The Dallas Post Dallas, PA Wednesday, February 4, 1998 3 rd Young woman, family, battle eating disorders, ‘By KYLIE SHAFFERKOETTER Post Staff JACKSON TWP. - On this par- ticular night, Heather Chvotzkin is angry at her parents. Not be: cause they won't let her go out or borrow the car. She's angry be- cause they won't let her get rid of the food she has just eaten for dinner. : “I don’t enjoy food at all,” said Heather, 22, who has suffered from both bulimia nervosa and andrexia nervosa for 10 years. “Fm really uncomfortable with food. I feel if I don’t get rid of it I'll explode.” For dinner she forced down a tiny portion of pasta with one meatball. As she talks, she squirms in her chair. Her move- ments seem to express her con- stant awareness of the food. { Her fixation not only affects her state of mind, but also the ¢ondition of her body. , "Heather destroyed a valve in her stomach from all the vomit- ing. Her stomach doesn’t process food without medicine,” said Bar- bara Chvotzkin, her mother. Part of Heather's discomfort tonight is due to the fact that she forgot to take her medicine before dinner. She has also destroyed much of thelining in her stomach. A few days.earlier, Heather was rushed tq the hospital because she was vomiting blood. “The doctor told ne: Ld be dead by 30ifI didn’t stop ats: ” she said. :> Heather, whois also diagnosed satis. depression, has her good ras bad days. She is taking Prozac, but says it doesn’t help Jaden She describes her eating disor- Hire asa voice in her head telling her to do things, like exercise incessantly and cut herself. “An- orexia is like having people in ‘your head. It wakes me up in the middle of the night to exercise or vomit. Itsaysifldon’tdoit, I'll get fat,” said Heather. This is a common way to de- scribe eating disorders, said Joy Armillay, Ed.D., R.D., director of Wyoming Valley ‘Health Care System’s Health Awareness and ‘Staff Enhancement departments. “It's a thought process. The drive for thinness is so strong that it ‘denies the physical need for food. ‘A person can almost hear them- ‘selves say that they cannot have food,” she said. Experts say eating disorders are usually expressions of other issues going on in people's lives. Problems can run the gamut from low self-esteem to family troubles, societal pressures or depression. “Eating disorders are very very complex. They are not 100 per- cent about weight and thinness,” Armillay said. “Many people fo- cus on their weight to deal with other issues. It's not just about wanting to be thin. It is a mental illness and ‘it's complex. That's why it sometimes takes years (to ‘cure)”. The first signs of anorexia showed up in second grade. For a while Heather would only eat very little, if at all. The eating disorder then became dormant until Heather was faced with a stressful situation in seventh grade. Heather, then a student in the Lake-Lehman district, was told she was going to start the new year at Dallas Middle School be- cause Dallas had a full-time teacher who specialized in learn- ing disabilities. The idea of start- ing school in a different building with new faces frightened her and the eating disorder came back with renewed strength. “I almost didn’t pass that year because I was in the hospital so much,” said Heather, with a mat- ter-of-fact tone. She remained at Dallas Middle School for four months before returning to Lake- POST PHOTO/KYLIE SHAFFERKOETTER Heather Chvozkin of Jackson Township with her mother, Barbara. Both believe there could be more awareness about eating disorders in Luzerne County. Heather, 22, has had both bulimia and anorexia for 10 years. Lehman. In the years since middle school, the eating disorders have "varied in intensity, but have been a constant presence in Heather's life. Her parents note that one com- mon factorin the onslaught of the disorders is the threat of change. “She cannot take change,” said her mother, co-owner of Pierce Bakery in Kingston and Chvotzkin Professional Cleaning. “When we decided to close the bakery, we started talking about the possi- bility of moving, and that's when the anorexia really came back,” she said. Recently Heather was again taken to the hospital. She is prone to cutting herself and this time cut her throat. Although not a life threatening wound, the im- plications run deep. She said she’s not afraid of death and sometimes it seems like a better alternative to a life she feels is owned by