Status: Up and running
Skin and Bones
Three
I was shocked at his question, anorexia? Only skinny people had that and I was nowhere near skinny.
“Judging by your weight and health I’d say a good four months. A healthy BMI or body mass index is between twenty and twenty five. Eva yours is seventeen point eight. When we don’t eat and don’t store fat to later use as energy our bodies begin breaking down muscles instead. If you carry on this way you will be at risk of a heart attack.” I didn’t believe any of it, I couldn’t believe any of it. I had convinced myself for months I was overweight and here was this stranger telling me I was the opposite and it was killing me.
“You must have someone else’s notes,” I choked out trying not to cry as Ed was with me again ‘he can’t mean you, you disgusting cow.’
“Why don’t you listen Eva?! You’re sick, stop thinking you’re fat this has gone too far!” I looked at Garrett in shock; he never burst like that towards me before.
“Sir it’s not as simple as that. Anorexia warps sufferer’s perception. She doesn’t look in the mirror and see’s what we see, she does see an overweight person.”
“But there are drugs right doc? I mean you can help her.”
“I’m afraid it isn’t as easy as that. It’s a psychological disorder and Miss McGuire would need more of a therapy approach.” I looked between the two men still in shock and unable to
speak.
“So where do we go from here?” Garrett asked speaking for me since I was still mute.
“I’m going to hand care over to our resident psychologist who specialises in eating disorders. She’s going to go through treatment options and accesses the individual situation and provide counselling, how does that sound?” Here he goes with the patronising voice again.
“I still don’t understand,” I must have sounded stupid but it was the truth, I didn’t get how I was so ill, I was fat. I could see the fat I could feel it, I didn’t need to gain weight I needed the opposite. Was this doctor qualified and why was Garrett hanging on to his every word? He should be on my side.
“I know this must be hard to take in hunny but you’re sick and your illness is stopping you from seeing you’re sick. You need help Eva come on I’m your best friend don’t you trust me?” I looked at him finding it strange he was thinking the same as me. The biggest question on my mind was who did I trust more? Garrett or Ed. Garrett and I were thrown into an uncomfortable silence; the doctor left and it felt like hours until a woman who looked to be in her mid-thirties walked in, she was slightly chubby maybe from childbirth and was a bottle golden blonde with dark roots.
“A-oh-fi?” She asked with a confused expression on her face. My name was Irish since my father was born in Ireland. Aoife is the traditional spelling of my name but since no one could pronounce it I anglicised it to Eva. Only on official documents such as my passport or drivers licence was it spelt traditionally, I guess that’s where my medical notes came from.
“It’s pronounced like Eva, you can spell it E.V.A if you’d like,” I said for the thousandth time in my life.
“Very good, I’m Karen I specialise in eating disorders in the Phoenix area. I work alongside hospitals and local clinics as a counsellor. I run through patients healthy eating plans devising personal plans for each patient. Now you’ll be allowed to go home today on the basis you make an appointment to see me within five days and we can discuss why it’s got to this point and get you back on the right track.”
“Okay.” I didn’t have a choice, if I would have said no I wouldn’t have been allowed to go home and they would have fed me, I could have had that.
“Why are we going this way?” I asked as Garrett missed the turning to my house.
“You’re coming back with me I am not letting you get worse it’s gotten this far and that’s it. I am not going to let you fade away anymore.” I panicked internally trying to think of ways to get out of it. Garrett was going to make me eat and Ed was not happy. ‘He doesn’t understand you, don’t let him make you eat you can’t afford to gain weight pig.’
“Garrett called when you were signing forms so I fixed up Trey’s old room for you; it’s yours as long as you need it.” I smiled a thank you to Garrett’s mum I loved her; she became a mother to me. She often called me the daughter she never had and that humbled me. Her caring tendencies towards me could prove fatal to me however, she would take the doctors side of the story and try to make me eat. I could not put on one pound though; I had to get clever to beat them. They were all against me; everyone except Ed he was the only one who knew what I was going through.
I sat and watched as the Nickelsen family dug into plates of Mac n’ Cheese which was my childhood favourite. I moved food around creating holes making it look like I ate some. I held a mouthful in my throat with the intention of spitting it out into a tissue later. It worked but I knew I had to get out of the house if I were to escape the burdens of food.
