Battle for Control: A Memoir of Anorexia, Exercise Bulimia, and Other Compulsions

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Product Description

Anorexia. Binge eating. Exercise addictions. Obsessive-compulsive behaviors. In his memoir, Battle for Control, Doug Erlandson has written the compelling story of his lifelong battle with the demons that have sought control of his life.

Born into a highly ordered household dominated by a father who displayed obsessive-compulsive behaviors of his own, Doug had seemingly outgrown many of his youthful compulsions by the time he was in high school, and during his college years he seemed headed for a normal adulthood. While in graduate school he lost more than one hundred pounds through diet and exercise, and by the time he became a member of the philosophy department faculty of the University of Nebraska at age twenty-five he was in excellent physical condition.

But the dieting and exercising that had brought him to this point soon were out of control, and within two years of becoming trim his life was dominated by both food and exercise addictions. Although he eventually conquered his anorexia and his subsequent binge-eating disorder, other food and exercise addictions such as rigid eating habits and excessive running continued to plague him through more than four decades.

In addition to these addictions, other compulsions, some amusing, others tragic, have dominated his life. For example, Doug has kept a journal obsessively for more than fifty years. At one point he was writing entries more than a year in advance to make sure that he would not miss a day of writing. He also details how excessive concern about spending money caused him to set the thermostat at sixty in the winter and eighty-five in the summer despite having ample funds to live far more comfortably.

Doug’s addictions and compulsions have continued despite a religious conversion in his early thirties and being nearly killed by a ruptured aneurysm in his late fifties. While the latter, along with knee-replacement surgeries (necessitated because he destroyed his knees through excessive running), have forced him to modify his exercise regimen, seemingly nothing to date has broken his addictions and compulsions.

Doug makes it clear that he is not condoning or glorifying his behavior. He is honest about his struggles and the inner voices that are sending him the negative messages to which he continues to listen. He is also brutally frank concerning the effect his behavior has had over the years on his wife and children and how his compulsions have produced anxiety when faced with activities (such as travel) that might upset his routines.

Although Battle for Control is primarily descriptive, Doug also discusses the personality traits that underlie his obsessions and compulsions and shows how his having a highly sensitive and conscientious nature have played a contributory role in his personality disorder. However, as he is quick to admit, these natural bents do not exonerate his conduct.

In an extensive “Epilogue,” Doug argues that despite his ongoing compulsions, he has reason for optimism. His own greater awareness of his issues and their underlying causes has allowed him to modify his behavior so that his various compulsions are no longer as debilitating as they once were. Moreover, through a greater awareness of his underlying tendencies, he is learning to channel them in a way that is positive rather than negative.

Battle for Control is a must read not only for those who suffer from food and exercise addictions or from obsessive-compulsive tendencies but also for their family members and friends. It will also be of interest to psychologists and other healthcare professionals who specialize in treating individuals with food and exercise addictions or Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder. Anyone with an ongoing interest in these issues will find it a fascinating case study.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #263279 in eBooks
• Published on: 2012-06-17
• Released on: 2012-06-17
• Format: Kindle eBook

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