Hey guys, I'm new here.

I've been interested in raw foods for a while now because it just seems like the most natural, politically correct, and least depriving/non-diet way to nourish your body. I have diseases in the family like MS, heart and cholesterol problems, diabetes, endometrial and cervical cancers, and loads of depression. I figured health is an issue too.

I've had problems with eating disorders for the past 7 years or so, the past 5 of which I've been bulimic. I really want to stop because the rest of my life is looking very hopeful and I have a lot I'm looking forward to, but I still have not been able to stop binging.

I've been trying raw foods (plus binges/purges on junk) seriously for the past week, and off and on for several weeks before that. My problem is that I find myself at times to be ravenously hungry, and no amount of leafy greens or water can satiate it, no amount! I try distracting myself and waitng it out, but that feeling that I need to eat is physically calling my attention from everything else and it's too hard to ignore. I am 5'6" and 150 but in very good shape. I'm a size 8(typically,) but I still would like to slim down a bit cause I feel a bit too puffy. I don't know how much I should be eating to lose fat; maybe I don't eat enough. I heard extra fats help with hunger, but I'm so scared freely eating a lot more fats (or fruit) and feeling guilty and making myself vomit.

For breakfast I typically have been eating like 200 cals worth of fruit (2-3 pieces) in a smoothie with a huge handful of spinach and maybe 2Tb ground flax. Lunch is a large salad with crunchy veggies and maybe 100 cals or so of a good fat source for dressing. Add to that an apple and baby carrots. As a snack I may have some cut up veggies and another fruit or two. Dinner is similar to lunch, but maybe a bit more indulgent and some steamed veggies or a small portion of cooked food. (hey---I'm trying!) Then in the evening (and often after lunch too) I find myself getting very very hungry again. What can I eat that I will be comfortable with and not binge on that will also leave me satiated, at least a little. Again, I drink LOADS of water.

Any Tips?

Opinion:

-I would address any eating disorder issues through professional therapy and/or group counseling before attempting to change your diet in any significant way. Until those root issues are addressed, you can move the chess pieces around, but you are still playing the same self-destructive game. What are the issues and emotions that make you feel it is OK to harm yourself?

-Until then, you can simply incorporate many more fibre-rich, fresh fruits and vegetables into your diet. You should be eating at a level that you are VERY comfortable at....and stretching toward your goals from there.

-Blessings and strength to you.

-David Z. Mason

WWW.RawFoodFarm.com

Hi Lina-Marie,
I'm not sure how to address the bulimia itself, but I have some ideas about how to deal with hunger in general. Sweet fruits like mango and banana, followed by some greens or celery, can be incredibly satisfying and will help you not to crave cooked food. The fruit will fill you up, especially if you follow it with some greens, which will keep your sodium/potassium in balance, which is important in stopping hunger as well as bloating.

Another trick is to have some dried fruits on hand for heavy-duty hunger pangs: dates, figs, raisins, and/or apricots and pineapple, mango, etc. In time you want to cut back on them, but they're much better than cooked food while you're transitioning.

Sharrhan:


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Well said DZM. So much of the time I feel like this whole world is eating-disordered and will forever be searching for the "magic button" that will make all their problems disappear. But, like you said, "you can move the chess pieces around, but you are still playing the same self-destructive game." Someone understands!!!

lina_marie, I've struggles with an eating disorder (anorexia) for about 10 years or so. Although I've never been bulimic, I do sometimes get that insatiable hunger. What've I've found helpful are green smoothies with hemp and flax. Maybe it's a personal thing, but even if it's the last thing I want to eat, for some reason I take one sip and feel like, "aaaaahhh." Satisfies something in me, that's for sure. I put in 1 large leaf of kale, 1 or more pieces of fruit, 2 scoops of hemp protein, 1 tbsp ground flax, one tsp flax oil, and 1/2-1 tsp spirulina. (I know, fat and fruit are a no-no to many people, but it doesn't bother me.) If I feel like I want to CHEW something (which also helps with that insatiable feeling), I'll pour it into a bowl and chop up some more fruit in there so it's like a chunky fruit soup.

