I'm a guy, Could I possibly be anorexic?

don't want to live anymore wrote:

Everytime I look in the mirror at home, I Iook huge, there is a layer of fat over my abs but I just think I generally look big. Every time I go to the gym and see guys with their shirts off they look bigger than I am, tho by BMI standards I'm pretty big. Nobody every says Im big, but I feel bigger than everybody else even tho Im only 140, 5'10 Most of the other guys o the team seem to me more shredded and when they take their shirt off have abs. I have a scale in my room, I weigh myself about 5 times a day.

I'm not a doctor, but the answer to your question "Could I possibly be anorexic?" is yes.

Your BMI falls right in the middle of the normal range. The fact that you think being absolutely normal is big is very telling. Also, weighing yourself 5 times a day is the type of obsessiveness that might signal a body image disorder.

You didn't say why you weigh yourself, is it because you want to keep the same weight, lose it or put some on? I will say this though and apologies if it sounds a little brusque, 140 @ 5'10 is not big, not at all. You shouldn't worry, if indeed you are, about the layer of fat on your abs, don't cut anymore weight to get them to show.

You're a skinny fat, not anorexic. You have tiny runners arms, and an abnormally large amount of adipose on your stomach / back / abdomen. You probably eat a lot of sugar and have some metabolic dysfunction, possibly early onset diabetes. I would suggest going to a doctor and finding out what can be done to fix your metabolic problem.

TL;DR, but just from reading the question in the thread title, the answer is yes, but only if you're gay.

skinnyfat wrote:

You're a skinny fat, not anorexic. You have tiny runners arms, and an abnormally large amount of adipose on your stomach / back / abdomen. You probably eat a lot of sugar and have some metabolic dysfunction, possibly early onset diabetes. I would suggest going to a doctor and finding out what can be done to fix your metabolic problem.

Anorexia is a mental disorder, not a physical one. It has nothing to do with being skinny fat. Anorexics can be 600 lbs or 60 lbs.

No the Y chromosome confers resistance to anorexia

don't want to live anymore wrote:

Could I possibly be anorexic?

You almost definitely have body dysmorphic disorder, which could very well lead to anorexia. But no, you're not anorexic.

Based on what he described- having fat stomach, and skinny legs it sounds like he is a skinny fat. It doesn't not sound like anorexia.

If you are weighing yourself 5 times a day, it sounds like you have OCD about your weight. If you are also anorexic, you will also be starving yourself.

Either way, find a professional who will work with you. Being OCD about things is not fun.

Runner123456 wrote:

If you are weighing yourself 5 times a day, it sounds like you have OCD about your weight. If you are also anorexic, you will also be starving yourself.

Either way, find a professional who will work with you. Being OCD about things is not fun.

I eat a minimum of 5 times per day. I also read, stretch, turn the lights on/off, hug my spouse/kids about 6-7 times per day. Do I have OCD as well?

Yes. Despite the public perception, gender has little to nothing to do with eating disorders. The number of male eating disorders is certainly underreported due to the stigma that it's a female problem.

If you think you have a problem, you probably do. This is a form of mental illness. Get professional help, and sooner rather than later.

I'm serious.

working definition wrote:

I eat a minimum of 5 times per day. I also read, stretch, turn the lights on/off, hug my spouse/kids about 6-7 times per day. Do I have OCD as well?

Yes. Mental disorders don't have definitions.

Anorexia is an *eating* disorder. Unless you've begun to use harmful eating behaviors in an attempt to deal with your issues, you probably don't have an eating disorder.

However, you seem to have problems with anxiety (as demonstrated by your frequent weighing), and a distorted body image. Both of these are closely related to, and can lead to the development of eating disorders of various kinds. You do not want to go down that path. It is hell.

If you don't want your life to end up in hell, worse than you could imagine if it's bad now, throw away the scale. Just put it in the bin. Or put it in a skip.

Try to focus on stuff you enjoy, have a change, maybe go on a trip somewhere if you can, doesn't have to be far.

working definition wrote:

Runner123456 wrote:

If you are weighing yourself 5 times a day, it sounds like you have OCD about your weight. If you are also anorexic, you will also be starving yourself.

Either way, find a professional who will work with you. Being OCD about things is not fun.

I eat a minimum of 5 times per day. I also read, stretch, turn the lights on/off, hug my spouse/kids about 6-7 times per day. Do I have OCD as well?

Yes if you keep count and make a point of hitting those numbers.

skinnyfat wrote:

Based on what he described- having fat stomach, and skinny legs it sounds like he is a skinny fat. It doesn't not sound like anorexia.

Anorexia isn't what you think it is.

Not sure.

Now, if you asked if you could possibly be sexist (as a guy) the answer would be a certain yes.

Runner123456 wrote:

If you are weighing yourself 5 times a day, it sounds like you have OCD about your weight. If you are also anorexic, you will also be starving yourself.

Either way, find a professional who will work with you. Being OCD about things is not fun.

OP walks into a thread asking for a diagnosis and gets...OCD. The first time I wasn't so lucky and it was a working grad student who misunderstood my symptoms.

I do agree with the above poster though that you would do well to seek guidance from a mental health professional.