The Importance of Prioritizing Eating Disorder Recovery
Recovering from an eating disorder is no easy feat. Recovery is hard before it gets better, which is why it can be put on the backburner or done half-heartedly at first. There are so many reasons why prioritizing recovery is essential for the individual and those around them.
By: Tori Barkosky
Eating disorders impact every area of your life and steal joy and happiness from almost any situation or things most important to you. They destroy relationships, mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual health, and the ability to find purpose and contentment. Until you make your eating disorder recovery a matter of greatest importance, you will not find true healing or peace.
Eating disorder recovery must be prioritized over the time spent with your eating disorder and unhealthy behaviors. It will take an immense amount of energy and most likely time. However, doing so promotes quicker healing and finding freedom from your food rules, habits, and disordered thinking. It is important to note that the voice of your eating disorder will get loud during this process and want to take back control of your mind. As a result, having a treatment team and loved ones involved is vital in recovery and challenging that inner voice.
Allowing this process and journey to take precedence in your life will open more doors and opportunities in the future because you will be able to see and discover your values, desires, passions, and wants, which all have been clouded. You will find yourself genuinely enjoying living and time spent with yourself and loved ones, going out with friends, eating at restaurants, doing enjoyable activities, all without the obsession with food, exercise, and numbers.
The sooner you work and challenge your eating disorder, the quicker you will find peace in your mind, body, and soul. Your mind will not be overwhelmingly consumed with anxious thoughts concerning food, measuring, calories, body image, exercise, the scale, etc. Instead, it will fill with curiosity, joy, peace, and rest.
This is why prioritizing your eating disorder recovery is crucial. Not only to protect your mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being; but to allow you to find a life outside of worries, anxieties, and fear concerning such a beautiful gift that provides connection and moments of joy. Liberation will arrive if you make healing come first. It takes immense time, effort, and capacity, but is well worth it.
At BALANCE eating disorder treatment center™, our compassionate, highly skilled team of clinicians is trained in diagnosing and treating the spectrum of eating disorders, including anorexia, bulimia, binge eating disorder, compulsive overeating, and other disordered eating and body image issues. In addition to our full-time Day Treatment Program and Weeknight Intensive Outpatient Program, we offer nutrition counseling with a licensed dietitian, meal support, and various other groups and resources to assist those seeking help for food concerns. Click the button below to learn more about our programs and services.
Our admissions team would be happy to answer any questions you may have about our programs and services. Book a free consultation call with our admissions team below, or read more about our philosophy here.
This post was written by BALANCE Blog Contributor, Tori Barkosky (she/her).
Tori is currently a third-year student at St. Catherine University, pursuing a B.A. in Psychology and a minor in Nutrition Science. Tori is passionate about all things related to intuitive eating, HAES, mental health, body respect, eating disorders, and disordered eating. She desires to become a holistic therapist or psychologist in the future and work with clients with eating disorders and help them recover and heal their broken relationship with food and body and find liberation from diet culture. Outside of classes and work, Tori enjoys yoga, being in nature, and consuming too much coffee.