Loss of appetite caused by depression

I am a strong believer that Mike suffers from depression. Whether or not this is touched upon in s5 (though I hope it will be) it is pretty hinted at in his character. I also have posts dedicated to that if you're curious. There is a lot of things that go into depression, a lot of signs, but one is a loss of appetite.

Mike, throughout the seasons, has increasingly been seen eating less than normal, picking at his food, or not eating "real food at all." Because depression makes you have less of an appetite, he would obviously have less of a desire to partake in it.

Along with this, I believe Mike has very low self esteem and essentially doesnt care about his own well-being very much. He puts his life at risk so many times and doesnt seem to care about, or even think about the consequences. So even if he doesnt have a lack of appetite, he doesnt focus on self care. Even if thats just eating properly. He has self distructive behaviors that doesnt make me doubt this, for example, his grades are slipping and he's seen pushing people away (s4).

He doesnt care about eating "real food" anymore, he doesnt care if he goes to bed hungry, he doesnt care about himself anymore.

In certain moments, the thought of eating seems to sour for Mike almost instantly. If food comes up in conversation or is set in front of him right as tension flares, his appetite can vanish. One second he might be ready to eat, and the next, the idea of swallowing anything feels wrong. When food is paired with conflict, discomfort, or pressure, it stops being food and starts being another source of unease. Over time, that association could make him wary of eating in moments that feel emotionally charged, even if he was hungry just a moment before. And this makes sense, food becomes another source of stress for him.

2. Mike has anxiety and avoidance related food issues that stem from his family

Everytime Mike is seen eating with his family, its not necessarily a good experience for him. Twice we see Nancy calling Mike disgusting for his food choices during breakfast. He has traumatic (it may not be the most traumatized inducing thing he's experienced, but it has clearly affected him) experiences at the dinner table.

He finds out Will is missing right after the first scene we see him eat. He's calling out for his parents help only to be met with nothing in return. Hes ignored at the table while he witnesses his siblings get attention or praise. Eating with his parents has bred a lot of hostility and avoidance. And we've only seen them eat together a few times, but each time it was upsetting.

In Season 1, there are many different scenes that show us the Wheeler family dinner table. And not one of them is without stress and tension. Both Wheeler kids are going through a really hard time, both loosing someone close to them. Yet, they’re both dismissed by their father, and only given bare minimum support by their mother. And dinner time has suddenly become unsafe, often ending in the only person eating at the table being Ted. Season 1 is also where we see Mike getting criticized by his sister for eating too fast when he’s in a rush to get away from the table. I don’t necessarily think this moment by itself would make him self conscious; but i do know that people who are willing to judge you for one thing are willing to judge others things as well. So its probably not the first time or the last that Mike has been teased for the way he eats.

Mike deemed Karen as a source of "real food" of which he stopped eating in s3. Karen dismisses Mike about his concerns regarding will and punishes him further than what he's already been punished for. He associated food or "real food" with Karen and when he's not being well received by Karen, you can expect him not be be consuming as much real food either. Karen is the one criticizing mike the most at the table in s1.

If we compare Mike eating with his family to the Byers or Sinclairs, we see a stark difference.

(This is the only gif I found, mb gang)

3. Mike is paralleled with people who suffer from disordered eating

Mike is shown to parallel or at least comment on people's appearance of those who suffer from disordered eating.

The first of which is Chrissy. Chrissy is shown being tormented by her mom about a few things but what I specifically want to talk about is her mom telling Chrissy that her clothes are too small and comparing her to a pig. Her mom specifically says, when asking chrissy to try on a dress, "would you like for me to losen it up for you," implying its too small. You may ask why Mike has anything to do with this. Well, my sweet naive little baby...

Mike's clothes are too big for him. Especially in s4. You cant just tell me that the costuming department doesnt know how to fit him because they know perfectly well how to tailor clothes specifically for him. But theyre specifically made too big. For example his yellow rink-o-mania shirt or all of his pants. They're too big for him. Chrissy's are too small, Mike's are too big.

(Its also probably noting that as soon as el leaves and Mike is only around Will he starts wearing clothes that fit him much better)

Eddie also comments about Mikes clothes, I kid you not, RIGHT after Chrissy's scene in the bathroom. The show literally says, hey look, a character with an ED being commented about their clothes. Oh look! Another kid being commented about their clothes right after... what could this mean??

Chrissy was also compared to a pig, the same thing Mike was eating (or ham, rather) during the s1 dinner scene. Again in s1, Karen made passive aggressive comments about them eating her meatloaf. Karen, who has been a source of anxiety for Mike thats tied around food. Even though Chrissy's mom and Karen might not be causing their kids food problems in the same way, i think that they still both do.

