Have you heard someone described as “looking EDNOS”? We often hear people described as “looking anorexic”, but that doesn’t really make sense: someone can look underweight, yes, but a person can’t “look anorexic” in the same way that someone can’t “look bipolar” or “look schizophrenic”. By using the title of a psychological disorder to describe someone’s appearance, people learn to associate eating disorders with a single symptom.
That’s what weight is in relation to eating disorders: a symptom. The diagnostic criteria for illnesses like anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa are incredibly specific, to the point where many people diagnosed with eating disorders don’t fit neatly into one classification. In fact, a 2008 study at Brown University found that in a sample of 164 people with eating disorders over 90% were diagnosed with something called Eating Disorder Not Otherwise Specified, or EDNOS.
Eating disorder nurse practitioner Micki Bennett says:
“EDNOS covers people who perhaps have a mixture of bulimia and anorexia, or who perhaps manage their weight in a very strict way – it might be just above the BMI cut-off point but their thinking and behaviour is anorexic in all but weight. They might not starve for particularly long periods and only do small binges but do it regularly.”
“If you’ve got a poor relationship with food, weight, shape and the way you feel about yourself, that’ll do for a diagnosis really. The label isn’t particularly useful. It’s about what’s going on underneath and how you deal with that.”
Unfortunately, being diagnosed with EDNOS is a label that can be quite damaging to eating disorder patients. Cessi, 18, said:
“Even though I was underweight, I never managed to lose enough weight to be counted as an anorexic. So the hard part was to start recovery knowing that “I only had EDNOS”. I felt like I had failed somehow, and didn’t feel like I was worth all the help I got. I didn’t see the point in recovering, since I clearly couldn’t lose enough weight.”
Bennett says: “One of the characteristics of eating disorders is low self worth, so people are bound to feel that they don’t deserve to be treated and that others are worse off than them.”
It’s crucial to remember that eating disorders are a psychological problem, not a physical one. A person can be of any shape or size and still be struggling. If you’re concerned for someone, don’t be afraid to talk to them about it or direct them towards help – it will validate their feelings and they will appreciate your support.
Had you heard of EDNOS before reading this post? What are your feelings on the diagnosis of eating disorders?
EDucation: Explaining Eating Disorders 
You make such a good point!! I think so many people think wrongly about easting disorders and I think they need to be addressed properly!
[…] Recovery from eating disorders is possible. The sooner treatment begins, the sooner people can recover. This is why a greater awareness of eating disorders is vital and why there must be more education regarding eating disorder misconceptions, such as those suggesting eating disorders don’t affect men or are only an issue when someone is emaciated. […]
I never got down past the low end of normal weight (and I do feel like a failure and like I didn’t really need help because of it sometimes) but looking at it logically I was a very sick young lady all the same. I did the “I want to lose more weight so I can properly recover” thing I see a lot in people who are trying to recover. The thought still crosses my mind sometimes!