Another option, since you're not 100% raw, is tea. Sometimes I'll think I'm really hungry when really I'm just trying to distract my mind from the issue at hand. Tea both gives your mouth something to do AND calms you down, bringing you back into your body. As a good friend of mine says, "tea is a good substitute for a lot of things."

One more option is to eat on a schedule. If you usually eat larger meals every 3-4 hours, try eating a little bit every 2 hours, for example, and maybe you won't get so ravenous at certain times. Also, it might help you figure out whether you actually ARE hungry at those times, or you're really just more stressed/anxious/tired/etc.

Hope this helps!

I agree. You need therapy for this, not another diet. In my opinion I like to feel healthy on a diet and in control of my weight/body, which I imagine would be like bulemic issues, except not as extreme. My thing is I like to get to a comfortable weight and then monitor my food to healthy stuff and stay around the same weight. If I start to become too food obsessed I get annoyed with myself b/c it is taking too much of my real life away and I rather gain my happiness from being with other people or completing goals with substance, such as writing a book or getting a masters degree. I think you are wasting your time with bulemia, your missing life and even helping others. This is why I say therapy, b/c you need to reevaluate your values. Eating disorders this extreme always seem like a cry for help/attention to me, but I think if you just asked for help/attention rather then hurt yourself, you'd find people will help you, even more maybe then if you continued this behavior on your own. Hope you find the courage and strength to get help.

I had a very severe case of bulimia for about 7 years total. It ruled my life, and it definitely affected my relationships and work. There were times when I would actually turn around on my way to work just so I could go home and eat and throw up all day. It's one of the reasons I wanted to follow the raw food diet.

Being raw vegan has really helped me keep my overeating under control, but being raw vegan is not the total answer to kicking bulimia, and for a while I was bulimic and 100% raw vegan at the same time (I found out it was a great way to lose weight).

That's one reason why it's very important that you get some help if possible, particularly if you can find a group or a professional person who has had success in curing bulimia. On the other hand, I never had professional help, and I've been bulimia free for over 20 years. My family life has been very supportive, so if you don't have that, or if it doesn't seem to be enough, then definitely go for the professional services if at all possible, and IMO try to find a group or person who is OK about raw food.

There are 2 symptoms associated with the cycle of bulimia - the overeating and the throwing up. For way too long I focussed on trying to break the cycle by controlling the overeating. That sounds like the way to go from the perspective of being able to control your weight. But the fact is, if you have bulimia, you're already way out of control. The best way to break the cycle of bulimia is to hit the other side of the cycle: Stop making yourself throw up. If you firmly refuse to make yourself throw up, then you'll be aware when you overeat that you'll have to suffer the consequences for overeating. That will become part of your psychological sheild to help you overeat less. And vice versa, until you stop allowing yourself to throw up, part of you will always think it's OK to overeat because you know you can throw up afterward.

In addition to the pschological factor of throwing up, there's also the physical factor: throwing up is actually CAUSING you to be more hungry, because you are throwing up all your nutrition. So please make it your first priority to stop throwing up, and you will have made the first step toward your recovery. It's perhaps the most painful step, but it's not as difficult as it first might seem. You need some courage, but you can do it.

It's a matter of simple karma. If nature is not pleased with our actions, then nature makes us suffer the consequences for our wrong actions. Eventually, we learn our lesson and change our actions. But if we refuse to learn, and worse, if we try to escape the consequences, nature hits us with everything she's got. Throwing up is what we do to try to escape the consequences of the wrong action of overeating, and that really pisses nature off. Nature will not allow any creature to overconsume for long, and we can't escape that fact by eating even more and then throwing it all up. Bulimia will take your health, your looks, your relationships, your happiness, your sanity, and your life if you let it. So buck up, stop throwing up, and accept the consequences of overeating. THEN you'll be able to learn your lesson, and sooner or later you'll be able to stop the overeating.

