Eating disorders - What coping strategies have you found to be helpful in trying to battle your ED?
If you wish please share ways that you have discovered useful to help battle your ED, whether youre in recovery or still working to get there. Someone may benefit greatly from the tools you have developed, or give them hope that recovery is possible.
I actually don't have any tips I come here for advice or just some tips. My relation to food is weird because I can deeply enjoy food but allot of times it's just a filler for me. I'll eat when im sad or when I'm happy I eat to pass time or to just eat. And it's not healthy at all. I'm becoming overweight and I'm noticing that it effects my health. Not to extremes but still It's not good for me I want to be able to eat normally.
@WhaleLove Thank you for sharing, There is no such thing as eating "NORMALLY" everyone is individual. Im sorry to hear youre struggling with disordered eating/ eating when bored or in an emotional state.
I find i do this sometimes as well i found it extremely helpful to have a list made of what i can do for 30 minutes before i give myself permission to eat, to see if im actually hungry.
I also found it really helpful to always have healthy food to munch on when the urge is really strong, such as carrots and celery dipped in mustard or apples and clemintines, they are low calorie and fufil to need to eat just to eat not because im hungry.
Emotional eating also benifits greatly from learning to take charge of your emotions as this takes time to learn to do i hope some of the tips you find on here help you take charge of your eating habits!
All the best to you!!
I've found that being around kids help. I've noticed that while I babysit I eat more normally so that the kids won't see and also because I just don't feel like their judging me because of my weight. They make me feel loved.
Good luck to everyone struggling! I hope others have some great tips to share!!
@decisiveVase00 Thank you for sharing, Its nice to hear you have found a space you feel comfortable around, is there anyone (child) that you could prepare food around and eat meals with to allow you to become more comfortable with eating.
Maybe using an enviroment where there are children around can allow you to build skills to become more confident with yourself in general and allow yourself to develop comformality with food, and allow you to eat without feeling judged <3
Im happy to hear you have found something that works for you!
I set a goal of how many calories I want to be able to eat again [edited by Anomalia to remove calorie specifics] and slowly work my way there. It also helps me eat healthier and since doing that I feel healthier and stronger. That doesn't work for everyone, I know.
Allowing yourself to have a comfort food also helps for me. Whenever I'm mad at myself for relapsing I let myself sit on the couch, watch a movie, and eat macaroni & cheese and/or chocolate ice cream. In that moment I don't worry about anything and just let myself relax and be free.
@DauntlessDuck Thank you for sharing, I also find it helpful to count my calories, and a food you can have that allows you to indulge safetly is also very smart!
Im glad you have a system that is working for you, and who doesn't love mac and cheese & chocolate ice cream <3
Good luck on your journey to self love!!
I've learnt to listen to my body. If I want to eat, I ask to my self "are you really hungry?". If I eat something that is not in my diet plan for the day (like when somebody makes a cake and want you to taste it) and I start to feel terrible and my ED is calling, I ask to my self "How can a little piece of cake ruin your stability?" And so on...
@Malinconia Thank you for your response, Its very important that youre able to ask questions such as these to yourself, and findout the answers it not only can be a useful tool to keep your ED from gaining control but also a key to learning from your answers to your own questions which i believe is one of the best ways to learn!
I've learned to journal whenever I feel like I have a lot on my mind. I'm a naturally quiet person, and there are only one or two people I feel comfortable talking to about my ED, so I end up internalizing much of what I am work through or struggling with. Taking the time to put my thoughts into words on paper helps me to think things through and gain a new perspective. I make it a point to put things in an honest, yet positive way so I don't end up pointlessly ranting or making things worse.
@quietphoenix17 Thank you for your response, Its a very good tool to journal, it does help you express feelings and distract the mind, it can also be useful to learning what your triggers and feelings are from a day to day buy looking back on your writings. I wish you all the best on your journey!