Growth

Alright so during my ED, which lasted about 6-8 months I think? I was severely undereating, sub 1200... I just want to know if this affected how I would fare height-wise... I want to grow!!! So does undereating stunt growth?  And even for such a short period of time? (6 months isn't much compared to many people on here)

Lack of nutrition can impact growth of course but you can't change the past so focus on the future. Are you now eating enough to gain,grow,activity,repair? This is something you can do now and hope it helps repair the past and make you healthy in the future.

i know this can hapen ive had an ed since 14 and have been this height since i was 10. i do also know boys tend to grow slower than girls ie im a twin and my bro was always smaller than me but he continued to grow after me and is way taller know. i guess only time will tell try not to worry to much about this your doing good. like abbi said though the best thing you can do is eat enough so you do repair i hope that helps h x

Sorry to say, but it's likely that you stunted your growth. BUT.. it is possible to still grow if you continue nourishing yourself properly.

hey :) well i have anorexia, i am 19 and this past spring i was in the process of gaining weight, and i grew 1 whole inch from around january till june, now i am 5'1.5 ha yea still a shorty, but it is possible, my step mom is a doctor and said its like a delayed puberty, once you start re feeding and nourishing yourself properly. hope i grow more :)

again, no answer BUT, i grew half an inch at age 25 after eating more+gaining weight!

ya never know...better get eating!!

I think it could affect your growth alot but IM pretty sure you will still grow.

I'm not sure how much more you will grow because  it also has to do with genetics ie. if your parents are short and most of your family is short than you will be short; but if you have some relatives or parents that are tall then you still have a chance to grow more.

Undereating does have a significant effect on growth. I mean, where else can the body get the necessary energy to grow?? During the entire time I had my ED, I didn't grow even a fraction of an inch. But after 2 weeks of increasing my cals, I grew an inch. That's probably why I had such a big appetite. So if you keep eating a reasonable amount, you have a very good chance of catching up. =]

But as dekkos said, the amount of growing you'll do depends on how tall your parents are, genetics, etc.

well since i have been maintaining (about 2 weeks ago) i grew half an inch. Ill take anything. Youll grow, dont worry.

Ok thanks for the reassurance. My doc said I my height was projected to be 6' and it shouldn't be affected to much since I stopped it early, and when I started restricting I wasn't too far into my developement anyway.

Opeth: I started restricting when I was age 11 or 12. I shot up from 4'9" to 5'5" or so within about a year and a half. Got a bit better for awhile during that time actually. But then I got very severe in high school. I grew an inch or two while I was in treatment when I was 16. And have grown another inch since then, despite being underweight and restricting for many years. Given that you are remedying this fairly early, you're height shouldn't be affected. At most, you might be a quarter or a half inch short on that 6'.

I'd hate to see how tall I would be right now if not for anorexia probably stunting my growth. :\ I'd probably be 5'10" or 5'11".

Hey Opeth, I've seen your posts before and it's super inspirational to see how far you've come!! :) I'm almost 19, and after just gaining 5lbs in recovery I grew another half inch! I've had my e/d since I was about 9(was recovered for many years though, only minor relapses a few times), but I think my puberty was still kind of messed up. You're younger than me and a boy, so I definitely think you have some growing to do!

My younger brother was about 5'5" until he was in 8th grade...now he's 6'4"!! He just grew three inches this past year(he's 17 now)

Rebel and ecwk, thank you :].  I am surrounded by tall people and it really sucks to be so much shorter than everyone.  However I checked my height since my doctor's appointment 4 days ago and I may be measuring wrong but my mom says I grew a 1/4 inch! I doubt it's actually that much that quick but there's definately been a little increase.

My ED (restricting) started about 8 years ago (I'm 16 now).  I think it really varies from person to person.  I was about 5'2" or 5'3" from 6th-middle of 10th grade.  This past summer I grew about 2 inches and got really hungry.  I had been in treatment since 7th grade, in and out of the hospital, restricting & gaining the weight back in hospitals.  

Be careful not to set your goal weight to low, as I think doctors did for me over the years.  You have to maintain a healthy weight for a while, I think, before (upward) growth can really happen.  

I know it's scary, but it's always been explained to me like this:  you grow kind of like an accordian--you have to expand a bit, then you'll shoot up and be really skinny, gain some weight, then your body catches up.  Right now, your body might not really trust you after you've deprived it of much needed nutrition.  So it may hold onto what you feed it, until it trusts you and knows that it will have a steady flow of energy coming in.  Remember, teens need a ton of energy (calories), especially boys.  Not only are you growing on the outside, but organs are growing, your brain is growing, and you need plenty of food and hydration.

Good luck, and happy growing!