PARENTS: How can I get my mom to believe me that I'm not anorexic or trying to lose weight?

Question

I'm 17 years old, female, 5'5 and I weigh 115lbs

When school started in September I weighed 135lbs. Two weeks ago the doctor weighed me and I was 124lbs. I haven't tried to lose weight and I don't want to lose any more weight but I'm simply not hungry. I'm exhausted all the time and can sleep for 12-18hrs a day every night/day when before I could only sleep 8hrs a night.

I'm not depressed, in fact I'm happier right now than I have been for awhile and I'm still very social. I've only made three changes since the summer, I've started eating meat again, I quit smoking cigarettes and I dont smoke weed very often anymore.

I'm very weak and haven't been exercising very much because I don't have the energy to. I have next to no appetite anymore, I can eat an apple and be full for the entire day.

My mom doesn't believe me that I'm just not hungry and is always yelling at me. She interogated me last night and I had no idea how to respond. How can I get my mom to believe me?

I plan on going to the doctors soon, but keep putting it off because I hate doctors and I'm worried about what they'll say/do.

I've already told her I want to go to the doctor and get checked out, she basically said going to the doctor wont help or solve the problem, I just need to eat.

If I lose 4lbs more I will be underweight (according to my BMI) and I already look too thin, my ribs are showing and my hipbones stick out. I looked healthy at 135lbs and had a great body with curves.

Let me make it clear, I can't eat. If I force myself to eat more than my body wants I vomit and I'm not making myself.

Answer 1

If your goal is to NOT lose anymore weight and you do so automatically then you MUST go to the dr. Don't be like my great grandmother who hated drs as she didn't trust them. She ended up dead at 40 as she had gallstones and it killed her as she didn't want the pain checked.She could have had it removed and stayed alive then. She thought it would go away but she did instead sadly. I feel the worst news is what one doesn't know about to take care of it if needed. The problem won't go away by itself. IF there is one. You need to get seen by a dr. The weight loss and fatigue could be something related to the weed smoking. STOP smoking that and see if symptoms improve. IF not, it could be something medically that can be treated with medicine? I can't say other than to get evaluated by a dr. This can help your mom see that it's a medical condition and not anorexia. There are a range of conditions from chronic fatigue syndrome, low blood sugar , etc. that can give those symptoms.Try taking some iron pills to help you feel more energy.Best to take those with food. Even a sandwich or snack.Try eating little bits more often instead of three full meals to build an appetite. Get this checked to see what the cause is to help you sleep less and actively be part of life more instead.Delaying going to the dr can only let you postpone enoying doing daily things in life as this will get worse, not better. Do you want to sleep your time away or enjoy it instead?

Answer 2

What your mom believes is pretty irrelevant. Whether you actually have an eating disorder or some other serious disease that is causing your loss of appetite and weight loss, being seriously ill is much worse than going to the doctor. Really. If you're losing that much weight that quickly, you need to go to the doctor now for a thorough check-up. Being "very weak", "exhausted", and losing 20 pounds in a month means something is wrong. Have the doctor figure out what it is so you can start getting better. Log off the computer right now, and either call the doctor yourself to make an appointment or go tell your parents they need to call now. This is serious. Don't mess around with your health.

Answer 3

Yeah...definitely go to see your doctor SOON! This is not a normal appetite, nor normal sleep patterns, especially for a teenager. You seem to be at about the right size for your age and height, but losing that much weight without doing anything different means that something could be wrong. Which, i would guess, would be the decreased appetite.

I would suggest that even if you may be full, try to eat AT THE VERY LEAST one entire meal each day. And not just a sinlge apple. That could be why you are so tired, you have no energy to do anything. If you get more calories in your system, then you may start to begin normal sleeping patterns. If that begins to happen, then I would suggest maybe exercising a bit. That always seems to make me hungry. And eating right after you've exercised (and your metabolism is up), is probably better for you in the long run, but dont overdo it.

Answer 4

Maybe for your mom's sake, express to her that you are concerned about how tired you are and you'd like to see a doctor. Maybe that will make her realize that you're truly not anorexic and you're not sure what's wrong. She's concerned, I'm sure, but she's focusing on the wrong thing right now. The issue now is trying to find out why you're so tired. It could be low iron or anything that could be fixed with the help of a doctor.
If you express concern towards those areas, maybe she'll see.

Answer 5

mom is just worried about you, i wouldn't freak out too much. how else would a mother respond to this sort of situation? rationally?! hah....

as for your weight loss, when i stopped smoking weed, i had a similar thing happen. i lost my appetite for a while, and ended up loosing like 20 lbs. basically, you just gotta start eating, even if youre not that hungry. make it small, healthy meals and dont force too much on yourself. the ciggs probably intensified this whole situation too cause withdraw from those messes with your appetite too. try eating an apple in the morning, then having something like a sandwhich at night. start small, but you gotta eat if youre gonna be healthy. it will also drastically help your energy levels if you start eating. maybe try drinking some shakes or something.

as for your mom, just assure her that youre not trying to hurt yourself, and that youll try to eat more. even a little bit of concession will help in that area. and hell, tell her it helps youre appitite to smoke pot, then maybe she wont be so pushy lol

Answer 6

I think you need to set down and have a real talk with your mother. She does love you. I don't think you sound too thin, you sound healthy to me, but an apple a day is not enough to live off of you need to eat three meals a day that is why you are so tired and exhausted. Smoking weed is not a good idea either and I am glad that you have cut that out. I am not hear to preach to you, you asked and I will give you my opinion and that is all it is.
I am the mother of two girls and one they say is malnourished and I do worry about her, she has a disease called Mineares Disease and it is an imbalance in the middle ear and it makes her dizzy and sick to her stomach. She does eat though, in fact she loves to eat.
Talk with your mother and make an appointment to see your doctor you may be anemic and need to take some vitamin B-12 shots to help get your energy level back up.
Good luck to you!

Answer 7

It is probably from the change of food (eating meat again) and behavior changes (smoking and weed). Meat makes you fuller, so that is probably the change of appetite. Just make that appointment right away! that will prove it to your mom. and tell the doctor that you don't know what happened. She doesn't have to beleive you, but would an anorexic girl really want to go to the doctor to get the problem checked out? No, because then she would have to start eating again or something and get "fat" again.



P.S. Good job quiting smoking, and weed! you only have one body, so you probably should keep it healthy right?

Answer 8

Even if you have no appetite you can schedule yourself to eat. Saying you don't have an appetite is a cop-out. So, instead of using appetite as a reminder to eat, you need to plan your meals and make sure you eat breakfast, lunch and dinner. Eat healthy food, full portions and sneak a few treats in between meals to get your calorie level back up in case you struggle to eat full portions at meal time. Do this and you will regain the energy you are missing that makes you so tired and makes you want to sleep so much. If you do this and you are still experiencing the same symptoms and are still struggling with your appetite after a few weeks or continue to lose weight, I feel you have a good case to make with your mother that you need to see a doctor. Eat your meals in front of your mother and show her you are trying to overcome this to build her trust in you.

Answer 9

If you aren't skipping meals on purpose, then something else must be wrong. You shouldn't have no appetite. That is obviously not healthy. Quit putting it off, go to the doctor! Your mother is just concerned with you and you really do have signs of anorexia, even if that's not what it really is.

Answer 10

Probably not being the best answer here, but here's my advice...
I lost 90 lbs and my mom kept thinking it was b/c i starved myself...but i worked my @$$ off for it! Just try and get your point to her, and goold luck, i'm still trying!