From eating disorder to loving food: how an undergraduate student overcame his condition

SINGAPORE: Rashyr Perez Ramanathan was 15 years old when comments from classmates and distant relatives made her start hating the way she looked. She was going through adolescence and was gaining weight.

She was too fat, they said.

Now 25 years old and a student, Rashyr recalled an incident in his mixed high school that made a mark when a classmate asked him if she had eaten

"I have says "Yeah, is not it?" And he said, "It's pretty obvious you've eaten." It just stayed in my head. , she told Channel NewsAsia.

Her attempts to lose weight and the people who made fun of her took her on a journey through eating disorders, with additional health issues that remained a long time after she recovered four years ago.

Painful experience, she said that she first cut the meat out of her diet. Rice was also abandoned. In the space of three months, she had lost 15 kg

The compliments that accompanied it prompted her to want to lose weight.

"I just stopped eating completely," she says.

"It started to become an obsession for me – a system of reward and punishment, where if I do not eat that day, I'd be happy to be proud of myself, but if I ate, I would hate myself so much. "

But soon, she began to faint, and her parents knew something was wrong. They started to sit with her to eat her. It was at that point that she intentionally vomited the food that she ate.

"I just gave in. I ate, but then I waited a bit, I expected them to lower their guard, and then I go in the bathroom and throw it, "she said.

It was not long before his eating disorders began to wreak havoc. When she was 17, she consulted the doctor for stomach problems, but did not follow up for fear that her parents would know exactly what was going on.

She also could not focus on anything and was not sure, even doing things to her friends to make herself look "cool". Her relationships at the time were "toxic," she said

when she was not diagnosed at that time, she had symptoms of bulimia nervosa. eating disorders.

It was only when she was 21 years old and she looked for ways to commit suicide that she knew she had to face her demons. She started by telling her mother everything. Her mother then took her to the Institute of Mental Health, where Rashyr was detained for 11 days

although she sought help because of the depression and from anxiety, she discovered her eating problems

. "All the part of the depression I've eaten to deal with all of this." By treating depression and anxiety, it has somehow helped me to not use food as a mechanism of adaptation, "she said.

Rashyr is now completely cured of her eating disorders, but her actions continue to haunt her.

We do not realize that this has lasting effects. Until now, when I eat, that (his stomach) hurts once in a while and I have to take a few pills before eating to make sure that I can digest my food, because that is Is always a problem for me. She said family and friends have an important role to play in helping patients with eating disorders, but cautioned against a hard line.

"They think they can scold the person with the disorder, and they think it's going to help, but that's not the case." It pushes the person away. need to arrange, "she says.

Instead, she recommends that family and friends can help by just being there and being patient

Rashyr regrets losing her golden age "When you're young, and you're worried about your weight, it's the best years of your life that you'll never be able to recover," she said.

However, the experience has led, as well as her last project comrades year, to raise awareness of eating disorders through a campaign called Breaking the Mirrors: You Are More Than What You See

Selo n a study, bodily dissatisfaction – a major causative factor of eating disorders – is common, according to a survey

. The survey found that 85% of 267 participants aged 18 to 24 years were dissatisfied with their bodies

TYPICAL DISEASE OF FEMALE PATIENT FEEDING IN OLD YEAR 20: PHYSICIANS

Indeed, the typical patient of eating disorder is typically female and of this age profile,

Dr. Ng Kah Wee, director of the program of eating disorders at the Singapore General Hospital (SGH), said the clinic sees patients 13 years and older. They usually have symptoms between 17 and 22 years, he says, with an average age of 20 years.

Doctors have said that there are several types of eating disorders, and that the most common are anorexia and bulimia nervosa. They said that anorexia involves a severe restriction of food intake, resulting in low body weight, often in a relatively short amount of time, while bulimia involves eating, followed by compensatory measures for get rid of the food ingested.

Dr. Ng said that almost half of the cases at the clinic fall into the category of anorexia, 30% are bulimia and the rest are Binge eating disorders and disorders of the Food not specified.

Symptoms of anorexia include consistent excuses for avoiding meals or situations involving food, denial of hunger, and feeling fat or overweight despite dramatic weight loss. Symptoms of bulimia include purging behaviors, such as induced vomiting, laxative or diuretic abuse, and the creation of complex life patterns or rituals to take the time to do cleansing and detoxification sessions.

Dr. Chee Tji Tjian, of the Department of Psychological Medicine at the National University Hospital, added that while the orders are complex and "affect everyone", some risk factors are more common among people diagnosed with eating disorders. "Personality and dissatisfaction with the body image.

MEN CAN EXTRA TOO MANY FOOD DISORDERS

While Dr. Chee said that eating disorders disproportionately affect women, men are also vulnerable, he said.
There appears to be an increase in the number of males diagnosed with a eating disorder, he said, pointing to factors such as: a growing rate of bodily dissatisfaction among men, "perhaps motivated by the media portrayal of the pursuit of some type of muscular and lean physique."

"As the disorders of the Although diet was often considered a female disease, the cultural stigmatization of men with eating disorders had probably led to underreporting and diagnosis in the past, "he added.
] Psychologist Dr. Li Boon Leng form Gleneagles Hospital said that from his clinical experience, more males are beginning to suffer from eating disorders.

"This is due to the fixation on masculinity in males these days, still influenced by the Western media.In men, fixation is often done on muscle definition and exercise rather than on the obsession with thinness. "

While local data are not available, a 70% increase in eating disorders among men was observed in the UK, 2010 and 2016.

WHAT ARE THE EFFECTS OF FOOD DISORDERS AND HOW TO HELP THE SUFFERING

Eating disorders can have serious repercussions on the physical, emotional and social well-being of patients , Said Dr. Ng. Depending on the type of eating disorder, they could suffer from a myriad of physical problems.

These include cardiovascular complications such as low heart pressure and high blood pressure. irregular heartbeat er which could be fatal, gastrointestinal difficulties and infertility

"Sometimes comorbid psychiatric conditions like depression, anxiety disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder can surface. and these conditions should also be adequately addressed, "said Dr. Ng.

However, eating disorders can be treated.Mr Chee said that the treatment of An eating disorder follows a multidisciplinary team approach of psychiatrists, psychologists, dieticians and other qualified health professionals to support the process of treatment and recovery.