Now the second one, Hopper. Hopper definitely has issues with food and makes comments about himself. He frequently refers to himself as fat, says to El that shes going to let him sit there and get fat, that hes on a diet, talking about cals...etc

But someone else that comments on his weight is Mike. El in s3 says he was as red as a tomato and Mike insists that he's a "fat tomato. "

and then when they meet again in s4, he immediately notices his weight and how he "shrunk." He's also paralleled in this way:

Both eating chips in the couch and burping. Both of them eating unhealthy junk food that isnt "real food". Mike and Hopper also both tell El not to eat Eggos because they deem them as unhealthy foods. So they both understand what real food is but both aren't shown properly eating it. (maybe a stretch maybe not)

Then they are both wearing a blue plaid shirt in s4.

and not to mention all the ways they are paralleled that doesnt have to do with food. 🤷

4. People noticing it

Karen notices no ones eating the meatloaf. Will stares at Mike's plate in s4.

While he is noticing that Mike is upset, he's also noticing that he's not eating. He keeps staring at his plate. Other people start to notice as well, El is confused why Mike is upset and Murray senses tension and comments about it, asking if the risotto was bad but the only one not eating it was mike. And i dont think he wasnt eating because hes scared of food or anything like that but the tension, like murry pointed out, was similar to what he experiences at home.

Will also notices in the breakfast scene as well.

We also have this scene in which Angela calls Mike a "twig". people say that its another word for twink, which can be right, but I think it also might have two meanings. And the bigger, more obvious one is that shes commenting on the appearance of Mike and his weight.

5. Mike's lack of eating real food and avoidance to food

The last time we see Mike eat *real food* is in Season 2. After that, all we ever see him eating is junk food, snacks, or more often, nothing at all. And when you notice that there’s already tension and anxiety built around the dinner table for him, paired with the fact that he starts eating less and less as the seasons go on, it becomes pretty telling.

Season 3 is when his strange eating habits start to stand out. A lot has changed since Season 1, and now we see Mike snacking more casually instead of sitting down for a meal at the table. In fact, the only times we see him eating this season are in the first episode at the movie theater (and even then, it’s only implied because we never actually see him eating the snack), and in the basement when he’s talking with Lucas about what went wrong with El.

What ive noticed is his eating habits seemingly follow the same patterns as how comfortable he feels in a situation. And for me, someone who also deals with an ED, this is extremely telling. In my personal experience, it becomes MUCH harder to eat in certain contexts or with certain people. I'd much rather eat alone, free from judgement. This seems like its the same idea with Mike. He feels comfortable eating around his friends but not with his family.

The next food-related moment is at the hospital while they’re waiting on Nancy and Jonathan. Mike tries to get a KitKat from the vending machine, but it gets stuck. El uses her powers to shake the machine, and it spits out a bunch of the snacks inside. Lucas tells him this is his chance to win her back. But instead of grabbing an armful of candy, Mike suddenly looks uneasy, almost sick. He picks up a single pack of M&M’s, sits down with El, gives her like half the bag, and doesn’t eat any himself. The rest of the snacks stay sitting in the machine. It’s as if the sudden tension completely killed his appetite. This is a very realistic occurrence for someone who struggles with food. ((I feel ill 😭 ))

In Season 4, we see more small details pointing toward Mike’s discomfort with eating, especially around El. When she mentions getting burritos, he hesitates, gives her a look, and stumbles over his words trying to say it’s fine. His voice is all high pitched and he doesnt just seem uncomfortable in the moment, he seems put off by the mention of food. Like if it were me i would feel like i would want to throw up from the amount of anxiety i would have in that moment. Anyway, that night, after the rink altercation, he doesn’t touch his dinner at all. He just pushes it around on his plate. The next morning at breakfast, it’s the same thing. Both meals happen during incredibly tense moments at the table, and it’s the clearest sign yet that stress and conflict completely shut down his appetite.

The next time we see him consume anything at all is a 7Up during his heart-to-heart with Will on top of the van. It’s not food, but if we’re talking about how comfort affects what he consumes, it’s still telling.

Finally, there’s the pineapple-on-pizza scene. Mike and El are sitting across from each other at a table, trying to have a conversation. El insists he try the fruit-on-pizza combo just to see if he likes it. Mike is very adamant that he doesn’t want to eat it, digging in his heels in a way we rarely see over something as small as food. I know the whole fruit on pizza thing is a common thing to talk about with his sexuality but if we look at it obectively, not subtextually, bro was fighting for his life to not eat that damn pizza. the point is, once again, we see him avoiding food entirely in a moment where there’s already emotional tension brewing.

When you put all of this together — from Season 2’s last “real meal” to the snacks, refusals, and total lack of appetite in high-stress situations, Mike’s relationship with food is far from casual. It’s anxious, complicated, and tied to how safe or unsafe he feels in any given moment.

So what's my point?

My point is that even if its not explicitly said, its not absolutely wrong to assume or see him having these issues. All the points that im making are IN the show, theyre not made up. Its subtext, and whether or not you see it, or someone points it out, its still there.