Bulimia Nervosa is an eating disorder characterized by frequent episodes of binge eating, followed by frantic efforts to avoid gaining weight. It’s quite different with anorexia nervosa which don’t want to gaining weight by no eats at all.
When you’re struggling with bulimia, life is constant battle between the desire to lose weight or stay thin and the overwhelming compulsion to binge eat. During average binge, you may consume from 3,000 to 5,000 calories in one short hour. After it ends, panic sets in and you turn to feel drastic measures to undo the binge, such taking ex-lax, inducing vomiting, or going for a ten mile run. And all the while, you feel increasingly out of control.
It’s important to note that bulimia doesn’t necessarily involve purging-physically eliminating the food from your body by throwing up or using laxatives, enemas, or diuretics. If you make up for your binge by fasting, exercising to excess, or going on crash diets, this also qualifies bulimia.
Bulimia has been classified as two types
1. Bulimia of purging type
This type is characterized by the use of self-induced vomiting or excessive usage of laxatives to purge food in order to prevent weight gain. Some patients may use diuretics.
2. Bulimia of non-purging type
This type is characterized by using means, other than the self-induced methods, to avoid weight gain, like extreme degrees of fasting or excessive exercising that are both inappropriate.