As with part one, what I'm offering here is suggestions. My ideas won't work for everyone but if you think they might help, give them a go. They idea is for you to build up a collection of tools that help you cope with your illness and move on from it. Find what works for you and never stop trying.
Avoiding purging
By purging, I don't just mean induced vomiting; I'm referring to all forms of purging behaviour. This is where bulimia gets dangerous. Yes, there are health problems associated with binging and overeating, but the health risks associated with bulimia generally come from purging techniques.
Find out what those dangers are.
Whether you purge by vomiting, laxatives, diet pills or excessive exercise, there are dangers. Work out a list of what you do to try and lose weight after or between binges, then look up the dangers of those online. There are websites with some gruesome pictures of the dangers of repeated vomiting or laxative abuse. There are photos of the bodies of dead bulimia victims. It's horrible and it's gross, but looking at those pictures are a good way to scare you into wanting to avoid dangerous techniques.
Once you've worked out your list of techniques and the dangers, list the techniques you use in order of how significant the health risk is. For example, induced vomiting is more dangerous than excessive exercise, taking large quantities of laxatives is more dangerous than taking the recommended dose of diet pills, and so on.
It would take incredible will power just to stop purging completely all at once. It's easier to try and cut down slowly. You now know which behaviours are the most likely to do permanent damage or even kill you, so cut down on those. If you perform purging behaviours that have very little associated risk, keep going with those while you try and tackle the more dangerous ones.
As you reduce the number of binges, it naturally becomes easier to reduce the purging.
If you still feel the need to purge, try and remember those horrible pictures and they might remind you why you don't want to be doing this.
Now I'll try and give you ideas for avoiding specific types of purging. Don't just follow this list. Everyone's behaviour is slightly different, so you may find your own tricks that work better for you.
Try and spend time with other people. A lot of purging activities are time consuming and you will be able to do less if you're with friends. This will also help reduce binging. Because bulimic behaviour is very private, it's unlikely that you'll want to perform any in front of friends. This may also help reduce depression and increase self-esteem if you're spending time with people you like and who like you. Have fun and just try to spend time not thinking about your body.
Spend more time in public places, even if you're on your own. Instead of staying in your house, start hanging around in places where the only toilets are public ones with several cubicles. You won't want to throw up when anyone could walk in and hear you and start asking if you're alright.
It's about reducing the opportunity. It's a lot easier to resist the temptation to purge if you have less chance.
If you purge by excessive exercise, schedule trips to the gym but make sure they're before something else you need to do. That way, you can go to the gym, do a healthy amount of exercise but then you'll be forced to stop. If you know you have only an hour to exercise before you need to go and meet someone or attend a lecture or perform some task, then you won't be able to do more than an hour.
Exercising for small periods of time is a good idea. It will help reduce feelings of guilt from eating and any binges which might still be happening. It will keep your body healthy but, by keeping the exercise sessions short, you won't be putting too much strain on your body.
Set a limit on the amount of exercise you will do a day; an hour would be a reasonable amount. If friends or family know about your illness and that you're trying to recover, tell them about this limit. That way, they will see if you go over it. They will be able to persuade you to stop and it will be easier for you to keep to the self-imposed limits if other people can see you doing so.
Throw out any diet pills or laxatives that you have. You can't use them if you don't have them. If there is a shop you go to that sells them, try and only go to that shop with other people, because then it will be easier to resist the temptation. If you do give in to the temptation to buy more, throw them out again. It may be a waste of money, but it's better than damaging your body.
Now for the hardest idea of all, try to convince yourself you don't need to purge. Even if you eat a large meal or have a bad day and binge, tell yourself that you don't need to get rid of it. This will not be easy and it will not happen all at once. If you can delay the purging, that's a good start.
Try and work out the emotional reasons behind your binging and purging. I won't advise you how to tackle these issues; you'd be better off talking to friends or a qualified therapist. There will be emotional issues involved in your behaviour. If you can find a way to tackle those, the rest will become easier.
And just keep trying. There will be bad days. There will be worse days. But there will be good days too. Just keep hoping and fighting until the good days come more often than the bad.
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