Surviving the Holidays!
Roasted turkey, succulent stuffing, thick tasty gravy, creamy mashed potatos, fat buttermilk rolls (dripping with butter, of course) pies, cakes, tins of cookies, boxes of candy... To someone without an eating disorder, this dazzling menu probably sounds pretty inviting. But to someone with anorexia or bulimia, sitting down to a table loaded with all this holiday fare could be downright terrifying.
It seems quite common for people with anorexia and bulimia to DREAD the holidays. During the holidays, there seem to be treats of one kind or another on every table, counter or desk. At every party or get-together, someone is sure to offer you some tasty, calorie-ladden tidbit.
Food isn't the only issue that can be difficult. The holidays bring families and friends together, which can also be hard to handle. After all, the food issues we have are just symptoms of our frustrations and inabilites to deal with other issues in our lives (such as relationships with our families, friends and loved ones).
Be that as it may, the food issues can be even more uncomfortable this time of year. For a person with an eating disorder, one of four scenarios generally occurs at the big family holiday meal:
A. You struggle through the holiday dinner with every person at the table watching every bite you eat, and constantly trying to get you to eat more.
B. You struggle through the holiday dinner, desperately trying not to overeat (and turn the meal into one big holiday binge!). After dinner, your mom shadows your every move to make sure you don't make a beeline for the bathroom to get rid of it.
C. You struggle through the holiday dinner, but no one else seems to have a clue about how difficult it is for you. If you lean towards the anorexic, then you probably find a way to get through the meal without eating much of anything. If you're bulimic, you eat like a horse, and then make an excuse to leave early and stop at the gas station bathroom down the street to get rid of it.
D. You call and cancel even GOING to the holiday dinner, and spend the evening alone and miserable (either dining on a carrot stick and diet soda, or bingeing on take out from the one restaurant that was open that night).
Obviously these aren't the ONLY scenarios that come up. But they are scenarios that I've gone through during holidays in the past.
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