Shoplifting and eating disorders..?

a close friend recently was charged with theft under $100. at a drug store. She also has an eating disorder(bulemia) which she stopped a number of months ago..do you think the 2 are related...she always appears very healthy, intelligent, vibrant, and is a very loving and moral person...but i know she is a loner, probably due to years of bulemia, and the privacy needed for that, but once she stopped why would she turn to shoplifting?..this was the first time it has happened, though she told me she had taken lipstick 'samples' before. my bigger conscern is her reaction to it. i went to court with her(i wasn't allowed into the actual courtroom), but she was sobbing, and having panick attacks, and seems to react like she was up for murder, and being 'judged in front of God'..afterwards she was suicidal. How can i best help/support my friend. she wears a good 'mask'..she has always been highly intelligent, healthy, vibrant, funny, etc...does work in a high-stress job..but this atypical b

bulemics apparently 'can't wait', so they often eat stuff in the store, and may or may not pay for it, due to embarassment..it doesn't seem a big stretch to me, that if they stop bulemia, they start shoplifting, maybe with a lipstick tester, and then escalating?..She was caught taking an expensive eye wrinkle cream, charge of less than $100., but is band for life from the drug store, has to pay a 500. fine, and so on..Are there programs for shoplifting(and would anyone show up..it must be very embarassing!)..my friend seemed to think she was the only one this happened to, but i'll bet it happens every day..not sure, but her strong emotional reaction and consequent depression, and refusal to get out worries me..i don't know if being in a s.l. program, and associating with like-others would be helpful or possibly harmful(i.e. pick up tricks, etc., or find others who minimize their offence)..the court officer told me that some people are charged 10-20 times a year!

While I'm not aware of research directly linking these behaviors, there may be some grounds for a relationship between them. For individuals with compulsive shoplifting, the behavior typically is done to relieve stress. This is very similar to the cycle of binging and purging in bulimia. It may also have to do with cultural factors - ideas about what she should be.

As her friend, the best thing you can do is simply to be a good friend. Let her get help from mental health professionals, who can provide a more clear cut understanding of what's going on, as well as more effective treatments. Don't pressure her to discuss these behaviors, but don't shy away from them either. Be interested in her, supportive of her interests, and willing to lend an ear if she gets upset. That's the best thing you can do for her.

I did a report years ago on shoplifting and the one thing I remember is that people shoplift because there is lack of love and being loved in their life. .

no the 2 are not related as i know of.

i know soemone that is bulemic too adn they r always happy and stuff.