articles, then that can start helping steer them in the right direction. Is this a possibility? If so, let me know and I will help you research.