I was lucky to find someone who supported my desire to be a raw food vegan, and who was absolutely disgusted by my bulimia. From the beginning of our relationship, we both vowed to be vegan, and we've never once strayed from that vow. That was over 20 years ago.

My first step out of bulimia was to stop throwing up, and I actually started losing weight instead of gaining it. I actually lost 10 pounds. I know my family's support had a lot to do with my success. I'd tried many times before, but got nowhere. Besides the newfound family support, my vow to remain vegan helped me limit what I ate. Plus, I started a yoga program that really helped me gain self-control.

At that time, my raw food diet consisted mostly of fruit and avocados - no nuts or seeds - and sometimes salad. I still had bouts of overeating cooked food about every 3 weeks (much better than when I was bulimic, but still far from ideal). After about 3 years, I had a health crisis due to an iron deficiency, and I started eating seeds and nuts for the iron. I found that the oils in seeds and nuts were nothing for me to be afraid of as long as I didn't overeat them, and in fact I didn't really want to overeat them, at least not like I would tend to overeat cooked grains or cooked legumes. Not only that, but I suddenly found that eating seeds and nuts was really helping me to stay away from cooked food altogether, My binges on cooked vegan food soon dwindled to from 0 to 5 times a year. Now that I've I added sprouted grains, my cooked food days are really over. I've been able to get my overeating under control and move to becoming a full on healthy 100% raw food vegan.

I know that if I can do it, you can do it. Please send me a PM anytime you like.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 05/13/2007 02:45AM by suncloud.

Just wanted to mention I was being sarcastic when I said that being raw vegan and bulimic at the same time is a great way to lose weight. Seriously, that might take off weight temporarily, but bulimia will always lower your metabolism, eventually to the point where you will have a much harder time keeping excess weight off. That's of course in addition to all the other woes of bulimia.

Sorry, but I did not mention that I AM in therapy, and I have been on and off since right before my problems with food began. Last year I stayed at an eating disorder unit of a hospital as an inpatient and partial-outpatient for 40 days. I felt like it wasn't tailored enough to me and I felt extremely sick by all the processed crap I was forced to ingest and keep down each day. I was drowsy all the time, had constant headaches, and extreme bloating and nausea.I went back to purging the week I got home. I have this idea that there must be some perfect, ideal diet, and I have yet to find it.

I'm still so angry with myself for not being able to get over this. I've been eating raw foods for a week and only binged/purged 3 times, and other than that eating like 1400 calories, yet I feel bloated and fat as ever. My pants are tight. I don't want to be fat and bloated this summer. I don't know if this will work.

The thing I do like about raw is that when I eat, I feel it is easier to eat based on hunger and not feel guilty. because the foods are simpler and don't seduce the taste buds with mega-doses of sweet/savory/salty flavor.

Good to hear you're in therapy. Your hospital experience sounds like a nightmare.

My heart goes out to you. Don't be angry at yourself. Self anger only fuels the fires of your fears and anxieties, a root cause of your disease. The fact is you ARE getting over it. You've probably learned a whole lot from your experiences so far. When the day comes that you can look back on these very hard times, you may even feel it was all worth it because of everything that you did learn.

Raw food WILL help you. I think you've figured that much out already. But you must put aside your fear of being fat for the moment and focus on staying raw as much as possible and keeping the food you eat inside you.

Are you afraid that if you stop throwing up, you're such an overeater that you'll become obese? That was my fear, and it never happened. When I stopped throwing up, I stayed on almost all raw food, and I LOST WEIGHT.

Throwing up what you eat not only makes you more hungry later (a big problem), but causes a chemical imbalance in your body that actually physically messes with your sense of wellbeing and results in depression and anxiety. Those negative feelings then inflame your fears, and on and on.

Do you feel that quitting is easier said than done? I certainly felt that way. I remember telling my husband I didn't WANT to have bulimia. I wanted to have a raw food diet. He said, "Well then, why don't you?" That's when I realized that despite everything, despite the pull of the habit, despite my fear of being fat, the choice was mine. And I really did have the power to make that choice. We all do.