anorexia and bulimia. “It's taken over my life,” said Heather. “I want to know how I got two eating disor- ders.” Barbara said she does what she can. “I try to take razors and hide them. If she doesn’t use razors, she’ll use knives. [I can’t hide everything,” she said. Heather is not quite five feet talland weighs about 115 pounds. Her lowest weight in recent years was 69 pounds. She never feels she’s at a good weight and only sees “a fat person” when she looks in the mirror. She doesn’t like anything about herself, but ad- mits she’s a good dancer and loves music. : But, like ‘everything ‘in Heather's life, even the most typi- cally carefree actjvity revolves around her conditions. “I dance for exercise. Sometimes I'll dance for an hour or two,” she said. Her mom said she does have good days and Heather said she felt good when it was sunny out. Like most everyone, the clouds make her blue. Heather has been through many treatments since second grade. Some helped and some did not. Some are covered by insur- ance and some are not. She has been to both inpatient and outpatient care in hospitals in Philadelphia and Hershey. As a teenager she found some suc- cess with treatment provided by Child Services. But, after she was 18, she no longer qualified for the services. Her mother said an independent therapist is too ex- pensive. Since that time she has gone to community group counseling. This form of counseling does not specialize in eating disorders or Treatment available in Luzerne County » Children’s Service Center of Wyoming Valley provides treatment and referrals for children up to 18 years old. For more information call 825-6425. » Wyoming Valley Health Care System. Dr. Joy Armillay, Ed.D., R.D., director of Health Awareness and Staff Enhancement works with Mary Ann Yenason, MA, a therapist, to provide outpatient treatment to people with eating disorders. For more information call 552-8641. » King’s College. Counseling for adults by Rev. Joseph A. _ Sidera, C.5.C. Group counseling sessions that meet once a- J week. For more information call 208-5873. hi Sai mm —__——— she a8 Koei Set Bey Bs » a Dana Perfumes will be opening a company store begining Wednesday, February 4th, just in time for your Valentime's Day shopping. Store hours are Wednesday, Thursday & Friday 12-6 p.m. Saturdays 9-2 p.m. Name brand fragrances, cosmetics, perfumes, colognes and gift sets at very affordable prices. The store is located at Dana's main facility, 470 Oakhill Road, Crestwood Industrial Park, Mountaintop. Grand Opening February 4th!! All Sales Final/Cash only (Max. $300) any one illness. seek support group It is. open to people with a variety of different conditions. The Chvotzkins are seeking other families who are affected by eating disorders to start a sup- port group. Their goal is to help others and also push for a local inpatient treatment center. Heather's father, Ronald, be- lieves that while there is outpa- tient care available in Luzerne County, there needs to be com- munity awareness to push for more. “It's like any (disease). People don’t know about it unless it gets out,” he said, citing AIDS as an example. “There are many more people with this problem than we know. People just have to admit it.” ; Heather said a support group with other people with eating dis- orders would help everyone in- volved. “It would let people know. there are others like them,” she said. “I want more people like me so we can get together and talk.” Barbara said it is important to get the parents involved with their children’s recovery. “I think par-" ents have to get involved. They have to do something, otherwise their kids will die,” she said. The Chvotzkins urge anyone with an eating disorder or any parent of someone with an eating disorder, who is interested in. starting a local support system, to call them at 696-3688. : “It’s taken over my life. I want to know how I got two eating disorders.” Heather Chvotzkin 22, Jackson Twp. WINTER CLEARANCE This week only Men's & Boy's remaining winter stock is wl fh Country Club MEN'S SHOP ~/ Fine Clothing for Men & Boys United Penn Plaza « Kingston + 288-6501 . Ll LIQUIDATION SALE Friday - Saturday - Sunday 8 to 8 - Sunday 10-4 0% OFF CASH OR {3h} ALREADY REDUCED PRICES TUFT TEX 07 \ {dN ] HOME DESIGN CENTER 325 River Rd., Plains - 823-1201 or 823-3429 ‘Always FREE Measurements * Installation Available
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers