What do I share with the G.P if I think I have an Eating Disorder?
We know that many people can feel embarrassed about having an eating disorder or feel that their problem is not a “real” eating disorder because they are not underweight or a young woman.
In our service in Lothian, at least 10% of the people we see are men, we work with people of all ages, ethnic backgrounds, LGBT people and people within the whole weight spectrum. You can share this page directly with your GP. We also encourage people to be referred early as it is often easier to make progress if the problem has not been going on for that long.
It can be helpful to write a list before seeing your GP and include:
- Am I preoccupied with thinking about food and my body (e.g. is it always on my mind and does it affect my life every day)?
- Have I lost or gained a significant amount of weight (how much and over what time period)? Has this caused me to lose my menstrual periods or my sex drive?
- Do I binge on large amounts of food, in a way that feels out of control and that is really upsetting?
- Do I make myself sick or use laxative or diet pills or over exercise to try and control my weight?
- Have I noticed new physical problems since the eating problems started e.g. fainting, chest pains, blood in vomit, tooth decay?
- Do I only eat a very small number of foods and is this causing me to be underweight or have very poor nutritional range?
- Any other physical health problems (e.g. diabetes, IBS, osteoporosis/stress fractures, heart/kidney problems)?
- Any other mental health or addiction problems (e.g. depression, anxiety, alcohol misuse)?
- Any neurodiversity or learning difficulty issues/diagnosis (e.g. autism, ADHD)?
- Am I pregnant or having problems becoming pregnant?
BEAT is the UK’s Eating Disorder Charity, and has online resources such as information to support you talking to your GP (link in resources section below).
CAPS Advocacy, a Lothian based advocacy organisation, has also produced a helpful leaflet about seeking help (see resources).
