Exercise Bulimia on the Rise
perhaps not on the rise, but finally being recognized by the media.
Exercise bulimia begins as a healthy habit which then runs a mock. It is not terribly easy to diagnose. However, if you notice that you are going to the gym on days when you are sick or injured or not allowing your body to heal, or if you find yourself feeling self hatred for skipping your daily (or twice daily or more) exercise regimes, you might want to look closer at your exercise habits.
A client of mine, once astutely stated that she thought she had it all under control when she was running 5-10 miles each day, however, she found that when she didn’t run, she fell apart. She realized that running was a way of running away from her feelings. The days that she didn’t run (which were few and far between), her feelings arose and she had no choice than to sit with them. This option felt overwhelming to her. She had no tolerance for uncomfortable feelings. In recovery, she found that moderate exercise was liberating as was the ability to increase her tolerance for sadness, loneliness, fear, and other feelings that had previously been unacceptable.
