Yesterday I participated in an interesting webinar titled Love Me, Feed Me offered by Katja Rowell M.D through Adoptive Families. Based on my experience and research, eating disorders in children are not unusual, particularly when talking about exotic children. From adoption expert Dr. Rowell, who is a family doctor and childhood feeding specialist, I learned that it does not matter whether the child is adopted at birth or later. And the disorders come in as many variations as can be identified.

I am quite sure I was an anorexic little girl. By the time I was five or six, I was not only anemic (and had to take a daily dose of cod liver oil), but also so skinny that my parents feared putting roller skates on my feet for fear I might break a leg. They managed to find the lightest of skates and I enjoyed whizzing around on the Plaza de España with bones that remained intact.

An extremely picky eater, I could vomit on command if anyone insisted I down something I disliked such as cream of wheat or candied fruits. The former I learned to enjoy, the latter not.

Our family congregated for meals in the dining room at a formally set table. The food was brought in and my mother would serve me. She knew my pickiness, so the portions were small and I could always have seconds. First came soup, followed by a balanced main course, and then desert after which adults enjoyed a cup of espresso. It was the mid 40’s and food was never thrown away in our house. When too much of the main course was still on my plate, my mother stayed with me while the others retired. She encouraged me to eat spoonful after tiresome spoonful. Adding insult to injury was then being presented with an awful desert. After a spoonful, my aversion manifested through a split second projectile vomit. I could not help my reaction, but the welcome result was that food would not be forced on me again for months. It must have been the only thing I could control in my life, was whether I ate, or not. That particular skill ended in adolescence, especially after I entered boarding school.

Dr. Rowell’s webinar was recorded. You can find a link to it at the Adoptive Families website.