Eating Disorders: Recognizing the Signs & When to Seek Help from Eating Disorder Therapists in Calgary
A Gentle Introduction from Eating Disorder Therapists in Calgary
Eating disorders are not about food alone. They are about the complex relationship between mind, body, emotions, and self-worth. There can be a genetic as well as environmental and trauma component, which makes them have complicated roots. While eating disorders often begin with seemingly small changes in eating habits or body image that may seem natural or even healthy, they can quietly grow into serious mental health conditions that affect every part of life. Our eating disorder therapists in Calgary are here to help you explore what eating disorders are and how to move forward with change.
Recognizing the early signs in yourself or someone you love can make a world of difference. Recovery is possible, and reaching out for help is a brave and life-changing step.
What Is an Eating Disorder According to Eating Disorder Therapists in Calgary
An eating disorder is a mental health condition that involves persistent, distressing thoughts and behaviors related to food, body weight, or body shape. These patterns are not a “phase” or a lack of willpower — they are symptoms of deeper emotional and psychological struggles.
Common types include:
Anorexia nervosa: Restricting food intake or exercising excessively to maintain a sense of control or achieve an unrealistic body image.
Bulimia nervosa: Periods of binge eating followed by behaviors like purging, fasting, or overexercising to “undo” calories.
Binge Eating Disorder (BED): Repeated episodes of eating large amounts of food quickly, often in secret, and feeling guilt or shame afterward. It is one of the most commonly diagnosed eating disorders, though many don’t realize that it is even a condition and that they are not alone in their struggles.
Other Specified Feeding and Eating Disorders (OSFED): Serious eating concerns that don’t fit neatly into one category but still cause significant distress or harm. This diagnosis is often used when people don’t meet the full diagnostic criteria for the other eating disorders listed or have disturbances in food that are different from these, like a night eating disorder.
While the symptoms of each of these disorders is different, the common theme is that the disturbance in life and health is significant. People cannot just ‘stop’ or will themselves to change. Treatment, supervision, eating plans, therapy, and great care is often required from the individual, their supports, and a treatment team to help them shift behaviours and emotions to find more freedom in life.
Recognizing the Signs From Eating Disorder Therapists in Calgary + Free Self-Check Quiz
Eating disorders often develop gradually. Some signs may seem small at first but, over time, they can signal that something deeper is happening. Our eating disorder therapists in Calgary provide more information of signs to look out for in yourself and/or loved ones that may indicate there is an increase in more extreme and unhealthy behaviour.
Behavioural Signs
Obsessive thoughts about food, calories, or “good” and “bad” foods
Avoiding meals or social situations involving food
Frequent dieting or rigid food rules
Excessive exercise, even when sick or injured
Disappearing after meals (possible sign of purging)
Doing lots of meal and food preparation with less consumption
Weighing self on a scale daily or multiple times per day
Becoming very focused on tracking calories and nutritional information
Regular mirror checking, pinching, and scrutiny on body or certain parts
Changes in clothes and style often to try and hide body changes
Emotional Signs
Intense fear of weight gain or loss of control
Feeling “good” or “bad” based on what was eaten that day
Withdrawal from friends, family, and activities
Increased irritability, anxiety, or depression
Perfectionism or extreme self-criticism
Excessive worry about body and weight
Extreme discomfort not knowing the nutritional information in food
Discomfort with certain foods or ingredients (e.g., oils, junk food)
Anger or lashing out, particularly if challenged about behaviour
Emotional volatility-more extreme ups and downs
Physical Signs
Noticeable weight changes (though not always as eating disorders can occur at any size)
Fatigue, dizziness, or difficulty concentrating
Hair thinning or loss
Irregular hair growth on the arms and body with significant weight loss
Changes in physical pallour (looking pale, gaunt, malnourished)
Digestive issues (constipation, diarrhea, stomach and abdominal pain)
Injuries from excessive exercise
Teeth, gum, and/or throat issues from vomiting
Irregular menstrual cycles or hormonal changes
Vitamin and nutrient deficiencies
Irregular bloodwork results
Low energy
If you recognize several of these signs, it may be time to pause and check in with yourself or gently express concern if you notice them in someone you care about.
If you are curious about whether your relationship with food has become problematic, we would invite you to take this FREE Self-Check quiz to see where you are at.
While this quiz is not diagnostic nor meant to be a replacement for a formal assessment, it can help point you in a more accurate direction and give you a general sense if there is exhibition of some key warning signs of disordered eating behaviours.
When to Seek Help According to Eating Disorder Therapists in Calgary
There is never a right (or wrong) time to ask for help. You don’t have to reach a crisis point or fit a stereotype of what an eating disorder “should look like” to deserve care. If you have reached a point where you feel like something is off and you would like to see change but are struggling to get there, meeting with an eating disorder therapist in Calgary or your local area might be helpful.
