Day 7 – The Gender Gap Part I

“Anorexia is primarily a disorder of females. Only rarely is it found in males”

~ John L. Miller, MD.

228 lbs.

The weight loss doesn’t happen at a steady pace. Still, I plan to re-examine my intake and check for salt or something.

Taking on a project like this can be like Forrest Gump’s box of chocolates; you never know what you’re going to get. Of course, with actual boxes of chocolate there’s that slip inside it which tells you which chocolate has which filling…

On my facebook page about this blog I referred to taking on this insane diet as ‘going manorexic’ – a term some people objected to, saying eating disorders strike both genders. Well, yes but…

The other day I was contacted by Liam (last name withheld at his request), a reader of this blog who is recovering from anorexia himself. “I can’t believe what I put my body through. I want to tell my story so that all the men out there suffering in silence know it’s nothing to be ashamed about, and that they too can beat it.”

The Hungry I reader Liam, then & now

Eating disorders are viewed differently when they strike women or men.  According to the National health Service in the UK, 2.7 million people in that country alone suffer from some form of eating disorder. Because 3 out of 4 are women, some people get the idea that only females develop eating disorders. But – hang on while I get out my calculator… if 3 out of 4 ED sufferers are women, that means 1 in 4 are men. And it could be even higher because many males with eating disorders aren’t considered bulimic, anorexic, etc. While the reasons they go down these self-destructive and dangerous paths are the same as women, the men are often brushed off by their doctors as ‘depressed’.

Why did I pick the figures from the NHS in the UK? Because Liam is from the UK (that place across the ‘pond’ where they drive on the other side of the road and… I dunno… Ke$ha is called Ke£ha?) He wrote to me providing info about his experience with anorexia.

“When my girlfriend had a miscarriage, we were both devastated. Soon we were arguing all the time and grew apart,” he said. The growing apart lead to a break up, and Liam felt he’d lost control of his life. “The only thing I could control was my diet. I started counting every single calorie that passed my lips. I weighed myself first thing in the morning, last thing at night, naked, dressed – I was constantly on the scales and panicked if I had put on the tiniest amount.”

Liam would have a mushroom for breakfast, porridge for lunch, and a small box of raisins if he couldn’t make it through the afternoon. The only time girls looked at him was to gawk at his skeletal frame, which reinforced his downward spiral. After 2 years of this, he collapsed. Literally. At 6’2″ and only 119 lbs, he describes himself as having “sunken eyes, veins popping out of my arms, visible rib cage and stick-like legs”.

“I’d had enough. I didn’t want to die. I took photographs of myself and promised myself I’d change.” With the help of doctors Liam started eating again. After 5 months he was up to 147 lbs. “It was a long process. I tried to snack every few hours, increasing the portions each time. It was hard – my body and my mind weren’t used to it.”

He is now up to 159 lbs and his body – and confidence – grow stronger. “I don’t have a girlfriend yet, but I have the courage to chat girls up for the first time in years and when I do, they don’t run for the hills any more.”

“I don’t think it ever truly leaves anyone. But now, the anorexia is not in control. I am”