Eating disorders are serious, possibly fatal illnesses that have an impact on a person’s mental and physical health.
We all have something that we’re afraid of; phobias, however, are excessive fears of objects or situations that present little danger but cause anxiety and avoidance, a symptom of most anxiety disorders.
Our eating habits have an impact on our self-esteem and capacity for healthy weight management.
Hence why it’s important to know when we might have a problem and seek the necessary help needed.
Registered dietitian and spokesperson for the Association for Dietetics in South Africa (ADSA) Retha Harmse, unpacks what obesophobia is and gives tips on how to have a healthy relationship with ourselves.
“Obesophobia (also called pocrescophobia) is an intense, overwhelming fear of gaining weight or getting ‘fat’.
It is a specific phobia (fear), which is a type of anxiety disorder rather than an eating disorder, says Harmse.”
Obesophobia is a symptom of disordered eating and has the potential to progress into very serious and life-threatening eating disorders like anorexia and bulimia.
Poor self-esteem and self-confidence can lead to a lack of self-care and concern for personal health and wellness.
Perhaps even leading to self-harm, Harmse reveals to IOL Lifestyle.
She confesses that it may lead to social isolation, loneliness and depression.
“Obsession with controlling weight gain frequently causes food restriction or deprivation, which triggers binge eating.”
Increased feelings of anxiety and stress, further increasing cortisol levels which lead to weight gain (which further exacerbates the obesophobia).
Furthermore, prolonged high levels of cortisol contribute to premature ageing, heart disease and even cancer.
What are the differences between obesophobia and body dysmorphia, if any?
Harmse believes that body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), or body dysmorphia, is a mental health condition where a person spends a lot of time worrying about flaws in their appearance.
These flaws are often unnoticeable to others and can affect people of any age or gender.
She continues by pointing out that the main distinction between obesophobia and body dysmorphia is that one may or may not be associated with a fear of gaining weight.
While dysmorphia can occasionally be connected to a person’s skin, hair, or other physical features unrelated to weight.
She calls to attention how this is an extremely volatile relationship with one’s body. This is when you should seek the assistance of an eating disorder dietitian and a psychologist:
Intense anxiety when thinking about weight gain
Obsession with weight loss
Frequent dieting
Avoiding social activities with food
Negative body image
Restricting food intake
Obsessively counting calories
Overexercising
Vomiting on purpose
“I’ve adapted a quote from an author who I really admire, Brene Brown. The original quote says.
“Talk to yourself like you would talk to someone you love”, my adapted quote is “feed yourself like you would feed someone you love, says the dietician”.
The moment when we have some added perspective and can see it outside ourselves, we then sometimes realise that our behaviour would’ve been really toxic and abusive if it was directed at someone we love, therefore the same goes for us.
Give yourself unrestricted permission to eat and take pleasure in the foods you love: Harmse agrees that when we are not overly restrictive, the likelihood of overeating because we feel psychologically deprived is much lower.
Learn to fully listen to and trust your body, and to eat only when you are physically hungry.
If a craving or urge to eat is triggered by something other than physical hunger, eating will never satisfy it.
Remind yourself that you are much more than your appearance or your weight.
To shift the focus, begin focusing on aspects other than appearance or achievement, such as your character or personality, who you are, and what you mean to others.
When you notice a feeling or emotion, welcome it.
You have feelings, but they do not define you, and you are not your feelings.
Allowing the feeling to be felt can sometimes take the wind out of our sails because what we resist often persists.
Practise gratitude for what your body really does and what the function of that body area is; our abdomens house all our organs, all our food is digested there to give us energy, etc and maybe it wasn’t supposed to have a six-pack.
You can do this by writing a body letter and thanking those body parts.
Practice self-compassion, studies show that negative self-thoughts lead to apathy and depression, not motivation.
Self-compassion is an antidote to mental health issues.
