Eating Disorders in the military

marybeth · Posted: Sat Jul 11, 2009 12:20 pm Post subject:

Wow with those statistics how could anyone say that?
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wickedrache · Posted: Sat Jul 11, 2009 2:53 pm Post subject:

yeah, who the fuck.

I could really see that, EDs being prevalent in the military....huh.
Well, kick some ass, Kat.
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Ashley · orange goddess Joined: 22 May 2006 Posts: 1619

Eating disorders in the military settings is something I've pondered before...

When I was in high school, I deeply pondered joining the Navy or some other branch of the military. The idea had nothing to do with serving my nation; on the contrary, it had to do with serving the eating disorder. I wanted to be able to have my "badness" validated by some outside source ---such as a tough-as-nails officer.

When I was in middle school, a friend of a friend (who was much older than us--over 18 ) wanted to join the military, but she was overweight and they denied her entrance on that factor. So, she embarked on a strict diet so that she could accomplish her goal. After that, the relationship just stuck in my head.
So I figured I could join the military so I wouldn't "get fat"--since they require exercise and training.

That's a terrible idea to recall... but at one point in my life, it was an honest consideration.

Is there a possibility some women (or men) join the military to beat themselves into shape--to serve the eating disorder?

Kat, I'm not sure what your motivations for enlisting are, but I would love to hear back from you. I know there's a push to say--"the military causes eating disorders"--but I want to ask the other side of the question--"do persons with eating disorders seek out an environment in which an eating disorder will be enforced?"

I agree that the environment is an influential factor. However, unlike a person exposed to weight/fitness/image expectancies at a young age, an adult has much more option in terms of choosing or changing environmental influences.

While I obviously can't say this sort of action would just wholly prevent eating disorders--I think that many people with eating issues start out with some issues (whether eating or other) early on in their lives and that they manifest in certain situations--I think that people tend to think a certain way, therefore behaving/feeling in certain ways, and tend to make decisions that put them in certain situations that are indicative of those thoughts/behaviors/emotions.

I think healthy adults tend to seek out healthier environments--both consciously and in the form of thought patterns that help differentiate between what seems a likely option vs. what seems improbable.

So, with that reasoning, I wonder if some population of the military goes into the military with an eating disorder, or even because of it.
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Rook · Posted: Sun Jul 12, 2009 6:29 am Post subject:

Sorry for not writing a longer post - I'm a bit psychologically tired at the moment. I just wanted to say that on first seeing the title of this thread (yes, I did read the whole article and all the responses too), what leapt into my head was Alisa in Lauren Greenfield's documentary THIN: "Do you know why I joined the Air Force? Nobody knows why I joined the Air Force. I joined the Air Force in the middle of Operation Desert Storm to lose weight."
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teressa · Posted: Sun Jul 12, 2009 6:33 am Post subject:

FadingHippie · Posted: Sun Jul 12, 2009 10:36 am Post subject:

I will respond further when I'm not on my phone, but Alisa from the Thin documentary was actually kicked out of the military for losing too much weight.

I had been pondering due to myself, a coworker, and her how common it was so I went searching for info to back my theory. I found this study and many more just like it.
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Kat

"We are not bad people trying to get good. We are sick people trying to get well." ~Anonymous

FadingHippie · Posted: Sun Jul 12, 2009 12:23 pm Post subject:

Why did I join the military - to answer Ashley's inquiry...

I was sexually assaulted my last week of college - the night before/morning of the first day of finals second semester.

Due to that I did not want to go back to that college, despite having a full ride... no one expected me to join up... affluent family - full ride scholarship...

Then there was the realization that college was killing me. I was taking so many pills and having issues.

I joined the military actually because I thought it would force me to get better in a way. In order to join I had to gain a bit of weight.

Then when I went off to basic training, I was put on an eating waiver - reserved for those that are underweight anemic, etc.

In basic training you get virtually zilch time to eat - we're talking 5 to 10 minutes MAX from the moment you get to sit down. People on eating waivers got to be seated first and instead of having to filter out as soon as their time was done, they got the privilege of sitting and eating while the whole flight was eating, 3 or 4 times as long consequently - and they could eat as much as they wanted and whatever they wanted.

Non eating waiver people despised those on it, because they were jealous of the time they got.

I sat with the eating waivers for awhile, until we had a substitute TI, who didn't know I was on an eating waiver, and started to eat with the rest of the flight for the rest of basic training.... each meal eating a few little quarter sized tubs of peanut butter for protein and a roll with some butter. For breakfast, substitute the roll for cottage cheese.

All the other food choices scared me. Everything was heavy... pancakes, french toast, etc.

My other flight mates got upset with me, because I would finish my meal rather quickly compared to them, who were trying to press the time limit... because I was finished, my tray empty, we had to leave.

But, people were losing weight and being so proud of it, I longed to be doing that again... so I continued.

Basic training is so high into exercise and doing things exactly, perfectly. Perfectionism is gold in basic training...

I slipped right back into the way I lived in high school - where I exhibited anorexic behaviors - rather than the anorexic with highly bulimic tendencies I exhibited in college.

I was praised for my physical shape and my running (which actually got worse in basic) - for pushing myself so much. At the last PT test of basic, I ran my mile and a half - finishing with the males in my brother flight - at just over 9 minutes... with enough time to spare to go help pace all the other females in my own flight.

I got to be one of the lead airmen for the airmen's run graduation weekend.

I lost 2.5 inches off of my waist during basic training.

Then I went to tech school... gained weight the first couple of weeks due to the food choices in the d-fac... and I can tell you even now, that the d-fac does not have that many healthy choices...at all..

This weight gain freaked me out... and I went right back to it.

I think a lot of females join the military having (or having had) eating disorders... and that the environment brings back those habits... or encourages them

if that makes sense?

They can get away with joining with one (as I did), because you don't have to mark that box unless you've been diagnosed - and it's documented that you were diagnosed.
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Kat

"We are not bad people trying to get good. We are sick people trying to get well." ~Anonymous