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Bulimia Nervosa

Women's Mental Health Home > Mental Health Conditions > Bulimia Nervosa

Bulimia nervosa, or bulimia, is a type of eating disorder. Someone with bulimia eats a lot of food in a short amount of time (bingeing) and then tries to get rid of the calories by purging. Purging might be done in these ways:

• making oneself throw up
• taking laxatives (pills or liquids that increase how fast food moves through your body and leads to a bowel movement [BM])

A person with bulimia may also use these ways to prevent weight gain:

• exercising a lot (more than normal)
• restricting her eating or not eating at all (like going without food for a day)
• taking diuretics (pills that make you urinate [pee])

Bulimia is more than just a problem with food. It's a way of using food to feel in control of other feelings that may seem overwhelming. Purging and other behaviors to prevent weight gain are ways for people with bulimia to feel more in control of their lives and to ease stress and anxiety.

Unlike anorexia, when people are severely underweight, people with bulimia may be underweight, overweight, or have a normal weight. This makes it harder to know if someone has this disease. However, someone with bulimia may have these signs:

• thinks about food a lot
• binges (normally in secret)
• throws up after bingeing
• uses laxatives, diet pills, or diuretics (pills that help you pee) to control weight
• is depressed
• is unhappy and/or thinks a lot about her body shape and weight
• eats large amounts of food quickly
• goes to the bathroom all the time after she eats (to throw up)
• exercises a lot, even during bad weather, fatigue, illness, or injury
• unusual swelling of the cheeks or jaw area
• cuts and calluses on the back of the hands and knuckles from making herself throw up
• white enamel of teeth wears away making teeth look clear
• doesn't see friends or participate in activities as much
• has rules about food — has "good" foods and "bad" foods

Bulimia can be very harmful to all parts of the body. The good news is that a person with bulimia can get better. Different types of therapy have worked to help people with bulimia. This may include individual, group, and family therapy. The antidepressant medicine, Prozac, can be used to treat this illness and is usually given in combination with therapy.

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