Quote From: brendamm am 47 y/o and have been anorexic since the age of 2 or 3. Growing up my mother just labled me a "picky eater" During a school physical our famiily physician labeled it "Malnourished". I am sure
you can imagine the mood at home that evening ! My mother was livid - our family was upper
middle class with more than enough of everything, and here I sat "malnourished"
As a child I had no idea the root of the problem (thanks to Dr Phils book Self Matters now I do)
When I graduated in high school 1977 being overly thin was NOT in - I weighed 89 lbs at 5"6"
After getting into a disasterous marriage I found out I was pregnant that was one of the first major
light bulb moments in my life. I was then in nursing school and knew HAD to eat to successfully
carry this pregnancy to term. The anorexia was MY problem...NOT the problem of an unborn child
So my weight went from 89 lbs to 160 lbs at the end of the pregnancy. When I left the hospital I
weighed 128 lbs and have for the most part stayed in the 115-130 range until this day
HOWEVER, let me stress to every anorexic out there by not eating you are playing with dynomite
In my 30's I started having problems with my blood pressure & heart palpatations. Being a nurse
I figured it was stress, took the prescribed meds.
Valentines Day 1992 I had my first heart attack, 6 months later I had a stroke. The next 10 yrs were
a nightmare of going from a very well paid successful single mother to being unable to walk, talk
and legally blind and in a wheelchair for the next 13 yrs. I went to medical centers all over the country and was eventually diagnosed with a mitochondrial myopathy.
Every cell in my body had taken on the characteristic of anorexia. The cells in the nerves and muscles were not able to receive the nutrients they needed to survive. My body had more or less
turned on itself - to the point my body was destroying its own red blood cells. I went through 2 yrs
of endless transfusions and bone marrow biopsies. II even survived breast cancer
Thanks to 2 brilliant neurologists in my state, they not only made the diagnosis but started me on
what was then experimental treatments - they worked. For the past 2 yrs I am out of the wheelchair, walking, talking and doing great. I am legally blind - no peripheral vision and I am
losing my central vision very quickly. But for the most part the mitochondrial disease is in remission. And I am currently cancer free.
I will always be anorexic. I still have body image issues and maybe I always will.
But it is not worth the long term damage you are doing to your body. You may not see it for many years but the damage is done every day you deny your body nourishment. You are setting
your body up like a house of cards.....and it doesn't take much for that house to fall apart.
And when it falls it falls fast and it falls hard
I hope I been able to reach just 1 person by sharing this. Learn from my mistakes. I was a nurse before I became to sick to work. For many years I just tried to exist because the mitochondrial disease had ravaged my body. Now I am a patient advocate and do a lot of
motivational writing and speaking. I know there are millions of people (men and women)
suffering from eating disorders, I think by working together we can help each other find our
way to healing physically and emotionally. Just take it one day at a time and some days its
just hour by hour. But you can do it.......I did
Brenda
First of all congratulations for overcoming such horrible odds. I know that you will never be free from this disease but can you please tell me how you could have anorexic at the age of 2 or 3 years old. How does a 2 or 3 year old child know what calories are or how to starve themselves? I was a picky eater when I was younger, still am, but it was because I was a picky eater not anorexic.
(Original Air Date: 11/16/06) Have you ever looked in the mirror and thought, 'If I could lose five more pounds, I'd be perfect?' Dr. Phil's first guest, Darlene, thinks that every day, even though she's 5' 3" and weighs 60 pounds. She walks 20 miles a day followed by 500 stomach crunches and 1,200 leg lifts, so she doesn't have to worry about eating. Her twin sister, Marlene, says she's tried everything to help Darlene win this 11-year battle. Could something in her past be at the root of her problem? Is it too late for Darlene to recover? Then, 22-year-old Jennifer weighs 63 pounds and has the bones of an 80-year-old. Food is such an enemy to her that it takes her up to two hours to eat as much as a tablespoon. Jennifer's parents say she needs to control everything -- throwing out their food and telling them what they can and can't buy -- and her anorexia is affecting their marriage. They plead for help to save their daughter's life. What does Jennifer need to do to regain her health? Will these women choose to take a step in the right direction? Join the discussion.
