Water Fasting and Fasting for weight loss are two support forums where unsupportive messages or debates are not allowed, so I am posting here.
It drives me crazy when I see people fasting for what I think are all the wrong reasons.
OK, I can understand people wanting to fast for an event, yes. But it doesn't always work, because the weight goes back on. They can learn from that, and I guess it does no real harm.
What though of people who gives no indication of current or target weight, come back repeatedly doing very long fasts, never ask about refeeding, and report symptoms that could be related to eating disorders such as hair loss? Reasons for fasting are such things as "my boyfriend says I am too fat" or "I hate myself". Should we just blindly support and encourage such people to fast? I have to say, I can't any more. As someone who lost 70 pounds on a series of fasts (and I am still above BMI 25) I feel really guilty when people with an obvious low self esteem problem and other warning signs ask for support because of my "success", or ask to see my before and after pics for "motivation". I feel as if I may be leading someone over the edge of a cliff.
I am reminded of an email I got from the person responsible for a large eating disorder site...
"the bottom line is anyone with an eating disorder is only going to use [curezone fasting support forums] to help self-destruct. The kindest thing you can do is say flat out, "If you have an eating disorder, this site is not for you". Of course, you can't guarantee all people will back out but at least you can make it clear where you stand.
I also would take down the links to videos that give tips about having & concealing an eating disorder. People who are sick can & will use those videos to trigger themselves.
The bottom line is there are many eating disorders. People mostly know of anorexia & bulimia, but there is also binge-eating disorder, compulsive overeating, & EDNOS (eating disorder not otherwise specified). No one with an eating disorder, & in my opinion no one who ever had one before, should attempt a water fast or any other kind of fast. Regardless of if they are overweight, a healthy size or underweight, no good can come of it."
Unfortunately people who behave in this way are usually good at hiding it, maybe they are even hiding the truth from themselves. There are even links to curezone fasting on some pro anorexia sites. So you really can't tell who you are dealing with sometimes.
Look at these statistics:
http://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/features/anorexia-body-neglected
"Anorexia nervosa takes an enormous toll on the body. But that's not all. It has the highest death rate of any mental illness. Between 5% and 20% of people who develop the disease eventually die from it. The longer you have it, the more likely you will die from it. Even for those who survive, the disorder can damage almost every body system."
http://www.nedic.ca/knowthefacts/statistics.shtml
The death rate for eating disorders is high: it ranges between 18% (in 20-year studies) and 20% (in 30-year follow-up studies). In fact, the annual death rate associated with anorexia is more than 12 times higher than the annual death rate due to all other causes combined for females between 15 and 24 years old.
http://www.something-fishy.org/memorial/memorial.php
And apologies if the links contain terms which mention "mental illness". I hate labels and I don't really believe mental illness exists. I believe everyone who eats unhealthily and does this sort of things has their valid reasons, and if you or I were subjected to those circumstances we may do exactly the same thing. The question is how to present these people with a set of circumstances that will help them break this cycle.
I think I may be helping such people to "self-destruct" by condoning or encouraging their fasting. What do others think?
Lastly if you are reading this post and you think you may have an eating disorder of some sort, maybe watching the video below made by someone who got through anorexia might give you some better options. She made it for that very purpose. There are also support forums here on curezone, http://curezone.org/forums/f.asp?f=381 and http://curezone.org/forums/f.asp?f=438
Wow, good response Willow. I agree with just about everything you say.
I am sure that low self esteem goes hand in hand with an eating disorder. I have also been told of other things to look for, such as usernames like thinspiration and so on. Plus waif like icons. Fairly obvious things really. Below also is a table copied from http://www.helpguide.org/mental/anorexia_signs_symptoms_causes_treatment.htm
| Is it a Diet or Anorexia? | |
| Healthy Dieting | Anorexia |
| Weight loss is viewed as a way to improve health and appearance. | Weight loss is viewed as a way to achieve happiness. |
| Self-esteem is based on more than just weight and body image. | Self-esteem is based entirely on how much you weigh and how thin you are. |
| Is an attempt to control weight | Is an attempt to control your life and emotions |
| The goal is to lose weight in a healthy way. | Becoming thin is all that matters; health is not a concern. |
From the same site also is a picture

By the way I have tried emailing people with low self esteem, and no response. I also get private emails too, maybe every couple of weeks when I post a lot. A typical email might say "Hi I saw your before and after pics, can you post more? They inspire me so much". Then when I respond and ask questions, no reply. Zilch. Zippo. They just pop up elsewhere a few weeks later asking the same questions - "please help me, blah blah blah". And this pattern is repeated, often for months or years.
