Does Trauma Affect Your Eating Patterns?

[Cool Cat]

This is a very odd question and my traumas may well not be the reason behind this.

But I find I just never get hungry, and when I feel a hunger ache it never occurs to me that it is a hunger pain.

I don't get what it is, I do have an appetite. When I sit down I can eat just like anyone else and can have pretty big meals. But sometimes I'll literally be going about my daily business and then realise "Oh Sh*t! I haven't eaten in 12 hours!" or "I haven't had anything today other than a biscuit and a cup of tea!". And the only thing that makes me remember are things like seeing other people eat or just feeling the effects of hunger.

I find it strange. And then I have to do things like eating really really heavy meals to compensate. I'm not overweight or trying to lose weight, I do have problems with my how I see my body but not with my 'size'.

 

[RussH]

I don't think it has to do with your trauma. I can do the same thing; get busy with my day, and then realize I have never taken time to eat.

 

[J.L. Pitts]

I do not know if it s linked to your trauma I started that behavior and it turned into bulimia for me. I would get a journal and write down when you eat and what time it is. And maybe ask your therapist if there might be a correlation issue.

 

[moonbeam]

I know people without PTSD who do this.

The question really is are you busy in the interim? If you're busy and forget about food that's normal, out of sight out of mind you have other distractions.

I wouldn't worry too much unless you find yourself thinking about food and actively trying to go long periods of time without eating. Or you think about food but are upset or have a negative emotional response to the thought of eating.

On the flip side, loss of apetite is a somewhat common symptom of depression. So that may or may not be a factor.

 

[ekane]

I do have something similar and it's trauma-related for me. I'm sure there are several factors, several truamas small and large that created the behavior for me and actively trying to get it undercontrol. It only became a problem in the last few years as my stress levels reached crisis-level and my PTSD got worse. For me it likely goes back deep into childhood - being terrified of my mother who typically was in the kitchen in the mornings. I would ALWAYS try to eat ALONE if at all possible. I wasn't always aware as a child that's what I did, but indeed that's what I did. I could write 10 more examples of trauma in my life that have compounded the issue but it's not necessary -- my gist is that I have trauma issues and triggers touching on all of these things:

Food, kitchens, morning time and therefore breakfast, eating when anyone else is in the house or nearby, eating in a way that makes any noise that could disturb anyone, digestion (I have crohn's due to growing up under abuse, a common theme among many folks with autoimmune and/or digestive illness), eating outside of the safety and privacy of my own bedroom, dieting/weightloss... etc.

Run it by a good therapist and they will be able to figure it out for you almost instantly if you really can't pinpoint it. PTSD can affect almost anything* and can stem from almost anything. Sometimes is just hard to recall what the source was.

 

[Nam]

I am just like this. For me, it's not really trauma related but more of an avoidance issue. I can avoid most pains to a certain degree. I'm always telling myself that this isn't so bad, whatever it is. This is a coping mechanism for me and is not really a healthy way to live.

As a side note: I think all humans should be hungry before eating. About a half hour of hunger is good. Makes food taste better and I don't eat needlessly when I don't need to.

 

[MomOfTwo]

It is part of PTSD for me because I was never allowed to eat without permission. I had to accomplish certain tasks before I was allowed to eat. I was not allowed to open a fridge or even get a glass of water. My father one time was angry that one of his children drank some milk so he got everyone of us out of bed and hit each of us with a leather belt until someone admitted to drinking the milk. I was never allowed to eat when I was hungry. Most days other than school days I was just fed once a day. I learned just not to be hungry. I can go all day and not eat. Every time I open a fridge I feel anxiety. I feel I do not deserve to eat unless I accomplish a lot of things and I have great anxiety just around food. Every bite brings anxiety. Food is a trigger I guess. Fridges are triggers too for me. I am working with my therapist on this issue.