{"id":428,"date":"2024-04-04T23:08:54","date_gmt":"2024-04-04T23:08:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/embodybc.com\/?post_type=infosheet&p=428"},"modified":"2024-05-29T00:47:33","modified_gmt":"2024-05-29T00:47:33","slug":"the-overlap-between-anxiety-and-eating-disorders","status":"publish","type":"infosheet","link":"https:\/\/embodybc.com\/infosheet\/the-overlap-between-anxiety-and-eating-disorders\/","title":{"rendered":"The overlap between anxiety and eating disorders"},"content":{"rendered":"
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What is anxiety?<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Many people who have experienced an eating disorder or disordered eating are familiar with anxiety<\/a>. It\u2019s common to feel stuck in your head when you\u2019re anxious and worried. In addition to worried thoughts, anxiety can show up as physical sensations in the body<\/a>, including faster breathing, lightheadedness, sweating, upset stomach\/nausea, and tightness in the chest. Anxiety is our body\u2019s \u2018alarm system\u2019 <\/a>to warn us of potential danger in our environment. Everyone experiences anxiety sometimes. It\u2019s important to remember that our body evolved this reaction to protect us from things that can threaten our survival. However, our world is much less dangerous than it once was. This means that a lot of the time our body and brain are making us think there is a serious threat when in reality there is none (or very little).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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When does anxiety become a problem?<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Anxiety becomes a problem<\/a> when it continues to show up when there is no real danger (e.g., when your fire alarm goes off after burning toast). When anxiety happens often and is felt so strongly that it gets in the way of doing things that matter to you (e.g., getting your homework or job tasks done, socializing, making friends), it is likely there is more anxiety present than typical levels of fear and worry.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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What <\/strong>are eating and feeding disorders<\/strong><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Eating disorders<\/a> are complex mental illnesses that also have a physical impact on the body. They include a range of thoughts and behaviours that negatively affect a person\u2019s health and quality of life. Worrying about the size and shape of one\u2019s body is one of the most common features of eating disorders. Feeding disorders are similar to eating disorders in that they affect a person\u2019s thoughts and behaviours around food and can have serious negative consequences on a person\u2019s health and quality of life. Unlike eating disorders, feeding disorder behaviours are not<\/em> related to a person\u2019s desire to change their body shape or weight. For example, someone with Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID) may experience such an intense fear of choking that they find it difficult to eat enough food to maintain health and lose weight as a result.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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How do anxiety, eating, and feeding disorders overlap?<\/strong><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n\n
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