Basic causes of bulimia can be formed in childhood: because of traumatic events, character formation and temper, complexes, low self-esteem, etc. I also admit a certain genetically conditioned food addiction and wrong eating education. This is a consistent effect of a plenty of factors; and targeted slimming is just a provocation of that being recorded earlier.

We can't also deny a current effect of fashion and advertising on slenderness standards. As a rule, bulimia progresses in adolescence or a bit later when a girl enters an adult, independent life and has no idea what to do about it. There are lots of adverse factors caused by cutting off ties with mother who used to be an invisible protection and still a fostering «umbilical cord» during prenatal development, ties that had existed before self-identification in independent life and private problems. Cutting off ties with mother is very painful for highly-sensitive and delicate girls.

Self-esteem forms at this age. Unfortunately there is no progress achieved in respect to our upbringing within Slavic mentality. In other words the notions of «love of oneself» and «high self-esteem» are substituted by notions of «selfishness» and «pride». What can be obtained from the family as «a social unit» but not ‘a union of love' where self-confidence and personality would by developed? Everybody has to bring up and love herself whether her can or not. A girl gets to the vicious circle of bulimia having become alone with herself and her attempt to conform to fabulous ideal standards not being aware of her real advantages and lacking adequate self-esteem.

Constant stress caused by life disorder, unclear mission, love failures, hard decision making process, interpersonal conflicts provoke psychosomatic disorders.  A stress protective response is formed by eating up all problems i.e. «food helps to cope with stress».  Self-accusations and desperation come after enjoyment and comfort achieved with the help of food:  «I can't stop, I eat much, I'll get fat», «I'm weak, I lack willpower, and I deserve punishment». Exhausting diets followed by breakdowns serve as punishment at the initial stage. Then follows unavoidable return to food to seek consolation and search for ways of stomach and gullet cleaning: «I'm fat, I'm getting fat, loss weight was in vain — I have to clean everything out of me! It will help me to keep my figure!» This is a vicious cycle. The state of stress remains. «I have to calm down; I am going to have a tiny piece. Once having eaten a piece I won't stop, so I will go on eating!» Then goes the stage of euphoria: «Come what may!» I will clean myself all the same; there is no other way to keep my figure!"  There are the most drastic means selected for cleaning off the food — either excessive purgative doses or stomach lavage or retching provocation. And again: «I hate myself, I am weak, lazy, weak-willed and etc.» There is an endless pass around a circle. The addiction mechanism settles in such a way.

Actually bulimics are not lazy and weak-willed. Just the other way round, high standards and goal achievement orientation is inherent to them. They are people of large activity scale and are noted for increased level of brain activity being able to think and feel much more delicate than others. They possess large abilities and power, and are creative and spiritually gifted. Their requirement both to themselves and to others are high. Bulimia is not immoral, it is high purposefulness.

Sooner or later comes the time it should be re-directed. There is no way to do without professional assistance at this stage. My assistance is based on activation of one's own resources to distribute potential inner energy right to various life activity and emotional components. The objective of psychological effect is to expand the system of values, views, to break out the vicious cycle of bulimia and to identify more interesting and important life directions than only food, weight, your own measure of self-esteem based only on weight parameters and outer features of «beautifulness», «fashionability», «modernity», «slenderness», and etc.

Internet journal Bulimiastop.com