Being it’s #eatingdisordersawarenessweek just around the corner, I wanted to post about my difficult journey with my own mental health struggles.

I really wasn't aware when I was in recovery that my eating disorder would be so hard to overcome. My counselor assured me by saying things like "did you think your eating disorder was going to go down without a fight? Because it’s going to find ways to challenge you."

I had to do things every single day that made me very uncomfortable. The first thing was eating foods that were on my "bad" list... like fruit.

Yes, I used to be afraid to eat fruit because "sugar"....

So, we started with eating berries, then I moved on to bananas! WOO HOO...

I next had to reduce my exercise from 3 hours a day, to 2 hours, to 1 hour to now 4 x 45 min a week. (( sweet spot where I get my period, recover, and sleep 7-9 hours))

No, my recovery wasn't linear. I had set backs. I would body check obsessively, and become discouraged when I would see my body get softer as I gained weight.

"Compulsive body checking is like an itch you can’t scratch” In the toughest moments, I had a coach tell me to remember that I was working on grounding and reprogramming how my thoughts are just thoughts.

Not all thoughts are helpful.

Not all thoughts need action.

“The volume of your unhelpful thoughts will be turned down as you establish new programming. Bodies were never meant to be micromanaged to obtain a different size or shape. If you are struggling to maintain your current size, then, maybe you are not meant to be that size. {ASK: how hard would it be or what would it require that I give up to keep the body size I’ve been trying to manage?’} "

Challenge those negative thoughts.

Deanna =1 ALIVE

ED= 0 DEAD.

If you need help, do not hesitate to reach out. You are not alone.

Body Neutrality is the idea that you can exist without having to think too much about your body one way or another, positive or negative. Here are some tips to incorporate it into your day.

@eatingdsna

DGH