1. Is She Acting Normal?
Watch for signs that your teen is not eating well, or not eating at all. Does the food stay in the house longer than usual? Is there a change in her shopping habits, or in her requests for food from the supermarket? Does she still come to supper, if you usually eat together as a family? Any marked change in these basis behaviors should lead you to begin to question her closely to find out what's happening. As dangerous to the health as they are, teenage eating disorders need to be caught and treated as soon as possible.
2. Wait: How Much Do I Weigh?
This goes without saying, but pay attention to her relationship with her weight. If you notice any radical change in the number of times she weighs herself, that can be a clear indication that she's heading toward anorexia, if she isn't already there. Does she talk about her weight a lot? If so, ask her why she is so worried about it, and ask her how she sees herself: does she think she's overweight? Does she look in the mirror and see herself as fat?
3. Weight Dropping Like A Stone
Anorexics, because they don't eat, and because they sometimes augment the lack of food with an overambitious exercise plan, lose weight rapidly. You may notice an obsession with counting calories, grams of fat and so on with every meal. While this is fine in moderation, be aware if such activities cross the line and seem obsessive to you. Trust your instincts; you don't save a child by ignoring the anorexia warning signs.
4. Where Are My Laxatives?
Are you missing any diet pills, energy pills, laxatives or water pills? Have you noticed any such containers around as you've cleaned your teen's room? Anorexic teens commonly use these and other medicines to keep weight off. Any medication used without a doctor's supervision can be dangerous to the health of the user, and these are no exception. Under the strain of anorexia, teens don't have the mental capacity to correctly monitor any such medicines, and they often take too much. Severe sickness results.
5. Wait...There's More
Often, the things that anorexics do to lose weight are done in private, so it can be difficult to track their behavior with any degree of accuracy. But watch for these tell-tale signs: induced vomiting while spending long periods of time in the bathroom, absenting oneself immediately from the dinner table, scars on the knuckles, direct refusal to eat and any noticeable change in her period.