You have that power. You just have to put aside your fears and use your power.
Everyone has their personal demons to overcome. The most difficult part is to truly commit to putting aside our fears and have faith that doing the right thing will bring the right result.

Try to learn to observe your fears, your anxieties, your negative emotions, rather than sitting inside them. It takes some practice, but it's a good mind exercise, brought to us from the traditions of the ancient yogis.

I don't mean to harp on it, but again, the first way to demonstrate your power over yourself is to stop throwing up. I KNOW you can stop, because I did. It's indeed mind over matter, but you can do it! By discovering raw food, you hold an important key. So go on and walk right past your fears, and then use your key to help you open the door.

Then focus on staying raw as much as you can, start a good exercise program and let yourself begin to grow within. Exercise will help by keeping your attitude positive. It has the opposite chemical effect on your body. And where there's a positive attitude there will not be fear. And where there's not fear, there will not be bulimia.

In regards to your raw food diet, along with controlling your fear of being fat, you would do well for yourself to also control your fear of eating the raw foods containing fat, like nuts and seeds. I've found that even being post menopause now, the fats in raw foods won't hurt me and won't make me fat, as long as I exercise and sprout my fat-containing seeds. The raw foods containing fat are also some of the best sources for essential minerals like iron and calcium. I don't care what other people say, if you've been an overeater, having all your nutrients is one weapon in your favor for fighting to eat less. Your mind's cravings are one thing. Your body's cravings for what it rightfully needs to stay healthy are another, and you don't want to mess with that.

I weigh 93 pounds at 5'1", the same weight I had in high school. Size 2 is often too big for me. When I quit bulimia, I lost 10 pounds of flab and then gained 5 pounds of muscle.

So go for it woman! Forget about how you'll look this summer. It ain't worth the thought, if it makes you throw up. Remember you have a LIFE to live, and many many many summers ahead of you!

Once you quit, don't ever ever go back. Having bulimia is just like being an alcoholic. Choose life. You won't regret it.

That was a great post, suncloud! Although, as I said before, I was never bulimic but anorexic, I can definitely relate. About the choice thing, I've found that what helps is even saying to myself that I have a choice. Whenever I get anxious and/or the urge to be self-destructive, I say to myself, "I have a choice." What this does is put me back in my body, in the present, out of my neurotic little mind and the future. Being concsious of what you're doing and thinking at all times is key - like suncloud was saying.

Also, lina-marie, I was in treatment as well, several times, so I can relate to that as well. God, do I ever remember how shitty I felt going through refeeding. I won't deny that a good part of that discomfort was my head yelling at me for getting "fat," but throughout the whole process I KNEW that if I could gain the weight in muscle, eating good healthy food, I wouldn't have been nearly so anxious about it, nor as gross-feeling; and intutively, I knew all along that my body could not tolerate certain foods. Long story short, all I can say is that the bloating WILL go away eventually. I discovered, a couple years ago, that I had many food sensitivities. I had to abstain from pretty much everything I had been living off of for more than a year. Only now can I eat most of those foods again. I think, like you, my ED screwed up my system and it needed to be cared for with the most nutritious food possible. I'd suggest getting allergy tests. But raw will definitely help, as it automatically involves cutting out most of the foods that many people cannot tolerate - wheat, gluten, dairy, preservatives, etc. Good luck, and remember to listen to your body!!!

I, personally, was able to let go of my bulemia when I became vegan about 7 years ago. I felt purified, like I wasn't eating pain and death (mine, the animals', the planet earth's...). I don't know how to describe it exactly. It was almost a spiritual awakening. I became amazingly attuned to my body and everything that wasn't beneficial was...let go. I mean, literally, I opened my hands and set it free.

But I must be clear: a diet change isn't what helped me. It was the mental/emotional/spiritual factor that came with the decision to change that helped me. "Diets" of any kind don't cure eating disorders.

You did ask for advice, so besides what others have said, coming from someone who's been there, I'd recommend you eat things that don't bring you guilt and don't make you hate yourself.

Good luck on your journey.

