Eating Disorder or Anxiety? How Do I Know What’s Causing My Child’s Issues?
If you have noticed your child or teen having some mental health or behavioral issues or concerns, you might be wondering- “Is this anxiety? Or something more serious?”. Maybe your child has dealt with anxiety throughout their life. It can be hard to decipher if these are just new anxiety symptoms, showing themselves in a different way, or if there are more serious concerns for an eating disorder that need to be evaluated by a professional.
Today in this blog, we will discuss the different ways anxiety and eating disorders can present, how to tell the difference, what you can do, and how to get your child the right help.
This blog is for you if your child or teenager has a history of social anxiety or generalized anxiety or you suspect they have anxiety, but haven’t been diagnosed. It’s also for you if your child has new eating concerns that you are noticing and are unsure of the cause.
The first question we will address today is Anxiety or Eating Disorder?
I am often faced with this question from parents in the initial assessment when a child has a long history of anxiety. Often, eating disorders and anxiety are comorbid, meaning present at the same time. Sometimes, more often than not, anxiety was present before eating concerns were. Those with anxiety and perfectionistic tendencies, tend to be predisposed to developing eating disorders, so it is common for professionals to have to skillfully evaluate the cause of these symptoms in order for proper treatment.
When eating concerns show up in someone, we evaluate body image thoughts to determine if they are related to an eating disorder. Let’s say you notice your child skipping breakfast on school days. IN order to determine Eating Disorder versus Anxiety, we have to ask them about their thoughts and motivations for this behavior. If anxiety is the cause, we will often hear that a child is nervous about going to school. There may be a big test coming up- state testing is a big trigger for anxiety in children- and this may present in physical symptoms (nausea, heart racing, fatigue, stomach pain) that make it difficult for your child to eat breakfast. Their nerves and anxiety around going to school each morning are so high, that they can’t focus on eating breakfast, or are in such physical discomfort that they avoid it all together. This in tern- not fueling properly- can lead to more anxiety and set them up for an unsuccessful day at school.
Now let’s evaluate the same situation-your child is skipping breakfast on school days- with the cause being an eating disorder.
A trained professional needs to assess their thoughts and motivations. Your child shares that they are worried about judgements from other’s at school about their body. They are avoiding eating in the morning to keep their “morning skinny” (an eating disorder term referencing the look of the body after fasting all night). Their eating disorder thoughts are so loud in the morning, that if they eat anything, they won’t be able to focus on school because the negative thoughts and guilt from eating will be so loud.
As you can see, the behaviors are the same, so it is difficult for a parent to determine their root. Evaluation from a professional licensed therapist trained in eating disorders is going to help you get the best answer. You can schedule a consultation call right now, with a licensed trained professional counselor.
The good news is, whether eating disorder or anxiety is causing the eating symptoms, the treatment is going to be the same.
The goal is going to be to make sure your child is eating enough and consistently to fuel proper growth and brain development.
Even if your child “Wasn’t a big breakfast person”, which I hear often, it is extremely important that your child is eating at least 3 meals a day with some snacks. The typical dietary recommendation, for optimal functioning, is to eat within 1 hour of waking. This sets your child up with the energy they need to get through their first class and have the ability to focus. If anxiety is the root cause of avoiding breakfast, you can help them by getting them into treatment with a therapist to process their fears and worries about school and testing, as well as develop strategies for managing their school anxiety. You can also work with the school counselor and teacher to get help and accommodations for them. This might mean developing a 504 plan, where they would have resources and help to support them with their anxiety diagnosis.
At home yourself, you can help by making breakfast easier and less stressful. This might mean, helping them to have extra time in the morning by getting up earlier or laying out everything they need the night before (clothes, homework, bookbag), so that they are not rushed in the morning and have time to sit down for breakfast. You can also help by making breakfast simpler. For example, giving them two choices for breakfast, instead of saying, “what do you want for breakfast?”. You can say, “would you like a bagel with peanut butter or granola and yogurt?”. You could also chose to prepare their breakfast the night before and have it ready for them to warm up, right in the front of the fridge. If sit down breakfast just won’t work (thought it is my #1 recommendation), you can offer grab & go snacks that they can take with them. The risk with this option is that they will not eat them and you really have no way of knowing.
If the underlying cause of skipping breakfast is eating disorder, the treatment and answer are going to be a bit more complicated. I still highly recommend getting connected with a professional counselor who has eating disorder experience and training. They can help guide you through what steps to take to help get your child back to eating enough and consistently. I would recommend the options above, of making breakfast and the morning time as least stressful as possible and by choosing their breakfast for them, plating it, and sitting down with them while they eat it. I would not give choices, because this can cause more stress for someone with an eating disorder. I would also not provide grab and go options because they will likely not eat it. I recommend talking about non-stressful topics during meals, or playing simple games to keep their mind off eating disorder thoughts that may be swirling around in their head.
For more questions on how to determine eating disorder or anxiety, please schedule a free consultation call and an assessment. I can help you and your child get the help they need for anxiety or an eating disorder.
Schedule a free consultation call.
This blog is intended to be educational and informational and does not substitute for professional medical and therapeutic help, which is highly recommended when treating an eating disorder. If you would like help treating your child’s eating issues or want to learn more, Schedule a free consultation call today.