A Different Kind of Freedom

Breaking free from an eating disorder can be tremendously challenging, but it’s so worth it! There’s this beautiful freedom that comes from ending the war between yourself and your body. For those who want to recover, the question is how? How can we recover from an eating disorder?

Recovery is accomplished through acceptance, understanding, and education. Simple as that. Well, it’s simple, but it ain’t easy!

Acceptance

First, we have to identify and accept that poor body image and an eating disorder is a problem. That’s the first step towards recovery. This step is scary and overwhelming, I know! I’ve been there.

Most scientific research shows that poor body image and eating disorders cause distorted patterns of thinking. These include obsessive thoughts of food as a way of dealing with emotional issues. Okay, sounds right to me. So, acceptance here is a form of success and strength. Those with poor body image and an eating disorder can make better decisions once they disengage from unhealthy eating habits and thought patterns.

Understanding

Understanding how our minds and bodies work is so important to overcoming an eating disorder. It’s important to understand how our minds and bodies require healthy nutrition to maintain homeostasis and stimulate healthy thought patters.

Our body requires energy to carry out essential brain activity. When we restrict, binge, or purge, our thinking becomes distorted. Providing our bodies with nutrients, coupled with a span of time free from unhealthy eating behavior, changes how our brains process information.

Once this change takes place, our minds begin to clear. This allows us to accept our issues and learn new coping skills. In turn, these coping skills replace our eating disorder with a healthy alternative. Often, we’re afraid to change because then we’ll be out of control. I know my eating disorder was rooted in control. When I was restricting, I was in control. Obviously, this wasn’t the case at all. Again, my thinking was warped as a result of my unhealthy behavior.

Education

The more we learn and understand how poor body image and eating disorders affect out body, the more likely we are to seek help and recovery. Educating ourselves on the health issues associated with eating disorders and poor body image give us power. What’s the old phrase? Knowledge is power!

By learning about eating disorders, we gain three main benefits.

-We learn how poor body image and eating disorders negatively effect our health.

-We learn how to identify how and why recovery is so important.

-We learn that we’re not alone! Millions of people suffer from poor body image and eating disorders.

Acceptance, understanding and education are the keys to freedom!