“Judging by your weight and health I’d say a good four months. A healthy BMI or body mass index is between twenty and twenty five. Eva yours is seventeen point eight. When we don’t eat and don’t store fat to later use as energy our bodies begin breaking down muscles instead. If you carry on this way you will be at risk of a heart attack.” I didn’t believe any of it, I couldn’t believe any of it. I had convinced myself for months I was overweight and here was this stranger telling me I was the opposite and it was killing me.
“You must have someone else’s notes,” I choked out trying not to cry as Ed was with me again ‘he can’t mean you, you disgusting cow.’
“Why don’t you listen Eva?! You’re sick, stop thinking you’re fat this has gone too far!” I looked at Garrett in shock; he never burst like that towards me before.
“Sir it’s not as simple as that. Anorexia warps sufferer’s perception. She doesn’t look in the mirror and see’s what we see, she does see an overweight person.”
“But there are drugs right doc? I mean you can help her.”
“I’m afraid it isn’t as easy as that. It’s a psychological disorder and Miss McGuire would need more of a therapy approach.” I looked between the two men still in shock and unable to
speak.
“So where do we go from here?” Garrett asked speaking for me since I was still mute.
“I’m going to hand care over to our resident psychologist who specialises in eating disorders. She’s going to go through treatment options and accesses the individual situation and provide counselling, how does that sound?” Here he goes with the patronising voice again.
“I still don’t understand,” I must have sounded stupid but it was the truth, I didn’t get how I was so ill, I was fat. I could see the fat I could feel it, I didn’t need to gain weight I needed the opposite. Was this doctor qualified and why was Garrett hanging on to his every word? He should be on my side.
“I know this must be hard to take in hunny but you’re sick and your illness is stopping you from seeing you’re sick. You need help Eva come on I’m your best friend don’t you trust me?” I looked at him finding it strange he was thinking the same as me. The biggest question on my mind was who did I trust more? Garrett or Ed. Garrett and I were thrown into an uncomfortable silence; the doctor left and it felt like hours until a woman who looked to be in her mid-thirties walked in, she was slightly chubby maybe from childbirth and was a bottle golden blonde with dark roots.
“A-oh-fi?” She asked with a confused expression on her face. My name was Irish since my father was born in Ireland. Aoife is the traditional spelling of my name but since no one could pronounce it I anglicised it to Eva. Only on official documents such as my passport or drivers licence was it spelt traditionally, I guess that’s where my medical notes came from.
“It’s pronounced like Eva, you can spell it E.V.A if you’d like,” I said for the thousandth time in my life.
“Very good, I’m Karen I specialise in eating disorders in the Phoenix area. I work alongside hospitals and local clinics as a counsellor. I run through patients healthy eating plans devising personal plans for each patient. Now you’ll be allowed to go home today on the basis you make an appointment to see me within five days and we can discuss why it’s got to this point and get you back on the right track.”
“Okay.” I didn’t have a choice, if I would have said no I wouldn’t have been allowed to go home and they would have fed me, I could have had that.
“Why are we going this way?” I asked as Garrett missed the turning to my house.
“You’re coming back with me I am not letting you get worse it’s gotten this far and that’s it. I am not going to let you fade away anymore.” I panicked internally trying to think of ways to get out of it. Garrett was going to make me eat and Ed was not happy. ‘He doesn’t understand you, don’t let him make you eat you can’t afford to gain weight pig.’
“Garrett called when you were signing forms so I fixed up Trey’s old room for you; it’s yours as long as you need it.” I smiled a thank you to Garrett’s mum I loved her; she became a mother to me. She often called me the daughter she never had and that humbled me. Her caring tendencies towards me could prove fatal to me however, she would take the doctors side of the story and try to make me eat. I could not put on one pound though; I had to get clever to beat them. They were all against me; everyone except Ed he was the only one who knew what I was going through.
I sat and watched as the Nickelsen family dug into plates of Mac n’ Cheese which was my childhood favourite. I moved food around creating holes making it look like I ate some. I held a mouthful in my throat with the intention of spitting it out into a tissue later. It worked but I knew I had to get out of the house if I were to escape the burdens of food.