Hi there. I was bulemic for the past 3 years. Whenever i eat raw however it disappears. I have never ever thrown up when i've been 100% raw. I've written a lot about this under my diary in the journals section so you can check that out .I really think this diet is going to help you so welcome!

xoxo,
Starfruit

raw food cures bulimia

anorexia is actually a digetsive problem. Your food makes you feel fat, no matter how skinny you are, it bloats and sits in your tummy and you feel gross and overweight

once you digest all the foods raw easily you will feel skinny no matter what you eat

Inside every anorexic , is an angel who needs to be one

Um...anorexia is NOT a digestive problem. It causes digestive problems, sure, and such issues may be a part of "feeling fat," but at its core anorexia is a full-on mental illness. The word "anorexia" means "loss of appetite," so if you're talking about that type then I see your point. "Anorexia nervosa" is the actual mental disease, and the one I believe you're referring to. So I'm sorry to be so blunt, but you're dead wrong. And the only thing that can "cure" either one of them is figuring out what one is attempting to deal with through food, then working on those issues. Diet is only a small piece of the puzzle.

Hi there..i have the same feelings anorexia nervosa is a mental illness and doesn't come about from a digestive problem.....but thank you for the beautiful saying about angels....

and also i don't think raw food cures ED's only therapy a lot of work..and choices can TREAT ED's i don't think you are ever CURED of it does anyone else?? i know going through it myself i don't feel i am cured i still have those thoughts wants and what i think are NEEds to revert back to ED habits but through strength, support and love i am overcoming them more and more and i can turn my head when the ed issues come knocking on my door....it is tough and i know i still struggle with issues at some degree...but i am trying and improving and doing my best!! but like starfruit said i don't throw up if i am 100% raw...but i do have thoughts of it...but i have wrote about it in my diary as well if you want to check it out!!!
good luck to you!! and i am here for support if you need someone
love earthangel
xoxoxoxoxoxo

Much peace and love!!!
EarthAngel
Xoxo

Here is how I think raw foods helps bulimia. If you make a resolution to refrain from purging no matter what, then it becomes vital to stay away from junk foods or trigger foods (the foods you usually throw up). If food is gonna have to stay down no matter what, then you can imagine how important it is to have good food in the stomach that doesn't make one feel sick or overly full - both are triggers for purging.

Bulimia makes you puffy because your system is constantly irritated. Throwing up is a fairly violent action. You will be amazed how good you look once you stop forcing food out of your body.

blessings on your journey.


Earthangel, you are such a doll.

Hey there..that is a great way to put it!!!! most things you purge are bad things.....i did go through a phase where i would try to purge the water bottle water ...but i love how you put that!!! such a good thing when you treat your body better your mind will start to switch with it too with help support love and therapY!!!
thank you
love earthangel
xoxoxoxoxoxo

Much peace and love!!!
EarthAngel
Xoxo

Little Bug, you are so right, you really do have to make that resolution to refrain from purging no matter what.

Even with the knowledge that a 100% raw food diet will help you not to purge, there could be times, especially at first, when you go off the wagon and eat cooked food (at least that was my own experience). Those are the really hard times to keep yourself from purging, and that's why it's vital to stick to a resolution not to purge, no matter what. Bulimia is a substance abuse addiction, and once you're off the wagon, you're off, and you have to suffer trying to quit all over again.

I agree that bulimia is a full-blown mental illness, and it's a mental illness in the way that alcoholism and drug addiction are mental illnesses, only you are addicted to overeating and purging. Like all substance abuse, eventually the chemical damage done as a result of the addiction actually does cause a negative personality change. I definitely saw that in myself during the latter years of my addiction, including thoughts of suicide, paranoia, and anger commonly following every episode. It was more than just the shame that always accompanied such episodes. It was something changing within my physical being. Very scary.

And it wasn't coming from the overeating. It was a direct result only of the purging.

People who have the knowledge of raw food are so lucky, because they have the opportunity to eat at least mostly raw food and thereby really help lessen the urge to purge after the overeating. It's a gift. But there absolutely must be a resolution never to purge, no matter what, or the gift will prove worthless over time. You never get to keep what you haven't earned.

