| THE ONTARIO LAWYERS’ ASSISTANCE PROGRAM I’m Fed Up With My Life Although outwardly she hated the kidding of being called “Slim Kim”, secretly Kimberley adopted the behaviors to fulfill this image. She felt guilty about eating and so, to numb her thoughts and feelings, she began to refuse to eat in public. An overwhelming fear of gaining weight and becoming fat led her to “feel fat”, even when emaciated. Hundreds of sit-ups and miles of daily running took over her life. When she got into university and then law school, she became socially withdrawn and would not talk to her friends about her concerns around her weight and shape. In fact, she had trouble experiencing any feelings at all. After graduation and beginning a highly stressful job in a large law firm, Kim would lie about what she had eaten. Eventually, she would consume large amounts of food in a short period of time in the company of colleagues and would then use any of the following methods to purge to prevent weight gain:
Afterwards, Kim would feel disgusted with herself and guilty over these actions. Her ability to handle stressful situations was lessening. Eventually, after years of suffering from anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa, her irritability, mood swings and depression caught up to her. Kim was hospitalized where she was taught healthy eating patterns while being brought up to normal body weight. The emotional issues that triggered her behaviors were identified so that coping strategies were developed to help Kim deal with her body image, her beliefs and her day-to-day stresses. She continues aftercare support to assist her long-term recovery. If you are a Kim or know a Kim, please telephone the Ontario Lawyers' Assistance Program. OLAP can help you find the right resources. BACK TO MAIN STARZYNSKI ARTICLES PAGE CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD A PRINTABLE VERSION OF THIS ARTICLE (MS WORD)
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