Does my friend have bulimia?

I have a friend that just told me that she throws up the food that she eats, but only in periods. She told me she started doing it when she was 14, (that's now over 10 years ago) as she had a complicated upbringing and wanted to let her feelings out somehow. She has also had a complicated relationship with her weight her whole life. Now she only throws up the food she eats when she is in stressfull situations or when she feels over weight. The problem is that she doesn't think she has bulimia. She says that if she had bulimia, she would throw up every day, over a very long period of time. She defends herself by saying that she can go months without throwing up at all. Still, she goes into very heavy bulimic peroids - it can be a week or a month where she keeps alot to herself and told me she throws up up to several times a day. Does my friend have bulimia? Should she get help or is it not nessecary as it only is going in periods?

girls who have bulimia never admit that they have bulimia...but i think that she needs to go to a doctor...in my opionion she has either bulimia or anorexia but i guess bulimia...it can be dangerous....the body gets dehydrated or malnutritioned and things go wrong...

Yes, your friend is bulimic and she needs help. She still has the symptoms, and actions and it will affect her health, in the long run.

Of course she has bulimia and yes, she needs help. Women die from eating disorders EVERYDAY.

What are the signs and symptoms of bulimia?

People who have bulimia are very secretive about their bingeing and purging, so others may not notice the signs and symptoms of the eating disorder. Some symptoms of bulimia are so subtle that only a medical professional would notice them. Surprisingly, being underweight is not a characteristic sign of bulimia, even though people with bulimia are afraid of being too fat. Individuals with bulimia often are of normal weight or overweight because they eat a lot.
The warning signs and symptoms of bulimia include:

Secrecy surrounding eating and the time period after eating, to allow for bingeing and then purging. Frequent trips to the bathroom after meals, signs and/or smells of vomiting, evidence of laxatives or diuretics. Going to the kitchen after everyone else has gone to bed to binge. Going for unexpected walks or drives at night. Excessive desire for privacy in the bedroom or bathroom.
Odd eating behaviors, such as avoidance of eating with others; unpredictable and sudden dietary likes and dislikes; skipping of meals; taking very small portions when eating with others; consuming a lot of water or diet soda (to make vomiting easier); cutting food into very small bites; chewing food excessively; separating different types of food on the plate; strange pairings of foods.
Eating unusually large amounts of food, with no apparent change in weight. The disappearance of large amounts of food, or numerous empty wrappers or containers in the garbage.
Excessive, rigid exercise regimen 鈥?However, it is difficult to distinguish a serious athlete from an athlete with bulimia. Both may train excessively and not eat enough to compensate for the caloric usage
Complex lifestyle schedules or rituals to make time for binge-and-purge sessions. Typical behaviors are using mints or gum to cover up the smell of vomit, running water in the bathroom to conceal the sound of vomiting, or always going to the bathroom after meals.
Poor body image; preoccupation with body weight, weight loss, dieting, and control of food 鈥?Wearing of baggy clothes to hide the body. A distorted body perception. Avoidance of looking in mirrors.
Discolored or callused finger joints or backs of the hands 鈥?Jamming the fingers down the throat to induce vomiting may damage the outer surfaces of the hands.
Tooth and mouth problems, such as discolored and decalcified teeth, and sensitive, swollen, and bleeding cheeks and gums. These are caused by vitamin deficiencies and by the stomach acid that comes up with vomit.
Stomach pain and intestinal irregularities, such as constipation and diarrhea.
Irregular or nonexistent menstrual periods (in females).

yes she does

This could be classified as "ed-nos" since it meets some criteria for bulimia but not all, yet is an eating disorder nonethless.

Bottom line--the label does not matter, she needs help. See the website below for more info and you might want to show it to her also: