Am I eating good or bad fats?

I know it's necessary to have a certain amount of fat in your diet, but occasionally I hear about "good fat" and "bad fat." What is the difference? Is that the same as saturated/unsaturated? What foods have "good fat"? Can I tell by looking at the nutrition label on a food product which kind of fat I'm eating?


Why do I pull my hair out as a form of self punishment?

Ever since I was in junior high, I have been pulling out my hair. I can remember not being able to pull my hair into a ponytail because the hair at the nape of my neck wouldn't reach. I still have this awful and shameful habit. I don't see it so much as just a habit, like the way one might bite one's nails, it's more like an obsession. I'll just sit and stare into space and pull clumps of hair out of my head. I remember having seen a program on T.V. which dealt with this habit as a medical problem that is curable with medication. Unlike the men and women represented on this program, I am not stripping myself bald — yet. I tend to consider it a form of self-punishment, perhaps. Just to give you some background information, I have a tendency towards bulimia (cycles of bulimia occur when my depression is at its worst) and am in general not a happy camper. What can you tell me about this?


What can I do if I forget to eat or have a low appetite?

1) For as long as I can remember, I've had a fairly low appetite. I love food — cooking it, eating it, savoring it — but if it's not in front of me, I can easily forget about it. In high school, it wasn't uncommon for me to make it through a whole day without realizing I'd only had half a sandwich and a handful of M&Ms to eat. I'm living on my own and cooking my own meals now, but without predetermined family meal times, I'm struggling with portion control and meal planning. So many resources say that I should just "trust my body" when it comes to my diet, but my body won't tell me what it needs! Some days I feel like I'm packing too much food for lunch; other days, I completely forget about lunch altogether. How can I make sure I don't accidentally become a chronic under eater — or overcompensate and eat too much? When and how much should I be eating?

2) Lots of people worry about overeating. I have the opposite problem. I just don't get hungry. Some days I'll realize it's 10 pm and I haven't eaten anything in 24 hours, but I don't feel any need to have food. (At this point I'll usually make myself eat something).

I maintain a healthy weight, but I'm sure this habit of forgetting to eat isn't good. Do you have any advice for boosting appetite?


How can I wake up earlier?

I have the biggest problem getting out of bed in the morning. I set two alarms and I still go right back to sleep. For this reason, I am always running late to work. Do you have any suggestions on how I can make myself get up earlier in the mornings?

Thanks in advance for your help!


Why do I faint and have a low pain tolerance?

If I get hurt really sharply or suddenly, I end up passing out. This has happened once when I slammed my finger in a doorway, once when I bashed my elbow on the shower wall, once when my finger was held in an awkward, painful position, and once when I got a flu shot. Why do I pass out like this, and why do I have such low pain tolerance?