Should I tell my mom I’m bulimic?
Salam Aleykum, BACKGROUND I’m 17F, living in California with my mom and two younger sisters. My parents are divorced; my dad was abusive. My mom has high blood pressure and anxiety that sometimes lands her in the hospital. Earlier this year she found my vapes and it stressed her so badly she ended up in the ER , she blamed herself and I felt crushing guilt, so I hide most of what I’m dealing with. I have OCD and major depressive disorder. I used to self harm also but stopped before she could find out, alhamdulillah. THE PROBLEM I developed bulimia at 14. It started occasionally and then consumed my life quickly. It takes hours of my day. I’ve dropped from 140 to ~90 lbs; my teeth are translucent, yellowing, and eroding. I skip school and isolate to do it, or pace and exercise obsessively. I want to stop but I’m terrified of burdening my mom. I’m thinking of giving myself one week to quit — if I can’t, I’ll tell her. Some nights the pain feels like it will kill me. What should I do? I know there are other places I could ask but none of them know what it’s like to have religious parents. Realistically what do you think her reaction would be for a typical Muslim mother?