On a lighter subject, Coconutcream, I really like that picture of you! Everytime I see it, it lights me up. It's so natural and fine.

I'm so sorry to hear of your eating issues. Many people will tell you that they too have had similar issues, and that's our society today. The world has many distractions one in which is ego and appearance. You must remember that there is so much more to life than all of that. When you can step outside of yourself, and all of those feelings, you will feel at ease, calm, balanced. All women are goddesses and beautiful. Before you can move on from this you must learn to appreciate who you are and where you are in your journey of life. I applaud you for wanting to change for the better. But no one gets there overnight. I suggest keeping a food diary, recording what you eat, at what times, and how you feel before and after you eat. Perhaps you will be able to recognize some patterns. Make goals and make them reachable for you. Do what feels right. Respect yourself and your body. Try and eat foods you can be proud of. Most importantly, love yourself.
Good luck, Earthlover

Just wanted to say best of luck to you, raw eating can deffinately help but the core issue has to be dealt with first. For sure.

I have dealt with anorexia for nearly 20 years now and its a daily struggle, but I finally feel some free-dom and release from it through therapy and adopting a 100% raw lifestyle.

Can be hard not to just replace one way of disordered thinking with another. Its all about balance and whats right with you. It can be easy to obsess

Anyway wishing you all the best, think you will find lots of "raw-ers" who have had ED problems in the past also.

Keep strong

xXX

Hey hun..just wanted to stop in and say hello and see how things were going!! we are all here for you supporting you!! i hope all is well!!
take care
love earthangel
xoxoxoxoxxo

Much peace and love!!!
EarthAngel
Xoxo

i just want to say thank you to everyone for what they had to say. i too agree that ed's are defenitly a mental illness that need therapy as well as good eating. i too have been struggling with anorexia, and its so good to hear that so many people can relate. it started when i quit drinking, so pretty much it was just one addiction to another. i was sent inpatient in arizona for 60 days and since being back home (its been about a year) i still struggle daily. but since going raw i finally feel like im getting over it and restoring my weight. which i have a question about... im having a hard time keeping my wieght up unless i eat tons of fat, which i notice is making me break out badly and sometimes makes me feel so sick and bloated...is there an easier way to do this or is this just the process i have to go through? any advice?

lots of love~ Ali

hey ali...well when you go raw you will lose weight becuase your body is detoxing..and the toxins are stored in fat cells..so at first you will lost weight and then slowly your body will regain and get back to a healthy weight....so don't worry about the pounds you are losing they will come back.....take care
love earthangel
xoxoxoxxoxo

Much peace and love!!!
EarthAngel
Xoxo

Ali - the place you went to in Arizona...was it Remuda Ranch, by any chance?

Hmm i have heard of that place before...someone i met at Puenta villa another ED facility in san diego had been there before....
love earthangel
xoxoxoxoxo

Much peace and love!!!
EarthAngel
Xoxo

no it was a place called Mirasol in tucson. im lucky that i was sent there, they had a more hollistic view on recovery. we got to do yoga and meditation and they actually respected my vegan diet...two of the girls there had gone to Remuda Ranch before and didnt have many good things to say about it. did you go there??

I did go there, back in 2001. Let me just say, the girls you met were right. Ultra-religious and we sat on our asses the whole time, no exercise whatsoever save for a VERY leisurely 15-min. stroll a few days a week. It'd make anyone feel like utter crap!!! PLus, at that point I was vegetarian (for honest reasons, unrelated to the ED) and they weren't even respectful of that! God, I wish I'd known about Mirasol back then! Okay, there were good things about Remuda; I haven't been hospitalized since then so that must mean something.

yes i agree, not being hospitalized again is a good outcome. do you still struggle with it?? or does it ever fully go away...

I'm struggling big time right now actually...but I am getting help. Sometimes I believe it is possible for some to completely recover, to not have any remnants of it whatsoever; but I think the feelings will always resonate with you to some degree, if only just a twinge of empathy felt in your heart for others who are struggling.