Expert: Joanne - 4/24/2007

Question
Hi
When I was thirteen I developed an eating disorder, or more specifically disordered eating. It was the start of a few years of ED-NOS; going through periods of restricting and then eating normally, possibly eating too much at times.
As I child I was always underweight, and before I developed this ED-NOS (about 11-12) I was still tall and gangly. All my family are slim. After my eating troubles kicked in I remained slim at my heaviest (looking back now, I can see I wasn't 'fat') but by the age of about 15 my weight had gone to 9st 2lbs at 5"5. I don't know where that is on the BMI scale, but I think it's still healthy.
Anyway, before I ramble off on a tangeant, when I was at that weight I was at my heaviest I've ever been and I must say I probably wasn't eating healthily (by that I mean eating too much). However, last February I started making myself sick after lunch and dinner. That went on until about mid-December and I went from being just over 9st to 7st 7lbs roughly by the summer. I attempted recovery and my weight seemed to stay at around 8st 4lbs for a while. I'd put on around 7lbs when I last weighed myself (last month-ish) but it was after a period of eating badly like I used to.
Basically, what I'm asking is this - when will my weight stabilise? I don't know what my natural weight is because I can't think of a time when I've been it. I'm eating healthily and exercising daily now, but I won't weigh myself until a month or so when things have settled down a little. My relationship with food is better nowadays, and seeing as I come from a slim family will I eventually follow suit? Don't get me wrong, I'm currently size 8-10 but I'm not sure whether this current weight is my natural one.

Answer
As long as you are eating 1800-2000 calories and exercising regularly, your body should be able to sort itself out and get to a weight that is right for it!

This will not reach that point until you have been following a good, balanced diet for a significant period of time, and may result in small weight gain initially, but this will stabilise itself.

If you find that weighing yourself affects you the way it does, why not try not weighing yourself at all!  If your clothes fit, try not to think about it!  If you feel that you struggle when you don't know your weight, I'd recommend weighing yourself more regularly so that the changes in weight don't seem so drastic, but that can become dangerous and can become an obsession!

I recommend trying to get an appointment with a Dr, Psychologist or nutritionist and see if they can recommend anything that they think would help!

Please feel free to come back if you have any other questions!  All the best
Holly