DO YOU HAVE BINGE-EATING DISORDER:DISSATISFACTION WITH APPEARANCE

While many overweight people worry about appearance, binge eaters have an intense preoccupation with their bodies. They are very concerned with how overweight they are and think about it often. And as we know, self-worth and self-esteem are very much related to appearance.

Listen to the words of Mark, a 32-year-old salesman who successfully overcame his binge eating and lost 48 pounds.

When I weighed 233 pounds I felt miserable. I'm not just talking about lack of energy from carrying all that weight around. I actually felt like a different person. I have always felt self-conscious about my weight. I have always hated my body. Looking in the mirror, I would often feel disgusted with myself, ashamed of myself. I have always been aware of my weight, especially in public. It made me feel terribly insecure. This has been a real problem for me since I'm in sales. I'm sure my weight affected my work.

Now that I've stopped bingeing and lost my weight I feel like a different person. I am much more confident and sure of myself. I give a lot more credit to others than I used to. I have discovered positive qualities about myself that I never even thought about before. I realize now that my feelings about myself were too much related to my weight and not what really matters.

Unlike bulimics, people with binge-eating disorder do not have to be overly thin to feel good about themselves. They just want to be at a reasonable weight. However, concerns about weight and shape, particularly when they serve as the basis for your self-esteem, must be addressed as part of the treatment process.

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