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Anorexia and asexuality


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www.suite101.com/article.cfm/4223/51545

That's supposed to be the address, bit I can only get the cache to work(right now), so I shall copy n' paste.

The article talks about sexual orientations that correlate with anorexia and bulimia.

I'd prefer to concentrate comments around the asexual parts of the article.

It mentions that there is a large amount of disproportionate asexuality in anorexics. The statistic in this article particularly mentions men, but I swear I have seen something similar for women.

...If someone really wanted to(I do not) they could look into further information about this, as I think if we are going to be purely honest all the time, we should explore all aspects of asexuality from the very pleasant to the disturbing....

Unlike the disproportionate amount of eating disorders in gay men and straight women, I would think asexuals of any type would have disproportionately less disorders in this department, as what usually drives them-trying desperately to look attractive- is something asexuals(speaking sweepingly perhaps)do not really worry about, for obvious reasons.

Which leads me to believe that these asexuals were not originally asexual, that they are sort of what I might call 'ex-sexuals' who sort of lose their sexuality in this disorder, and I have heard sexuality can dissapear in very malnourished people

Which can bring up an interesting question...(if you are still bothering to read thus far)(also I was planning on asking something like in Q&A but I found this article to correspond, so it wound up here)

~Do people who are originally sexual for a certain period of their life, but then 'lose' their sexuality via something they can clearly connect it to, such as a mental problem, an addiction, etc- are they still asexual, would we want to consider that asexuality, especially if that 'certain thing' was something so unpleasant(i.e. anorexia)?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Which sort of also brings me to another interesting thing in this article-

The researchers in this article took itupon themselves to define asexuality--as lacking all sexual interest for the past one year at least

What do we think of that?

By 'lacking all sexual interest' do they include masturbation, do they include 'undirected sexuality' where people still have a type of 'sexuality' if you want to call it that, but they never think about either gender or anything in that manner, which is quite a large current in what we call asexuality.

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This is the article by the way.

Anorexia and Sexual Orientation

Author: Mark Stuart Ellison

Published on: October 31, 2000

A California psychotherapist recently emailed me about an anorexic client who was a lesbian. "Once she accepted that she was gay, her anorexia was no longer an issue," he wrote. The clinician then asked me whether there was any research on anorexia nervosa and sexual orientation.

The answer is yes, but the association is complex. Recent studies indicate that while male homosexuals have a greater risk of developing anorexia than their "straight" counterparts, lesbian populations show less incidence of the illness than heterosexual women.

Eating disorders specialist Barton J. Blinder cites research by Herzog indicating that male anorexic patients experience sexual isolation, sexual inactivity, and conflicted homosexuality1. Herzog hypothesized that cultural pressure exerted by the gay community on homosexual men to be thin and attractive increases their risk for eating disorders2. While gay men represent three to five percent of the total male population3, they account for 20 percent of eating disorders among men4.

According to an article appearing on Medscape, a study of 135 eating disordered men conducted by psychiatrist Daniel J. Carlat, M.D. at Anna Jacques Hospital in Newburyport, Massachusetts found that 46 percent had bulimia, and 42 percent of the bulimic men were either homosexual or bisexual5. Thirty men (22 percent) had anorexia, and of these, 58 percent were asexual, which was defined by the researchers as lacking all sexual interest for one year prior to the study6. The researchers are quoted in the article as follows: "Homosexuality can be seen as a risk factor which puts males in a subcultural system that places the same premium on appearance in men as the larger culture places on women."7.

However, the article also reports the observation of New York psychologist and eating disorders specialist Janet David, Ph.D. that the amount of research on this subject is small and should, therefore, be cautiously interpreted.

In contrast to male homosexuality, there is evidence that lesbianism may be a "protective factor" against developing an eating disorder8. Research by Siever indicates that pressure for thinness exerted by members of one's community, from greatest to least, is as follows: heterosexual females, gay males, lesbian females, and heterosexual males9. This theory, however, remains controversial10.

Nothing in this article is meant to suggest that anyone should consider changing his or her sexual orientation. Gregory M. Herek, Ph.D., of the University of California at Davis, provides an excellent overview of this subject. Herek notes that the American Psychological Association has condemned the practice of "reparative therapy" touted by religious groups and others as a method of promoting heterosexuality in homosexuals. He describes the methodological and ethical problems with studies purporting to demonstrate the success of this technique.

