“My Stomach Hurts” And Why it is Unpleasantly Normal during Eating Disorder Recovery

Stomachaches: we all get them. Nobody likes them. And for those in eating disorder recovery, it can be a daily struggle and sometimes feel like a barrier to eating what we need to. When a person makes the decision to pursue eating disorder recovery, often times it’s hard to know if they are made aware of the physical (and psychological) rollercoaster they are about to embark on; a rollercoaster that has an incredible destination, but often one that stops short when clinicians don’t normalize the ride. Gastrointestinal (GI) distress is a significant (and temporary) part of that ride. 

GI distress is a significant (and temporary) part eating disorder recovery.

Think of your GI tract as going dormant from restriction, or dysregulated from purging or laxative abuse. It’s either underactive or haywire. Then think of your GI tract waking up, begrudgingly, the way we might if we’re not used to a certain alarm. The GI tract is an extremely complex system, and every part of it is impacted during an eating disorder. So it makes sense with the reintroduction of consistent nutrition, your body might not know what to do with it at first. Eating disorders have often slowed our gastric emptying time (gastroparesis) making it painful to eat and digest a more normalized volume of food. Bloating, nausea, cramping, gas, diarrhea, and constipation are all normal GI outcomes during the initial phases of re-nourishment (often known as refeeding). 

It seems extremely counterintuitive (cue the bewildered expression) that the sure-fire way to resolve GI complications is to keep eating! But it’s true - the longer we delay renourishment (including weight restoration, when applicable) the longer it will take GI symptoms to resolve.

Conversely, the quicker we are able to reach renourishment (per your individual treatment plan) the quicker GI symptoms will resolve. Ongoing GI symptoms past the point of renourishment and weight restoration call for additional investigation by your doctor. There are over the counter remedies to help with alleviation of GI symptoms (again, outside of renourishment). Our favorites are ginger chews, antacids, heat packs, and digestive bitters. Pre and probiotics may also help to facilitate gut healing - see our previous blog post for a podcast recommendation with our favorite go-to gut health specialist! There are also medications for GI motility that your Physician may be able to prescribe. 

Renourishing tips

Try to increase more “bang for your buck”! Think more nourishment in lower volumes (high energy smoothies or shakes, adding fats and oils to food prep, using dips and spreads where you can) instead of trying to fill with fruits and vegetables that don’t provide the energy we’re looking for and take up a lot of fragile GI space.

But most importantly, give yourself lots of compassion for this extremely difficult work and know that this isn’t forever, the ride will eventually smoothen out.