You don’t need to see a therapist or seek out a treatment program to recover from an eating disorder. You can do it on your own. You’ve already overcome the biggest obstacle on your road to recovery accepting that you have an eating disorder and taking active steps to recover from it.
In fact, even when you seek out specialized treatment, you won’t spend all your time with a therapist. And that time you spend away from a therapist is the most challenging. If you can get through this period, you’ll overcome compulsive eating and reclaim your life.
You Have the Power
Everything you need to overcome any eating disorder is stored away in your brain. If you can dig at it, you’ll find the fortitude to recover, without a relapse. All you have to do is becoming a master in emotional management, coping skills, and follow a mentor to overcome the disorder. Here’s how you do that.
Talk About the Disorder
There are many phases you’ll go through on the road to recovery. You’ll transition through acceptance, seeking professional help, and even relapsing back into the habit. During the transition, you need a few tools in your armory to help you combat everything you encounter in the journey. Discussing about an eating disorder with a loved one is one of the tools. It might be a bit difficult to talk to them, especially since an eating disorder a huge health risks, but remember they love you. They will do everything to help you overcome anorexia, bulimia, or even binge eating. Loved ones give you the emotional support you need to overcome an eating disorder.
Support Groups
Going it alone doesn’t work for most people. If you find yourself relapsing into an eating disorder, consider joining a support group. Don’t think you are the only one suffering from the disorder. You’ll be surprised at the number of people you’ll meet in a support group. When you feel stressors are creeping in, a support group helps you overcome them, especially during holidays. Holidays are torturous for someone with an eating disorder. These are the times you need to talk to someone about what you are going through. There’s no one better to talk to than someone who understands what you are going through. You might even find a mentor in a support group. A mentor can walk you through the same path she walked on her way to recovery. You can call your mentor whenever you feel the urge creeping up again. They’ll talk to you on the same level, because they have first-hand experience on what you’re going through. Not only this, but a mentor helps you stick to your food plan.
You shouldn’t be ashamed of your eating disorder. Having the courage to speak about it is the first step to recovery, and with these two tools, you’ll overcome it.