depression and bulimia

Jerry is a high school junior. He is fond of football and plays hockey during the weekends. He is an above average student, getting A's in his algebra and trigonometry class. If we would look Jerry in this perspective, we can see that there is nothing wrong with him. He is your typical next-door teenager. What people don't know is that Jerry is suffering from Anorexia.

It is a viable fact that anorexia is perceived as a women's disorder. Men are being marginalized if they suffer this sickness because the public views men with anorexia as weird or to an extent, as homosexuals. But as we look Jerry, what could have caused his anorexia? He is a healthy, outgoing guy. We don't see any room for a psychological problem, which may lead to anorexia. A study in Jerry's behavior and his environment revealed the causes for this.

Jerry lives on the suburbs. It is a quiet community wherein people live a simple life away from the busy streets of the city's corporate districts. Three years ago, a boutique selling signature clothes was built near Jerry's school. He passes this store everyday when he walks home. He always sees the model's glamorous pictures wearing haute couture. We didn't know it but inside Jerry's mind he is saying that someday, he will be the one wearing those clothes and his pictures hanging on those window still.

Since then, Jerry's manifestation of anorexia became more and more apparent. Jerry's school health record would show that he is steadily losing weight at an alarming level. Every morning, Jerry's mom would prepare breakfast for Jerry and his siblings. But Jerry will always insist that he needs to go to school early for football practice so her mother will just pack his breakfast for him together with his snack. Mom didn't know that all these years, Jerry was just throwing away all those yummy meals he would prepare for his son. In Jerry's blog he quoted that "I hate my body! My metabolism is so slow. I don't need to eat. It hurts but I find pleasure in pain"

Anorexia is striking Jerry because of his dream to become a model. Some may even conclude that that move is so gay. But Jerry is going steady with her girlfriend at that time for a year. Insecurity attacked Jerry because of the admiration those models in the window get from the public. His room will reveal his obsession of becoming a model. The walls of his room are full of pictures cut from the magazines of pictures of male models. No, he is not a homosexual, just a victim of insecurity and low self-esteem.

Anorexia was not the main problem for Jerry. It's his delusion of having the "perfect body". He may be aware that he is suffering anorexia but ignored it anyway because for him, being a model is the price for doing such.

Anorexia can strike anyone. You may not see it but your obsession for losing weight can lead to this. Anorexia is not a problem to be solved alone. Other factors contribute to the development of anorexia to an individual. Jerry wasn't going to stop mortifying his body until he was rushed into the hospital. Anorexia can kill. It can kill you. Remember that being beautiful is not equal to being thin. Also remember that you have your friends and family to support you in every decision you make. If you are suffering from anorexia just like Jerry, PLEASE consult a specialist now. Do it before it's too late. Men can suffer from anorexia too. Don't be ashamed because 10% of anorexic people are men. You are not alone in this battle. Fight that conflict inside of you. It is better to be healthy than to be dead.