am i anorexic? im almost 5'9, 17 and 103 pounds...please i really need advice?

Question

i do a lot of sports and eat very little

i used to weigh 97 but my parents practically force-fed me and i went up to 112 but i lost it again somehow
so....im about 103/105 now and i really dont want to gain weight but my health is suffering and i dont know what else to do
im always dizzy, my gums keep bleeding (from lack of vitamins im guessing), i havent had a period in 7 months, often i fell so faint during exercise and my ribs stick out sooo bad
im quite muscular and i dont wanna gain body fat...
can anyone tell me how to gain weight healthily

i dont think im anorexic but to be honest im not sure.... wouldnt i know it if i was???
i dont have all those anorexic habits like hiding food and all that but i rarely eat more than 400cals a day and i work my body hard almost every day

help? xxxxxx

what is my ideal weight? am i that far off

Answer 1

Your parents need to get you help, not force feed you! You ARE anorexic, but anorexia is about a lot more than food and weight. It's about control, or lack of self-esteem, it can be many things. Those issues need to be dealt with first so you can get on with your life. We can't tell you to eat until you are comfortable with doing so, which means dealing with your issues. If your parents won't help you, talk to the counselor at your school. Until you resolve these problems, you cannot truly enjoy your life. It is SO not worth it and it can be overcome, I did it. It may not be easy but I promise it's worth it.

Answer 2

Yes you need serious help and you're killing yourself in ways I can't imagine but I don't think you're anorexic.

Think about it, your gums are bleeding, you get dizzy, you haven't had a period for a while and your ribs are sticking out. But an anorexic person would still see themselves as being fat. You're just afraid of getting fat, and there's the difference. You've chosen not to eat and work out a lot which logically make a lot of sense, but your body doesn't work in a logical manner. It believes it's starving which it is, but your body doesn't know that you're doing this on purpose and not because there's no food around. The result is your metabolism slows down and it starts to eat it's own tissues to survive. The fact that you're exercising is helping to keep some muscle but you stopped burning your fat stores a long time ago.

You do need to see a doctor right away as this is very serious. You're putting your life and your health at risk and nothing is worth that.

Edit: Your ideal weight should be around 130-140 pounds.

Answer 3

You are seriously underweight.
http://apps.nccd.cdc.gov/dnpabmi/Result.aspx?&dob=1/1/1990&dom=12/17/2007&age=215&ht=68&wt=103&gender=2&method=0&inchtext=0&wttext=0
Your ideal weight is closer to 130lbs. It sounds like you don't eat enough. Try starting with a healthy breakfast - something like oatmeal or cereal. Be sure to eat a full lunch - sandwich, carrots, juice, maybe some pudding. Then a sensible and nutrient filled dinner (probably more than lunch). If you are still not gaining weight, try some protein shakes or smoothies. You seriously need to just pack on some pounds. Everyone needs fat to live. You can't have zero body fat. Fat gets a really bad rap, but it's essential to life. Please don't think of fat as a bad thing. You need it!

Answer 4

yes you are, i think deep down you already know, you just want reasurrance that what you're doing is ok, but it isn't. your illness could spiral very quickly out of control, to the point where you cant bring yourself to eat, and you get severely underweight. at this point your either have two choices, 1. hospitalised or 2. death by starvation. both are horrible. i know everyones telling you that you need to eat 2000 calories a day and be 40lbs heavier. very easily said but i know the idea of that is terrifying! take things slowly, like gradually eat a little more, decrease exercise to a healthy amount. any step is good no matter how small. its all progress. for example i used to weigh myself up to 10 times a day, when attempting recovery i gradually decreased that to twice a week, that was a big deal for me. also i stopped counting calories so obsessively, so i didn't count calories from lettuce and i didn't weigh out cereal or porridge. increase your calories by 100 for the rest of this week, see how this feels. try not to concentrate on the scale, i know its hard but when you look at yourself you see that you're underweight right? so a little bit more flesh would improve your look? dont eat unhealthy and fattening foods, you'll gain too fast. and if you eat 2000 cals you'll get so bloated you'll just want to fast again to get rid of the feeling. a big step for me was not gaining weight, but maintaining so i wasn't losing. that helps me stop weighing myself so much because the scale always said the same, so there was no satisfaction in seeing numbers drop, but at the same time i didn't have a huge fear of getting fat. good luck you're very brave to attempt this