Current research indicates that approximately 90 percent of anorexics are female and ten percent are male 11, but there is evidence that diagnostic criteria for anorexia nervosa are gender-biased. For example, one standard requirement for making a diagnosis of anorexia in women is three months of amenorrhea (absence of a menstrual period), but there is no equivalent criterion for men12. Research indicates that amenorrhea is not an important factor in determining the severity, or even existence, of anorexia in women13.

While current diagnostic tools favor making a diagnosis of anorexia in females, research suggests that the incidence of eating disorders is increasing in both genders14. The reason for the reported rise is probably due to both a genuine increase and better detection methods15

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That's interesting. I wonder how many of those people are "true asexuals," by which I mean had been lacking sexual attraction since before they became anorexic? I wonder if they regain their sex drive after recovering? I would, too, expect that there are far less asexual anorexics because they don't feel the pressure to be attractive, though they could have developed it for reasons such as pressure from the family to fit a certain image, or stress over their orientation. Good find sacred.

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bard of aven

I think the most important things here are

the amount of research on this subject is small and should, therefore, be cautiously interpreted

and

This theory, however, remains controversial

Altho a lot of it makes sense in its own way to me at least. My entirely unscientific person experience is that lesbians in ltrs are much less concerned about it that gay men in ltrs or otherwise when age and living draw them away from the purported ideal look of our society, so it makes sense that they are the least likely to develop the disorders.

Whether the asexuality contributes to the illness or the other way around does not seem to be addressed. Perhaps, as that other Bard might have said, some are born axexual, some achieve asexuality, and some have asexuality thrust upon them?

boa

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Cate Perfect

I agree with what boa said.

I've heard that anorexics/bulimics lose their sex drive as a side effect of their eating disorder. It could also be that they find themselves to be so unattractive they don't want anyone to touch them. That's more self-hatred/low self esteem than a genuine loss of interest, though. I remember reading something written by a woman who had been bulimic and she said she avoided men/kissing/etc because they would smell the vomit on their breath (sorry for that, I know it's gross.)

I've struggled with anorexia, thank you, ballet, but I was a before then. I would be interested to know how many were a before they developed the eating disorder, as well.

Cate

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Perhaps, as that other Bard might have said, some are born axexual, some achieve asexuality, and some have asexuality thrust upon them?

I'm afraid that's utterly brilliant.

Regarding Life, the Universe, and Anorexia (And Bulimia) (and Asexuality) (and Everything), I think this is a question of attraction versus desire. If these men and women don't want to have sex for a conscious reason (as a defence mechanism - "No one will have sex with me because I'm too fat - I won't even try." - or even "No one will kiss me because of the vomit on my breath.") then they might have reported having no sexual interest for the year leading up to the date of the study.

So.. exactly what Cate said.

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bard of aven

Thanks. And in deference to Stienbeck, I am not going to go back and correct the typos.

boa

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I think I can see how they would correlate though, anorexia and asexuality.

I think that perhaps there exists a group of asexuals who may be asexuals because they are very uncomfortable with their bodies and are unwilling to engage in any activity that would open them up to exposing their bodies. Equally, anorexics tend to be people who are uncomfortable with the state of their bodies (though again, this can be a matter of feeling out of control and trying to regain control through food) and want to achieve 'perfection' in their body image. And so it would stand to reason that the two might co-exist in one person. I'm thinking in a Venn diagram kind of way there could be overlap between the two. Additionally, as nutrition suffered and if even a tinge of latent sexuality existed, I would imagine any desire would virtually disappear because the body is so fraught with the desire to survive that little else would be a focus and so as the disease itself got worse so too would the degree of asexuality.

I know we may have this image of asexuals not caring what others think of them, particularly not in a sexual way. And while it may be true that most asexuals don't care what anyone thinks of them in terms of sexuality, there are still asexuals who have been impressed with society's definition of wanting to fit in and caring what they look like and how they look to others. I think I belong to this category to some extent. I am aware that the stigma I attach to fitting in, wanting to look ok, being smart, funny, and communicative is a result of the strata of society in which I was raised. But because these ideas have been omnipresent all my life, I am unable to do little to change my opinions even though I know the reason they exist. Anyway, my point in all of this is to say that I don't think being asexual precludes one from being anorexic.

