I'm 28 and have struggled with my own weight since age 13-14, but this question is mainly about my 11 year old brother. He has recently gained a lot of weight within the past year or two, not sure how much he weighs exactly but he's in the high 90s for weight percentile and visibly looks overweight. The main issue is that he's started constantly sneaking food out of my parents' kitchen when no one is looking.
I don't live with him or my parents but when I recently visited he asked me for advice on how to lose weight. He told me he never feels full and can't stop thinking about food all the time - like 10 minutes after a meal, he'll start thinking about the next thing he wants to eat. Maybe he's stress eating because he's suddenly developed some serious anxiety this year. My parents asked me if I had any suggestions about how to help him and I said:
- Make sure he's in therapy for the anxiety (he is already but they need to take him more often)
- Eat meals all together (they have kind of stopped having family dinner since I left the house)
- Stop body shaming him, poor kid already feels fat and embarrassed about his body
- Sign him up for more sports and physical activities
But... is there something more I can say or do? It's not really my responsibility but it hurts me to see my brother struggling with the same issues as me but more severely and at a younger age. Does he need medical follow up about this food obsession? I've wondered if he has Prader Willi syndrome or something bc hes also autistic. Do you have any other tips for things I should suggest to him or my parents? My parents are beginning to consider locking the kitchen cabinets and fridge, but that sounds like a method of last resort if we can't reason with him.
[link] [comments]
No comments:
Post a Comment