Exercise Compulsion

People picture bulimia sufferers as individuals who consume enormous quantities of food and who then induce vomiting to rid themselves of the unwanted calories. This is often an accurate description – but not always! Some elect to indulge in excessive amounts of exercise to counteract the effects of their bingeing.

In some instances over-exercising can have the desired effect of keeping weight down – bingeing twice a week and excessive exercise a day can maintain an even body weight; but reverse the behaviors and the individual will actually become overweight.

Extreme exercise regimes are dangerous and can result in various medical complications:

• Stress fractures of bones, typically in weight bearing areas such as the feet and legs, are more common in eating disorder patients who, because of their illness often suffer from osteopenia (bone loss) or osteoporosis (brittle bones).
• Bradycardia or low heart rate occurs in response to rapid weight loss, whereby the body attempts to protect itself from further weight loss by slowing the metabolism. This can be potentially fatal.
• Amenorrhea results from significant and rapid weight loss. It results in osteopenia and osteoporosis. These are dangerous losses of bone density that can result in other more serious complications.
• Endorphin levels are increased during excessive exercise, producing a sense of well being that remains - even when an individual is seriously compromising their health. Studies are being carried out to better understand the possible addictive nature of exercise.

Ask yourself the following questions:

1. Do you feel guilty if you miss your workout?
2. Do you exercise even when you are sick or injured?
3. Do you work out how much exercise to take based on how much you eat?
4. Do you fidget when sitting still because you are not burning off calories?
5. Do you restrict your food intake if you are unable to exercise?

If you answered 'yes' to one or more of the questions, you are probably exercising too much and putting your health at risk as a result.

At Sovereign Health of California, we can help! We have a wealth of experience in treating every type of eating disorder, including any underlying issues which may be contributing to the condition.

WE TREAT THE PERSON – NOT THE DISORDER!

Before we admit a patient, we request extensive information from not only the sufferer, but from family and friends, in order to obtain a complete picture of the issues involved. We seek permission to contact any previous eating disorder treatment providers in order to gather additional information. The more complete the picture, the easier it will be to design a treatment program to meet the specific needs of the individual.

Our patients stay in our comfortable, welcoming, gender specific residences, situated in the picturesque, coastal community of San Clemente, California. We offer treatment to both men and women. So, to learn more about treatment and recovery at Sovereign Health of California, why not visit the 'What We Offer' page of our website. Alternatively, call us now! We have advisors available 24/7 to answer any question you may have with regard to Sovereign Health of California and all its treatment programs. Our success rate speaks for itself!