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Cate Perfect

Thank you, yam, for seeing that it's not always about how you look. I hate when someone says, 'But you're already skinny!' I KNOW that! DUH! I own a mirror, thanks! For some people it IS about thinking they are fat, but for others (myself included) it's about control.

Cate

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I was under the impression most eating disorders were more about control than body image, but perhaps thats a false assumption.

Anyway Yam and Cate made most of the comments i was going to so i wont bother repeating them.

I do wonder though what the people writing the article's veiws on sexual orientation are anyway...

Nothing in this article is meant to suggest that anyone should consider changing his or her sexual orientation

that seems a very bizzare thing to say IMO, simply because i wasnt aware people _could_ consider changing their orientation.

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  • 3 weeks later...
Princess Brat

*waves*

I have been struggling with anorexia, I'm now "cured" in the sense that I gained the weight back and eats regulary, but the feelings that I had when I didn't eat is still there.

I was defenitly asexual before I got my eating disorder, even if I'm not intrested in looking sexy or anything like that, being thin is still important to me (to bad I'm not thin anymore) :(

Before I got sick I had gained quite a lot of weight and people kept pestering me about it, telling me again and again how fat I was (doh, I know I own both a mirror and clothes that now are to small)

Finally I got fed up with that and stopped eating, I have a lot of willpower when I set my mind to something and for 2-3 months I lived on only flavoured milk. The kilos (pounds, whatever) dropped and I was exstatic, finally I ended up in the hospital where they tryed to coax me into start eating again they did a lousy job, one particular lousy nurse even told "But the boys won't like it if you are to skinny" I just rolled my eyes at her, I have no interest whatsoever what "the boys" will think of my body and even if I hadn't been asexual it's still an lousy argument..

Luckily I got to know one of the other patients on the ward that decided to "adopt" me that helped me a lot more than the staff did, she is still my bonusmom btw.

I still want to be thin and it would be even better if my boobs could just dissapear. I hate the way my body looks now with curves and such, it's just to much of it!

Midwinter you are right Eating disorders are often a lot about control as well and body image and probably a lot of other things I can't think of right now.

Wow I'm rambling here I hope I didn't put anyone to sleep :wink:

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Cate Perfect

For me it was always about a personal best kind of thing. I would be obsessed with how low I could get the scale to go. It didn't matter if I already knew I was too skinny...I knew I could get the scale just one pound lower...

Cate

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I'm 200 pounds at some height or another - and on all but the very worst days, I don't give a shit. So anorexia is not one of my myriad problems.

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For me it was always about a personal best kind of thing. I would be obsessed with how low I could get the scale to go. It didn't matter if I already knew I was too skinny...I knew I could get the scale just one pound lower...

Cate

I bet your hair weighs at least 5 pounds by itself ;)

*runs*

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Cate Perfect

:D

I've often wondered what it weighs. Just so I can subtract that from my total weight. It's substantial, because when someone walks up and picks up my braids I can feel the difference.

Cate

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Silly Green Monkey

To weigh your hair, you could either pile it on a scale placed level with the top of your head and have someone calculate it, or you could weigh yourself and have someone lift your hair so you can see the difference. Of course, you could always shave it off and weigh it that way.

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Cate Perfect

We used to have one of those postal scales at my work. I should have just plopped my braids on that. But I never got around to it and now we've got rid of the scale. Damn.

Cate

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  • 6 years later...

Being a Chinese in an Asian region, I don't buy into the self-esteem argument.

I just have a more minority perception of my body.

However, in my OWN experience, I developed borderline anorexia tendencies for a very simple reason directly linked to asexuality: After puberty, I wanted to be thin to reduce my sexual characteristics. I was disgusted by sex, and hated my physical development.

Only by returning to a more childlike body, I could achieve my purity (asexuality).

Also, the anorexia mechanism helped me feel superior, spiritually and physically.

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. . .but there are sounds

holy hell, blast from the past. :blink: i wrote that post above over six years ago.

Tyrone, just so you know, we try to encourage people not to bring up ancient threads if possible. if you want to comment on a topic that's that old, just start a new thread instead.

Indeed, from the nine months old mark onwards its a little awkward and once you have hit fifteen months it is definitely pushing too far.

I am locking this thread.

World Watch Moderator,

. . .but there are sounds

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