Archive for November, 2010

Question : How to help a roommate with an eating disorder?
I am writing in hopes that your answer to this question will help other readers. A few years ago, when I was in college, I discovered that my college roommate was bulimic. My boyfriend and I found evidence in the mornings that she had been vomiting on a daily basis; she also developed weird eating habits (at 6 A.M., she would wake up and buy two pints of ice cream and eat it all, and then not eat for the rest of the day). We didn’t know how to address the problem, and were afraid of hurting her. When we called the Health Service, they took the “my best friend is bulimic” line to suggest that I was bulimic instead! I didn’t want to become the food “hall monitor” — are you eating? What did you eat today? etc. — but we tried to include her in healthy meals.

Eventually, some other stress factors in her life calmed down and her binge/purge behavior seemed to subside. However, I’ve always regretted that I couldn’t attack this situation head-on. Do you have any advice for people that might be in a similar situation?
eating disorder help line

Best answer:

Answer by slagathor238
If you care about someone, never be afraid to tell them how you feel about their problem. Offer them help in whatever way you can. This is assuming of course, that they want your help. If they don’t, the most giving thing that you can do is to simply let them know that you’re there for them when they need you.