Fact of the Matter: Eating Yourself Out of a Pit

by Sisterlisa

I grew up in the world as an unsaved person, in the public school and very much consumed by how the actresses looked on television. I inherited my hips from the females on my side of the family and when I would compare myself to the other girls at school, I felt big. My self-esteem was as close as being completely delinquent. My family was not health conscious and all my friends seemed to be able to eat anything they wanted and not gain weight. I joined an aerobics class and although I could feel myself becoming stronger, I was not slimming down at all. I figured I must be a reject. It didn’t take long before I started forcing my food up after a meal.

Several years of binging and I could no longer control it. Any time I would eat, my body would automatically follow the pattern I had set. I was not losing weight. I was afraid I’d get caught. After I got married, I was able to stop during the time I carried my first child, but as soon as she was born my body got right back to it. I was determined to lose the pounds I had gained during my pregnancy, but what I wasn’t prepared for was the amount of control this eating disorder was taking in my life.

I began going to church and attending a weekly prayer meeting with some other people from the church I was in at the time. Week after week we were asked to pray for a girl. We were told it was an unspoken prayer request regarding her health. We weren’t sure if it was cancer or a broken limb, we just didn’t know. After praying for her for several months she came one Wednesday night to thank us. She stood before us and began to share how an eating disorder had taken over her life and that she was hospitalized. She explained the details of how God delivered her from this ‘ugly beast that controlled her’. What she was describing was exactly what I was beginning to go through. It was evident that she had been battling a personal demon and I knew I was headed straight for destruction. Her testimony changed my heart and I immediately stopped! I am thankful that by her testimony I was able to cease from abusing my body like that. however there are thousands of young ladies who do get caught up in their eating disorder that they need to get medical help.

Anorexia-Nervosa and Bulimia are two very serious eating disorders. Your body was not created to starve or vomit up it’s food after eating. God created our bodies to process food and use the calories as energy to live each day. When we stop feeding ourselves healthy foods, our body thinks it needs to hold onto the fat that it has in order to survive. So while you ‘think’ you are losing weight, you are actually stopping yourself from shedding those extra pounds and depriving your body of the energy it needs to function each day. When you find ways to vomit your meals, the acid from your stomach flushes through your esophagus and teeth, eroding tissue from your throat and enamel from your teeth. Tooth decay sets in and you increase you risk of cavities. These are just a few side effects of these two eating disorders.

Anorexia also causes shrunken bones, mineral loss, low body temperature, irregular heartbeat, permanent failure of normal growth, development of osteoporosis. Using laxatives as a form of weight loss wears out the bowel muscle and causes it to decrease in function. Some laxatives contain harsh substances that may be reabsorbed into your system. One percent of teenage girls in the U.S. develop anorexia nervosa and up to 10% of those may die as a result.

The best thing you can do if you feel your health is at risk by being overweight is to talk to your parents and they can help you talk to your physician. Our bodies need essential things in order to remain healthy. Depriving ourselves of nutritional foods is not going to help us become strong healthy ladies. If you believe you are overweight and struggle with high calorie temptations there are things you can do to help.

1. Talk to your parents about your temptations.
2. If you’re an adult find an accountability partner, who does not struggle in this area, to support you.
3. Read God’s Word and study the topic of gluttony and temperance.
4. Pray for God to help you have the victory.
5. Exercise! Just get up and go outside for a 30 minute walk every day until you can increase your stamina to do more.
6. Refuse to buy high calorie goodies.
7. Avoid soda pop.
8. Drink plenty of water.
9. Eat fresh veggies. In the cooking process of veggies you can lose valuable vitamins you need in order to lose those extra calories you body is holding onto.
10. Eat whole grain breads and grains. White grains have been processed and the nutrition has been removed.

These are just ten tips that I have used in the past and I was able to lose the extra pounds and gain the strength I needed in order to increase my physical stamina to burn more calories. If you think you need serious intervention talk to your parents and your family physician.

Sisterlisa is the owner and Editor-in-Chief of Growing in Grace Magazine and owner of AGMinistries, a devotion blog for women. She is married and homeschools her four children while remaining active in community service and leads the deaf ministry at her church.