Oh but I should also say I get some really nice emails too, from people who are a bit shy or don't like to post their failures to the forum for example. These people are great, and I often enjoy corresponding with them. As long as a dialogue is going I am fine. Good luck to you shy fasters ;)
The other dilemma I have is that I am a moderator of said Water Fasting Forum. So is it enough for me to stand idly by, when others are telling a person with low self esteem and with a few other indicators "go on, you can do it?" I often cringe when I look at a person's previous posts, seeing low self esteem and the same pattern over and over, and people who are less informed are (in all innocence) cheering them on.
And remember when I first met you on the forum? I new straight away you were going to succeed, because you were showing all the right signs, mainly self confidence. Yes I am sure that all people with EDs have low self esteem. Well, definitely the serious cases anyway, which is what really concerns me.
But here's the main dilemma, in a nutshell. It is supposed to be a Water Fasting Support Forum, but "support" for the wrong type of person may seriously harm them, or even kill them.
Hi Steve,
Let me say first off, AWESOME research! Thanks.
I can see your point of being a moderator and standing idly by while others are encouraging someone who has obvious signs of an ED. Maybe it would be best if the poster is confronted outright if we think that might be the case. At least other members who might not have thought about the ED issue would become aware of the possible danger of encouraging that poster. It’s also possible that the said poster would give up due to being called out.
I really don’t know the answer to this dilemma, the thing is a person with an ED really doesn’t have to even get advice, all they have to do is read through old posts and learn from doing that. I wish more members would come here and tell their feelings on this subject, but for me I’m not going to give advice if I think they might have an ED.
I would say that people who suffer from low self-esteem and are overweight might or might not have an ED, that’s the tricky part about figuring it out but I have a tendency to think if they state something like “my boyfriend is going to leave me if I don’t lose weight”, that indicates to me they have no self worth or are equating their worth with what they look like, they might possibly have an ED. I have worked with many people with low self-esteem and haven’t run into one yet that suffers from an ED or if they did I didn’t know it, like you said they are really good at hiding it, but I’ve never had one that wanted to lose weight either even though some were heavy.
At the end of the day I think it would be better to offend someone by asking than to be contributing to that persons ED. We could ask for more information and if it’s not given then ask them if they have an ED but that wouldn’t really work either because they could lie, but it's better to be safe than sorry. I think each of us has to do what we feel comfortable with. Hopefully more members will respond here.
Willow
Hi Willow,
At the end of the day I think it would be better to offend someone by asking than to be contributing to that persons ED.
as usual I agree with you. Anyway, after seeing the person concerned post of her hair falling out in late 2008, plus she has no concern for her health, she is totally concerned about her weight loss only, wants to do more excercise, and is desperately unhappy because she is not losing weight fast enough, nothing else matters etc. I simply had to respond with a frank response here, after someone gave her OP a bad alert (at least someone has their eyes open).
My advice gets totally ignored of course. Now she is posting in a duplicate thread here over on fasting for weight loss. Says she doesn't have the strength to take a bath, for god's sake.
It's sad that most people who want to help are in blissful ignorance of any possible dangers. All they see is the single post of a fellow faster, who is a bit depressed, and they try to help cheer them up, make them feel good, help them acheive their goal. At least on a pro ana or pro mia site both "supporters" and "supported" know what the game is, but here people can hide behind an icon and get what they want to hear when they want to hear it, simply by doing a "please help me" or "I'm a loser" post to get attention or whatever, everytime they are desperately weak, tired, ill, losing hair.
*grunts*