u/LolaLivesALittle

Hey everyone,
I’m just curious how everyone navigates the idea of three meals and three snacks? This is what my dietician recommends, but then on the same note just says not to go more than four hours without eating something.
I dont have a set meal guide and its totally up to me on my choices etc and im at a point where meals and snacks are more than sufficient (meeting recovery guidelines etc) but im finding if im having a very dense, large, recovery aligned meal then in two hours I simply have no desire for a snack but say closer to the four hour mark I can eat another meal etc. this then means I dont get my 3/3’s.

Whereas I could meet the goal of 3/3, but id have to “preemptively” cut back on what im already eating in order to fit in the frequency element. However, i dont want to not choose an option just because it’ll “fill me up too much” for my next snack etc

I hope this all makes sense! Feel free to ask any questions if you’d like a clearer understanding.

Like I understand some people are on smaller meal plans where they eat smaller and more frequently, however I am in a place where my meals are significantly more than a typical meal plan you may see.

Hey everyone,
I’m just curious how everyone navigates the idea of three meals and three snacks? This is what my dietician recommends, but then on the same note just says not to go more than four hours without eating something.
I dont have a set meal guide and its totally up to me on my choices etc and im at a point where meals and snacks are more than sufficient (meeting recovery guidelines etc) but im finding if im having a very dense, large, recovery aligned meal then in two hours I simply have no desire for a snack but say closer to the four hour mark I can eat another meal etc. this then means I dont get my 3/3’s.

Whereas I could meet the goal of 3/3, but id have to “preemptively” cut back on what im already eating in order to fit in the frequency element. However, i dont want to not choose an option just because it’ll “fill me up too much” for my next snack etc

I hope this all makes sense! Feel free to ask any questions if you’d like a clearer understanding.

Like I understand some people are on smaller meal plans where they eat smaller and more frequently, however I am in a place where my meals are significantly more than a typical meal plan you may see.

Does anyone on here have PMDD as well as an ED? I have very severe PMDD (with the worst effects being chronic/heightened/severe SI) during these times. Among this it’s like a switch is flipped during my luteal and I begin to experience what I consider like a “retraumatisation” of what it’s like living deeply in an ED at its worst (freezing cold/extreme weakness and fatigue/no hunger yet also “binge urges”/ insomnia yet unable to sleep/digestive issues/severely low mood).

This honestly has been my biggest roadblock now further into recovery as it feels I didn’t reap any mental benefits especially as for 2 or so weeks out of every month the SI and hopelessness is so severe I don’t know how I can carry on let alone keep up with recovery.

Long story short, I was just wondering if anyone on here has co morbid PMDD coupled with an ED and how you managed to continue recovery/recover? Any tips etc.

So I’ll try and keep this as summarised as I can:

My ED is largely a survival and coping mechanism as is for many. I am neurodivergent, with other very debilitating mental and physical illnesses.
For me the ED is the thing that keep me alive instead of an immediate way out. It’s a safety net, comfort, company, control, familiarity, predictability etc.

I don’t have anyone really in my life and it seems the only thing that gives me that company as every time I push and push for recovery or stray further from a low weight. The SI is extreme, as I feel so lonely and afraid and lost as obviously I am giving up what has kept me safe for so long.
I have worked immensely hard to make friendships, get involved in the community, work, volunteer etc but I still don’t really have anyone family or friends I can go go for support and the tricky thing is the only thing that really helps me keep pushing is that co regulation and company I do desperately need.

Basically, my question is how do you blindly keep going in recovery if you don’t get have anything to replace the comfort, care, love, support etc that it feels your ed gives you?

F22
Battling constant health issues for years now which has progressively worsened. To cut a long story short-heart rate 37/40 beats a minute, constant GI problems (diarrhoea, burping, pains, nausea), BMI has dropped to 13.9, developed purple blotches on skin, insomnia so on and so forth. Not great healthcare where I live and been trying to get some sort of answer for so long now, of course given I am a young female I was diagnosed with mental issues-including anorexia even though I wasn’t intending to lose weight. After all this time I basically convinced myself that maybe I did have a hidden eating disorder and mental issues so went on SSRIs as a last resort -3 months in and they did quite literally nothing at all. Went to a dietician and multiple drs providing them with what I eat and they were scratching their heads not believing me.

In the general sense I would say I maintain really healthy habits, I eat well, exercise, don’t smoke, don’t drink etc etc but for some reason my body just won’t heal or improve.
I try to function however if I allowed myself I could probably just hibernate and sleep for years.
Chronic muscle weakness and fatigue rules everything but I don’t want to “give in” if that makes sense. I also experience extremely constant low mood despite nothing being “wrong” if that makes sense-the the point I have chronic SI even though I’m like “but my life is fine everything environmentally/lifestyle wise is totally fine?!?!”.

I’m just at a loss, I was working the other day and a woman I was serving said out of nowhere “you have addisons?” I thought she meant a product so I was confused and then she went on to say she was a Dr visiting from another state and I had “tell tale” signs and explained basically my exact symptoms before I even spoke. I looked into it and I feel like this might actually be it.

However I looked at how it is diagnosed and it seems through a cortisol test however I am on hormonal birth control and still on SSRIs and heard these can give a false reading? How should I go about this process?