i know this isn't healthy but i need to ask?

Question

i i know that i'm starting to get an eating complex.
I've lost 20lbs in the last month, and i'm not necessarly proud of it.
I'm 22, 5'4 and weigh 132 now. i got this way from only eating breakfast (either oatmeal, english muffin w/ jelly, or toast) and then lunch and dinner i will binge and purge... yes i know. i'm working on stopping that... it's been going on for about 1 month now. and i'm just cuirious.

Can this nasty obsession make me (on top of a lot of other bad bad problems) skip my period? I'm now 5 days late.

Answer 1

Yes. A period can be a sign of health. When you do something drastic to your body, it basically stops functioning the way it should. Periods are usually the first thing to go.

Answer 2

Any drastic change in lifestyle can cause changes in your period. Even stress can cause your periods to stop. I am a little confused about your binging and purging. Are you purging after every meal? If so, you need to see a doctor right away. You will start to become malnourished and will have health problems that will snowball and become more severe as time goes on. If you are eating three healthy meals every day and are binging and purging occasionally, it probably won't result in severe health problems for you. However, you need to realize that it is not normal for anyone to binge and purge. Even if you are only doing it a couple times a week, it can develop into a more serious problem. You should probably seek mental health services before this becomes a life threatening situation for you.

Answer 3

Yes it can. Anytime you drop weight that rapidly, it affects alot of things including your hormones, and monthly cycle. This can turn into a major problem, you really should stop immediately. I have a sister-in-law who lost weight by basically starving herself. Her hair is falling out, she has nearly had a nervous breakdown because it can also cause a chemical imbalance. Not to mention you are depriving your body of much needed nutrients and vitamins, which can lead to anemia(low iron), my aunt binged and purged for years after she had her twins, she had an early onset of osteoperosis, it will also lead to tooth decay because of all the acid that comes up with it, it eats at your tooth enamel.

If you find you cannot stop on your own, please seek counseling. This is a very dangerous thing, and you need to get it under control,now. Good luck. Take care of yourself!

Answer 4

Dont skip ur lunch and dinner honey! Keep eating whole day but very small amounts of food. U will never gain any weight. U feel healthy and look better. By starving u will face many health related problems. U r so young. I think for ur age and height u seems to be o.k. Good luck

Answer 5

First off, let me congratulate you for having the courage to admit that you have a problem and for seeking help in rectifying the situation. I would advise you that it's VERY difficult to handle something like this on your own. Talk to an older person or a medical professional that you trust, and ask them for help. Perhaps see a therapist or nutritional consultant to help you along. There may be some underlying psychological reasons for why this suddently started happening to you, and I'd recommend working through those issues while you work on curbing the binging and purging that you're currently going through.


Now to answer your question: Bulimia (which is what it sounds like you have) can lead to a lot of other disorders, one of which is irregular menstrual cycles.

Other symptoms/side effects can include:
Tooth decay, toothaches, swollen gums, gum disease (gingivitis), and erosion of tooth enamel. These are caused by acid in the mouth from vomiting.
Osteoporosis.
Electrolyte imbalances and changes in metabolism that can lead to heart problems, such as arrhythmia and even death.
Dehydration, which can lead to weakness, fainting, or kidney damage.
Inflammation or tears of the esophagus, which may cause bloody vomit.
Swollen salivary glands.
Fainting or loss of consciousness, usually because of low blood pressure.
Abnormal heartbeat (arrhythmia).
Low body temperature.
Suicide risk when feeling discouraged about having bulimia or a relapse or about ongoing body image issues.
Long-term problems with bowel movements because of laxative abuse.

Again, I'd advise you to talk to an elder or medical professional that you trust and start seeing a therapist and nutritionist as well. If you're at college, perhaps talking to your advisor/RA/campus health center would be a great place to start. Most important thing is that you've taken a step in the right direction by acknowledgeing that what you're doing isn't good for you - the next thing to do is to seek help for it; like I said, this is going to be tough to beat by yourself.

Good luck - you're in our thoughts!

Answer 6

yes, it will. I have been their, done that. My periods were never ever ever regular when I was doing it. large weight loss can do it to, but you have double teamed it! You are not so involved in it yet that you can't stop...1 month? try 6 years. btw, it may work now, but it won't be long before you kill your metabolism, and you have no idea how hard it is for me to lose weight now! It can also cause your hair to thin, make acne worse, burn up your esophagus, eat away at the enamel on your teeth causing cavities to occur more often, and the list goes on. Please stop, don;t lt yourself get as bad as I did, not to preach, but I'm scared for you. But once again, it is prolly the reason why your period is late!

Answer 7

Yes. I know a young woman very close to me who did the same thing. Her period still has not returned, even after her problem was successfully dealt with. She is also very athletic and athletes often don't get their periods. It's complicated. Look up sites on the Internet on eating disorders. It helped us come to term with a disease with potentially horrible consequences. And please, you must stop doing this to yourself. You will only bring grief to yourself and those who love you. Talking about it is the first step to recovery, hang in there. =)

I was reading the answers and people let me tell you , it brought on tears. I'm so impressed and happy that most are taking this seriously. I have reasons to believe in the goodness of people after all. The young girl I'm talking about is my 20 year old daughter and I'm so proud of her for overcoming this disease.

Answer 8

Absolutely. A lot of things can make you miss your period. Eating habits is a main culprit. Along w/ stress, most likely you are stressing about it which will delay it longer.
You need to get into a healtly routine eating habit and you should go back to a normal cycle.

Answer 9

If you lose too much body fat, yes, you will lose your period. However, there may be other reasons that you are five days late (stress, pregnancy).

The bigger concern is the bulimia. Yes, it's bulimia. This is not something you can take care of on your own. Please see your doctor: you doctor will get you involved in treatment part of which will involve learning how to eat healthy. All the best to you.

Answer 10

it can do many bad things to your mind and body including mess with your hormones and loss of menstruation is just the beginning.
first thing to do is take multi vitamins and minerals and calcium

it is a psychological disorder, so please go to therapy. someone who specializes there are also support groups in person and on the web for it.
and cheer up its very curable, though hard work...and even famous people have these problems.