Friday, June 23, 2006

Bulimia Strikes Again

McPhee one of millions with bulimia
Disease 'goes through society'


Thursday, June 22, 2006; (CNN) -- Katharine McPhee's revelation that she has battled bulimia puts the American Idol runner-up in the company of millions of Americans.
The National Institute of Mental Health estimates that between 1.1 percent and 4.2 percent of females in the U.S. -- or 1.5 million to 6 million -- suffer from bulimia nervosa in their lifetime. The disorder is increasingly being identified in males as well.
Christopher Athas, a vice president of the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders, says one of the many myths about bulimia is that it's a disease primarily of affluent young white women. "That's simply not true," he says. "It's an illness that goes through society."

People with eating disorders often have both anorexia nervosa, marked by starving oneself, and bulimia, known as the binge-and-purge disease.
Bulimics eat excessive amounts of food, often feeling out of control, then, out of disgust and a fear of gaining weight, resort to vomiting or laxatives or other extremes. The behavior typically occurs a couple of times a week, experts say. The 22-year-old McPhee told People that for five years, she threw up as often as seven times a day.
Even though bulimics may maintain a normal weight, the disease is often driven by low-self esteem, excessive perfectionism and negative body image. The individual comforts herself, or himself, with food; the late Princess Diana, who also suffered from bulimia, once likened the feeling of post-binge fullness to a hug.
Then the need to purge comes, bringing temporary feelings of relief. But usually, the cycle starts again.
In addition to being potentially deadly (chemical imbalances can cause cardiac arrhythmia and other organ damage) the long-term effects of bulimia aren't pretty. The acid in vomit can erode teeth and the esophagus and inflame glands near the cheeks, so the face can appear swollen.
McPhee says her illness began during her high school years in Los Angeles, where she was always concerned about her appearance. She recalls starving herself and exercising to an extreme. The pattern continued. "I was bingeing my whole life away for days at a time," she told People. She says the bottom came about the time she auditioned for "American Idol."
Concerned that her vomiting was damaging her vocal cords, McPhee decided to get help.
"I entered the program because I wanted to give myself the best shot I possibly could on the show. And, when I did, it was like God put hands on me and said, `I want you to be healed,' " she told People.
McPhee attended group and individual therapy six days a week for three months at the Eating Disorder Center of California in Los Angeles.
Many others who suffer with bulimia don't realize they have an eating disorder and don't seek help. Or, they feel too ashamed to tell anyone. Bulimia is a disease marked by secrecy.
But recovery is possible, says Athas of the anorexia association. "You can get totally well."
It takes recognition of the illness, a genuine desire to get healthy, and usually, he says, therapy, whether individual or group, inpatient or outpatient. Medication can also help control the compulsions.



DO YOU THINK IT WILL HELP OR HURT KAT'S CAREER TO HAVE DISCLOSED THAT SHE HAS BULIMIA???
Do you think there is still a stigma associated with mental illness?

1 comment:

Unknown said...

I do not think that bulimia will affect McPhee's fame at all. There is enough exposure to the disease now that I believe the focus is more on trying to cure it, rather than point fingers.
I also think that there is an assumed connection between having bulimia or anorexia and having a mental condition. This may be appropriate, though. I went through it in high school, and it is very hard now to be overweight and live with it after having two kids. Therapy did help me through it, and make me realize why I was doing that to myself.