Our eating disorder therapists would recommend that you consider seeking professional help if you:
Feel trapped and consumed by thoughts about food or body image
Experience guilt, anxiety, or shame around eating and/or body image (whether connected to behaviours to try and address this or not)
Have physical symptoms related to eating or weight changes that are not explained by other medical issues
Are avoiding or changing your relationship with social or family gatherings, work, school, or other key aspects of your life because of food and/or concerns about appearance and body
You are using eating or exercise to manage your emotions and stress
Are finding it difficult to relax and unwind
Have become concerned that your relationship with food and/or body is not serving you
Have been told by others that they are concerned and are encouraging you to take action
Have noticed a significant change in your quality of life over the past months or years and would like to improve it
Are tired of living the way that you have
Feel overwhelmed trying to figure things out on your own
Support can come from many places, including: A therapist, a registered dietitian, a nutritionist, a physician, and/or a support group are all options for care. The earlier help is sought, the greater the chance for full recovery as it does become more difficult as time progresses. This is because the eating disorder advances and routines become more entrenched. This does not mean, however, that if you have been struggling for years that your situation is beyond hope. There is always hope and change is always possible, remind our eating disorder therapists in Calgary. It just means that, with progression, you may need more regular and intense support over a longer period of time to achieve the changes you are looking for.
How to Start the Conversation: Advice From Eating Disorder Therapists in Calgary
Starting a conversation about eating disorders with a loved one can feel scary. You have maybe already tried to open up dialogue and it has been shut down with defensiveness, minimization, denial or avoidance. While this can make it scary to bring it up again, if you are truly concerned then it would be important to acknowledge to your loved one that this is serious and you are worried.
To help open up dialogue for the first time or a follow-up time, our eating disorder therapists in Calgary suggest that you try saying something like:
“I’ve noticed you seem really stressed about food lately and I care about you. How have you been feeling?”
“I know we talked about food and weight before and I wanted to check back in. How are you doing?”
“There have been some changes in behaviour that are noticeable. I was hoping we could talk more about that.”
“Can we talk? I’ve noticed some shifts in things recently and I’m concerned. What have you noticed for yourself?”
For parents who are worried about their kids or youth, there can be added pressure, panic, and fear. Parents struggle to determine what their responsibility is and often default into control, hoping this will make it better. Eating disorder recovery needs to be collaborative and a family solution, not dictated by the parents to their child who is struggling. While we know it is difficult, approaching your child with openness, non-judgment, and curiosity can welcome more dialogue and openness to change than coming at them with solutions, judgment, and your own emotions.
If your loved one is not quite ready to engage in treatment, it is difficult to force this to happen. Instead, a powerful tool can be engaging in your own support and exploring your own mental health recovery. While you might not have an eating disorder, we all have our own thoughts, feelings and challenges. Modelling openness to self development and doing things differently can demonstrate to your loved one that this is possible and an option for them too.
A key area that can be helpful for loved ones is to explore their relationship with boundaries. Our eating disorder therapists in Calgary suggest this blog post on Healthy Boundaries with some resources and tips on how to get started.
Here are a few additional resources specifically for family and loved ones who are looking to support someone with an eating disorder:
If you are struggling and are getting to the point where you would like to open up, you may want to consider telling a trusted friend, family member, physician, coworker, therapist, or trusted other, “I’m struggling with how I feel about eating and my body. I think I need support.”
You don’t have to have the perfect words. You just have to begin. It is also important to remember that the person you disclose to doesn’t need to have all of the answers. Just sharing about what is going on is an immense first step and can gently lead to other steps of action.
Typically when people start on their journey of recovery, they have already been trying some self-guided tools and strategies. You might have already been reading more about eating disorders, watching videos, and/or listening to anecdotal stories of others who have navigated this.
Having some familiarity with the tools of change is not the same as applying them regularly and with accountability. Our eating disorder therapists in Calgary remind you to be open to the suggestions provided by supportive others and to remember that trying something once, encountering discomfort, and then not trying it again is not what the process of change is all about.
In therapy you may be encouraged to explore perfectionism, trauma, communication, family boundaries, emotional regulation (potentially using Dialectical Behavioural Therapy or other modalities) and more.
The process will bring up some feelings and discomfort. For some tools on calming your nervous system and navigating through discomfort more comfortably, our eating disorder therapists in Calgary would invite you to check out this resource with practical tips and strategies for managing emotions.
Change will involve learning how to encounter and navigate through discomfort while building gradual change to what you are doing (and not doing). It will not happen overnight and be a slow evolution with lots of experimentation along the way. What works for some may not work as well for you, but it’s always helpful having these tools stored on the shelf rather than chucked into the garbage bin.
Hope & Healing Support From Eating Disorder Therapists in Calgary
Recovery isn’t about achieving a perfect relationship with food or yourself. Perfectionism is likely part of the problem of the eating disorder; therefore, recovery is about freedom and learning to be comfortable in the imperfect. It’s also about finding peace, flexibility, and self-compassion. With the right help, healing is possible.
If you would like to learn more about perfectionism or are wondering if you have perfectionist tendencies, our eating disorder therapists in Calgary would invite you to check out this blog which contains the “Am I A Perfectionist?” free self-check quiz.
If you or someone you love is struggling with disordered eating, know that you are not alone.
📞 If you’re in Canada, you can contact the National Eating Disorder Information Centre (NEDIC) for support and resources
More information on eating disorders can be found through CAMH as well
This blog on What To Look For In An Eating Disorder Therapist may be helpful
If you are located in Calgary or Alberta and are interested in support from Sana Psychological, we have a team ready to support you and your loved ones with your mental health and recovery. We support individuals, couples, families and loved ones who are ready for change. You deserve quality care because you are amazing and healing is always possible.
