Christians and Eating Disorders?

I am 58, I've been a Christian all my life, I've struggled with eating disorders. Anorexia, when I get highly stressed and emotional binging when emotionally unhappy. Wow, I don't think even the dr's know for sure if it is biological or a behavioral thing, but I definitely believe in spiritual warfare and that satan loves to mess with us. I think eating disorders can have many sources, like the ones you listed, and I believe some are chemical imbalances in the brain and have to be treated with medication. I don't struggle any longer with mine, my stress times are over, I am retired and relaxed. But......... I went to a psychiatrist and did talk therapy and also took anti depressants to lessen my anxiety, so then I could eat. I also had an 8 month severe depression I was in a fetal position and couldn't eat, I almost died from not being able to eat for so long. NO one thought I would live, Once again it was anti depressants that saved me, tho I think God is behind all healing. I did go to a Christian psychiatrist and he was the one who found the meds that brought me out of my long severe depression. Feel free to email me.

Time and unforeseen circumstances befall them all. This was written by Paul in the Bible. Only faith helped me out of my anorexia. I still find it hard to believe that I really could not see how thin I was. I really thought I looked fat. No, this is not demonic. It is a mental problem that mostly girls have without understanding it. It's not a disease it's a mental misunderstanding of ourselves. Society has put pressure on females and males on how we should look to be considered attractive to the opposite sex. We will be more popular or get the best careers or get the attention or be accepted instead of being made fun of. Christians can struggle with this also. I am still aware I can slip back into this pattern again.

I have a couple of Christian friends who suffered very badly when we were in our teens. One mate had anorexia, the other bulimia, and the latter was a male.

My girlfriend came from a rather glamourous family, and for whatever reason always felt like she was the ugly duckling, and yet nothing could have been, or is further from the truth. She got the help she needed not from the church though, but through our village doctor, a rather amazing woman, minus the village mentality. My male friend had a bit of a struggle, and his being male contributed to this I'm sure.

He unlike my girlfriend had to go to a rather expensive therapist in Edinburgh.

This was many years ago though, well over 25, but it was pretty hard going for their families to understand this, and prayer just wasn't enough. In the end they saw that it was a mental issue, and had to accept that it needed intervention via conventional methods.

They are both doing great now though, and have happy relationships, they were lucky though.

I have no personal experience with it, but, here is a Bible-based article on the subject . . .

There are some personal experiences mentioned in it:

"What Is Behind Eating Disorders?" :

- When Food Is Your Enemy

- Anorexia and Bulimia --The Facts, the Dangers

- What Causes Eating Disorders?

- Eating Disorders -- What Can Help?

http://watchtower.org/e/19990122/article_01.htm

This one answers your other question:

"The Mystery of Ill Health . . ."

- Does the Devil Make Us Sick?

http://watchtower.org/e/19990901/article_01.htm

Early Chrisitians had a horrible eating disorder. It was called "Eating Roman Children".

Eating disorders, from what I can tell, are psychological and emotional. They have nothing to do with the supernatural. I don't know anyone personally who has an eating disorder.

Society causes eating disorders , TV , magazines , models and lots more...

Eating disorders stem from self loathing.

Christianity can either make a person feel good about them selves knowing that god in christ loves them or it can utterly destroy them by being condemned by the brethren.

Smart Christians will have the right answer: It's a psychological condition.

The naive ones will say it's the Devil or something.

Most eating disorders can be overcome with a little discipline, others with medical advice.

...except for chocolate, of course. There's no cure for this obsession. Mary See is the devil.