OCD and eating disorders

hi everyone,

i've heard of ocd being related to anorexia.  but what about binge eating?  i have ocd tendencies and sometimes i feel that i just HAVE to finish the cookie or the jar of nutella or WHATEVER.  it's being finicky about what goes in my mouth.  but instead of not letting certain things in, i feel that i have to finish everything i start.

has anyone heard of a relationship between the two----obsessive compulsive disorder and binge eating?

thankyou!! 

yep. 

Anything compulsive and ritual like is OCD. It runs in my family, I definitly have it, and I'm bulimic. 

I would always get sooooo anxious before a binge,like I had to do it, and wouldn't be able to stop until I ate something of everything around, no matter how full I was or ho badly I felt like stopping.

I also used to try to stuff the OCD feelings using binge eating.

So although contrary to its usual description, I do believe that there is connection.

If you are suffering from OCD/Binge Eating etc, please seek help.

I'm dealin with the same struggles as you are.  Is this OCD though?  I just thought it was called binge eating.  But even when I'm not binging yet...I still feel like i have to finish all food thats around me if its like a pack of cookies or chips i have to eat it all.  I envy those who can just put the rest of the bag away without even thinking about it.  So is what we have OCD? should i seek professional help? 

i don't think it necessarily means you have ocd, but i bet they can be related.  i am no expert and neither is anyone on this thread.  i could see how they are related because ocd is feeling like you have to do somthing and you dont have control over it.  much like binging.

this is interesting.  has anyone ever heard an actual medical or scientific explanation of this? 

There is such a thing as an obsessive or compulsive personality.  Might not be full-blown OCD or even an eating disorder but there is a trait.  There are a lot of times when you read about a sports star or a business tycoon being a terrible gambler or they have a drug habit or a string of mistresses, for example.   That ability to do things to excess has made them successful in one area of their life but a disaster in others.  They find normality doesn't give them much of a thrill.

Another link is the one between 'perfectionism' and 'control'.  People who are perfectionists and who like to be fully in control of everything in their lives are often top candidates for compulsive disorders and eating problems.  Their personal standards are unfeasibly high which leaves them permanently disappointed.   And since they find the 'middle ground' an unacceptable place to be they usually end up compensating by going completely in the opposite direction.

OMG you just described perfectly gi-jan!  perfectionist who would rather suck completely than just be mediocre. i either eat perfectly or binge . . . i either made an A+ or decided not to give a crap and make a low B in school.

This will be a good think to think about-----thanks! 

yes GI Jane, you hit the nail on this one.  Perfectionest/ OCD personality/Control behavior are all (pretty) much what EVERY binge eating or someone with eating problems has. 

Me for instance, used to be perfect with eating . . . . perfect in the sense that I did what I told myself too.  That's how i lost weight.  Now it seems to have reversed and i feel like i lost all power to restrict my eating to loose weight

actually, if you separate pure restrictors from pure bulimics, you get a really clear picture: restictors almost always have compulsive personalities and bingers and purgers almost always have impulsive personalitites. 

of course, there's lots of crossover in there, so just as most people with eating problems do a little of each, most have both compulsive and impulsive traits.

but there are pretty clear distinctions between compulsive and impulsive behaviours: the former are things like restricting, compulsive exercise, unconscious self injury (hair pulling, picking at skin, etc), obsessive cleaning, rituals, etc; the latter are more conscious behaviours like compensatory behaviours (purging, laxative abuse, exercise in response to overeating), cutting and/or burning, substance abuse, etc.

people who lean more to the impulsive side seem to have more ability to manage and alternate between behaviours; compulsive people are MUCH more resistant to treatment, because they'll protect the behaviours at all costs.

(i have mountains of references, if anyone wants them.  i'm doing my thesis on this.)

I've had bad OCD for years..so bad that it use to embarrass my family whenever we would go out because I would like be doing rituals inside of stores. :/

I once mentioned to last counselor that I had terrible OCD that I've had for a long time even prior to my ED and she said it didn't surprise her since it's commonly known to be present in people with EDs.