Answer 5

Well, to me you do not sound like a very anorexic girl. My sister has anorexia and is currently in a mental hospital whilst they try to make her better. She was literally scared to eat, she would avoid food at any cost. She exercised for hours everyday and became depressed and started to wear very baggy clothes. She can't bear to look at herself in the mirror because shew thinks she is disgusting, when in reality she is a stick.
Now, to me you do not sound like you hate your body, but if this continues for much loner then yes, it may develop into anorexia.
Do you think you look disgusting? Are you trying to diet? Are you scared to death of gaining weight.
I do not think you are anorexic no,i think that you are quite proud of how thin you are. You said that you want to "gain weight healthily". Now if you do want to gain weight, then you really cannot be anorexic, anorexia, is a disease that terrorizes the mind, night and day. You think about nothing but loosing weigh, you have to keep moving, just to urn those few extra calories. You become paranoid, thinking everybody is looking at you, because your so fat.
So, to me no you do not sound anorexic, you just sound malnourished and underweight. Eat some food, cut down on the exercise, eat healthy foods.
Good luck. E-mail me if you want, im always open to helping people, especially around the subject of eating disorders.

Answer 6

OMG! you're anorexic!! i'm 16 and also 5'9 but I weigh 116! You should be around this weight. YOU SHOULD CONSUME MORE THAN 400 CALORIES A DAY. my dad's a doctor and so he knows know much an individual should eat each day...
you're period hasn't come in 7 months? you need to see a doctor like immediately!!
I understand the sports...cause I do sports too, such as tennis, swimming, and cheerleading....but still, eat your veggies, fruits, and drink water!

Answer 7

wow where to begin. your gums are bleeding probably from stomach acid. your tired because you have no nutrients

listen carefully. your metabolism is a wreck right now so you need to slowly get back on a regular diet. 400 cal a day is too low. gradually increase your intake slowly but surely. not having a period in 7 months is bad as well.
eat fruits and vegetables, and people may disagree but carbs are a great source of energy.
if you eat too much now your metabolism will render it into fat because it is in shock right now, thus making the situation even worse. you need to take it slowly.

you can talk to me via email or myspace ANY time to help you through this and for furthermore advice.

this is very unhealthy and needs to be taken care of immidiatly

Answer 8

You are slowly killing yourself. Anything less than 1200 calories puts your body into a famine mode and your body will shut down all functions that it can to preserve your life.

You need to decide if you want to live or die. Those are your options. You can live an unhealthy life and sustain life for quite a while, but eventually your organs will shut down one by one until you have reach the day of no return.

MAKE A DECISION TO LIVE and improve your diet and live a happy, healthy life. When you deprive your body of necessary nutrition your brain will actually break down brain cells to convert to the nutrients that it needs and you are destroying brain cells by your current diet.

And I don't know what you see when you look into a mirror but everyone else sees an unhealthy, unhappy, refuge from a concentration camp.

Answer 9

ok well my sister was anorexic and it became pretty serious she was like 16 and wieghed like 80 puonds the way she got out of it was that she excersized and gained some body weight . by eating things that let u gain good fat not like bad fat so i would advise u to eat some healthy food that will help u gain weight so u can lead a normal life

Answer 10

AN-OR-EX-IC!
But good for you for deciding to eat healthier!
You need to be eating at least 1200 calories a day.
Please stop this, or you WILL die. Don't die of starvation when you live in a country where food is available! Take advantage of it. Don't create bigger problems for YOURSELF!

You need to gain weight. Ten pounds at the least. You're about 40 lbs underweight. 10 lbs won't make you FAT, I promise!
Eat healthy - eat more carbs like pasta, potatoes, starches etc. Nuts are good, peanut butter is also.

But it may be too late, not trying to scare you. Go to a doctor IMMEDIATELY!