Online Bulimia Test

Thank you for taking our online bulimia test! We've added some additional information below about bulimia that you may find useful.

What is Bulimia Nervosa?

Sufferers of bulimia nervosa engage in a cycle of binge eating (or consuming extreme amounts of food in a short period of time) and then follow that binge with a behavior to avoid weight gain. Bulimia nervosa is a serious and life-threatening eating disorder.

According to Dr. Wendy Oliver-Pyatt, a psychiatrist that treats bulimia:

Bulimia is a complex condition with a combination of biological, psychological, and social roots. Sufferers’ preoccupation with controlling calories to lose or maintain weight leads to a loss of enjoyment of food and an inability to pick up the body’s cues of both hunger and fullness. Rigid food rules and regulations overtake and obliterate an awareness of the need to nourish the body.

Bulimia Symptoms

Symptoms of bulimia nervosa may include:

• Living in a state of fear for gaining weight
• Being obsessed with with your body shape and/or weight
• A pattern of eating abnormally large amounts of food in a single sitting
• Feeling a loss of control during periods of bingeing
• Forcing yourself to purge (vomit) or exercising too much to lose calories
• Using diuretics, laxatives, or enemas to lose weight
• Fasting to lose weight or heavily restricting calorie intake
• Using dietary supplements excessively for the purpose of losing weight

DSM-5 Diagnostic Criteria for Bulimia

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), or DSM-5, outlines that bulimia can be diagnosed when the following criteria are met:

• Recurrent episodes of binge eating. An episode of binge eating is characterized by both of the following:
  • Eating, in a discrete period of time (e.g., within a two hour period), an amount of food that is definitely larger than what most people would eat during a similar period of time and under similar circumstances.
  • Lack of control over eating during the episode (e.g., a feeling that you cannot stop eating, or control what or how much you are eating).
• Recurrent inappropriate compensatory behavior to prevent weight gain, such as self-induced vomiting, misuse of laxatives, diuretics, or other medications, fasting, or excessive exercise.
• The binge eating and inappropriate compensatory behaviors both occur, on average, at least once a week for three months.
• Self-evaluation is unduly influenced by body shape and weight.
• Binging or purging does not occur exclusively during episodes of behavior that would be common in those with anorexia nervosa.

You should speak to a licensed mental health professional to get a clinical diagnosis.

Bulimia Treatment Options

Treating bulimia may require multiple types of treatment combined into your plan, and there are multiple levels of care. According to Dr. Amy Boyers, a Psychologist in Miami, Florida that treats Bulimia:

Treatment can take the form of residential treatment, partial hospitalization, intensive outpatient, or a less intensive treatment avenue. Regardless of the type, the goal of bulimia nervosa treatment is to break the binge-purge pattern and restore a healthy relationship to food and your body.

Treatment options include:

Psychotherapy

Psychotherapy is often the most common component of treating bulimia. Psychotherapy can take on many forms based on an individual's needs. Some of these forms of psychotherapy include:

• Family therapy
• Individual talk therapy
• Cognitive behavioral therapy
• Nutrition counseling
• Family-based therapy
• Dialectical Behavior Therapy
• Psychotropic medication

Medications

Bulimia is often connected to other mental health conditions like depression and anxiety. Because of this connection, medications like antidepressants are often prescribed alongside psychotherapy.  Medications are not meant to be "Band-Aids" for bulimia, instead, they can offer additional support that will help a sufferer to cope with their difficult situation.

Bulimia Treatment

Bulimia disorders can be devastating for sufferers. If you find yourself suffering from symptoms of bulimia, there is hope! Reach out to one of a licensed mental health professional that treats bulimia.