Can I Have an Eating Disorder and Not Be Underweight?
One of the biggest misconceptions about eating disorders is that you have to be underweight to have one. The truth is, eating disorders can affect people at any body size.
You cannot tell whether someone has an eating disorder simply by looking at them. Many people struggling with eating disorders are at a weight that others may perceive as “normal,” or they may live in a larger body. This does not make their eating disorder—or the physical and emotional impact of it—any less serious.
Eating Disorders Are About More Than Weight
Eating disorders are complex mental health conditions involving a person’s relationship with food, their body, exercise, and often their sense of self-worth.
Someone may be struggling with an eating disorder if they are:
Frequently restricting food or skipping meals
Experiencing binge-eating episodes or feeling out of control around food
Purging or trying to compensate for eating
Exercising despite exhaustion, illness, injury, or a need for rest
Feeling intense guilt or anxiety after eating
Constantly thinking about food, calories, weight, or their body
Frequently weighing themselves or checking their body
Avoiding social situations because food will be involved
Feeling as though they have to “earn” their food
These behaviors can be serious regardless of what the number on the scale says.
“But I Don’t Look Sick Enough”
It’s common for people with eating disorders to question whether they are “sick enough” to deserve help—especially when they don't fit the stereotypical image of what an eating disorder is supposed to look like.
You do not need to reach a certain weight, diagnosis, or level of severity before seeking support. In fact, getting help earlier can prevent eating disorder behaviors and thoughts from becoming more entrenched.
Eating Disorder Therapy Can Help
Eating disorder therapy can help you better understand what is driving your relationship with food and your body while developing healthier ways of coping with anxiety, emotions, perfectionism, body image concerns, and other underlying challenges.
You deserve support at any size.
If food, exercise, weight, or body image is taking up a significant amount of your mental and emotional energy, you don’t have to wait until things get worse to reach out for help.