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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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Suggest Treatment For Bulimia And Sodium Phobia

Hi, I m a 19 year old female and I am struggling with bulimia. Let me start from the beginning: I was always thin, I was never overweight. But I got self-conscious because I was eating more than those girls that ate salads for dinner--and I didn t ever get fat or anything. But I got it into my head that my face was swollen and my cousin told me it s because of too much salt because salt retains water. After that, it was down hill from there. I first started out eating my meals and then vomiting it all out; then my stomach shrank so I barely ate anything at all, to the point where I was pretty frail. I hated that part the most. I m getting a little better; I eat more now and I have gained some weight. My only problem is that I am VERY afraid of sodium because I don t want my face to appear swollen --I like how my face looks when I eat little or no salt (I eat unsalted macaroni, mini wheats cereal with no sodium, etc... food that has very little salt or none at all). If I eat something salty, I still always throw it up. That s my problem. It s been almost a year and a half now too. There is one thing that really, really worries me. I haven t had my period for this entire time. I was never one who had a regular period... it would sometimes come in 28 days, sometimes in 38 days; sometimes it would be in the middle of the month, sometimes in the beginning or end of the month. However, I m really scared that I have done something to my body. The thing I am most scared about is that I am infertile now... can that happen?? I love kids, and I would love to have some someday when I get married (I m saving myself for marriage). I cannot afford therapy as my parents are in major debt (and I m a full time college student and work part time). However, I believe I am getting better. I need some facts though... I am REALLY scared about my woman problems. I still want to be healthy and I still want to have kids someday. Please, I beg you, help me out. Is it possible for me to have kids still one day? What can I do to help myself get over this bulimia and sodium phobia? Thanks for taking the time to read this; I really appreciate it. A
Tue, 15 Mar 2016
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Psychiatrist 's  Response
Hii
I went through your problem and i understand how distressed u must be.
To start with let me make it clear to u that u cant have infertility because of these issues. And to be sure of that you can get a check up done,of ur hormonal levels.
Secondly,whatever anxiety u have can be dealt with. U need to take medicines and they may take some time to start working but i can ensure you about its longterm benefits. U can start taking combination of fluoxetine 20 mgs and olanzapine 5 mgs for your salt phobia. Take this for 2 weeks and we can review ur state and proceed further.
Also let me know if anyone in the family has had any psychiatric problems and also tell me more about your mood in detail. Also, for how long have u had this salt fear?


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Suggest Treatment For Bulimia And Sodium Phobia

Hii I went through your problem and i understand how distressed u must be. To start with let me make it clear to u that u cant have infertility because of these issues. And to be sure of that you can get a check up done,of ur hormonal levels. Secondly,whatever anxiety u have can be dealt with. U need to take medicines and they may take some time to start working but i can ensure you about its longterm benefits. U can start taking combination of fluoxetine 20 mgs and olanzapine 5 mgs for your salt phobia. Take this for 2 weeks and we can review ur state and proceed further. Also let me know if anyone in the family has had any psychiatric problems and also tell me more about your mood in detail. Also, for how long have u had this salt fear?