I have to admit though that my OCD is A LOT better then it use to be, I'm not as weird now in my rituals. I think I can hide it a lot better now then I use to as well. I'll catch myself now and then doing something (like repeating whatever I had previously said, picking at my skin nervously, etc.) but if I had to choose between the behaviors now and how it was in the past I would choose now.

People with EDs tend to have the mindset of "All or nothing" in their eating behaviors. I know I do.

Original Post by pgeorgian:

actually, if you separate pure restrictors from pure bulimics, you get a really clear picture: restictors almost always have compulsive personalities and bingers and purgers almost always have impulsive personalitites. 

[...]

(i have mountains of references, if anyone wants them.  i'm doing my thesis on this.)

Heh. As soon as I got to your second paragraph, I wanted to ask if you're a grad student of some sort. We tend to find each other. O_o

Your research is extremely interesting to me.  And I certainly find it accurate from personal experience.

cool, xue_mei.  yeah, i'm in the middle of qualitative interviews right now and...man, i'm exhausted.  the compulsive/impulsive stuff is part of my lit review; my research is actually on the intersections between disordered eating, substance abuse, and self harm. 

i'm self-medicating my vicarious trauma as we speak ;)

what are you studying?

Hey pgeorgian,

Also a grad psych student studying eating disorders, could you email me some of your references?  Fascinating stuff about personality types and specific EDs. i'll message you my info. 

Original Post by pgeorgian:

cool, xue_mei.  yeah, i'm in the middle of qualitative interviews right now and...man, i'm exhausted.  the compulsive/impulsive stuff is part of my lit review; my research is actually on the intersections between disordered eating, substance abuse, and self harm. 

i'm self-medicating my vicarious trauma as we speak ;)

what are you studying?

I'm not surprised you're exhausted! Sounds like you've put in a crapton of time.

I'm in pacific and asian studies with a focus on concepts of death in modern Japanese culture. I think I'm taking a break after this term, though, so I can give some thought to where the hell my life is going. O_o

I am a 55 year old woman who suffers from hairpulling and binge eating.  My 31 year old son who looks just like me suffers from the same.  I have a second son who looks nothing like me (very much like his father) he does not hair pull or binge eat.  I now have 2 biological grandchildren.  A boy who looks nothing like my son or myself and a girl who is 4 1/2 who looks like her dad and me.   She is already showing signs of twisting hair and overeating where my grandson is blessed with using food as it was intended.  please if you can keep me informed of your research.  I have tried every diet in the world, I have tried therapy nothing works.  I believe I am fighting genetics which is as hard as trying to change brown eyes to blue without contacts.  My concern now is that I never want my granddaughter to suffer from this obsession with food or the humiliation of hair pulling.  Your help would be much appreciated.

wow, so glad to hear people have similar problems (even though it may not be a good thing for us all!)...I tend to be verrry rigid about what I eat , trying to eat very healthfully and balanced however I find I always have to finish things that I start to eat...for instance if I start to eat a sweet potato even though Im making something else for dinner, I will end up eating both..or if I know there is just a little granola left I will just finish it all even though I may not really be hungry to in the mood for it...I dont know why and I wish i could stop it because it drives me nuts! I tend to always eat lower calorie but very filling things to make me feel full but ok..such as broccoli or speghetti squash or oatmeal etc. Sometimes I feel that I am so strict with what I eat I tend to eat the same things weekly... and then If i try something new maybe, even if its like 1/2 a muffin at night , i then have to eat something healthy after to fill me . anyone else?

 I don't think it  sounds like OCPD (obsessive compulsive personality disorder) it sounds a bit more like OCD or OCD tendencies.  Do you feel like something bad will happen if you don't eat the whole cookie, for example?

If you are concerned about it (OCD) I would suggest talking to a psychologist or psychiatrist. They would be able to determine if you have it and, therefore, be able to help  with recovery. If you do have untreated OCD it would definately make it more difficult to recover, so it is always good to find the correct diagnosis.