6 Activities to Help During Eating Disorder Recovery
Living with an eating disorder can take a significant toll on your mind, body, and soul, even during recovery. The strain can leave little energy for the things that matter most: your health, well-being – you.
It’s as important as ever to prioritize yourself and do the things you love to help bring yourself a sense of peace, allowing you to focus on what matters most. Below are a few ideas to help kickstart your “me” time, promoting a holistic healing approach.
- Self-Care Days
Days (or nights) of self-care can add a special flair to your life. Whether it be a few hours or a complete and total day modelled around your favourite things, your body and mind will surely feel the positive benefits.
Take some time to plan out a spa night, go see that movie that you heard was good, or get your nails done! This step can totally be customized to what fits your needs.
- Distract Yourself
To avoid overthinking and becoming overwhelmed, do your best to keep yourself busy. Prevention is key to avoiding the spiral of negative thinking that can often accompany recovery. Between books, movies, and even the latest games, you don’t need to spend much in order to keep yourself busy.
- Continue to Research
Sometimes being in the know is a way to give yourself a piece of mind. Understanding what is happening with your body, inside and out, can help aid your mental health during recovery.
For example, definitions, treatment options, and support can be found at https://www.betterhelp.com/advice/eating-disorders/
If you’re someone who can become overwhelmed with access to too much information, you may want to avoid this step and instead focus on the next.
- Speak with Someone
Engaging with someone that you feel comfortable with can make a world of difference in your recovery process. Keeping everything in can be exhaustive and isolating, especially when dealing with complicated feelings of recovery. Whether it’s someone professional, a friend, or another loved one, the process can be a huge relief for anyone.
- Move Your Body
Being physical is not a punishment and should be done as a reward for your body. Inexpensive, approachable, and adaptable for just about anyone, getting outside and simply walking can be extremely helpful.
Movement has been shown to increase the “feel good” hormones in your body, promoting overall wellness. Just getting out for a walk has major benefits, including the fresh air and Vitamin D from sunshine.
- Journal
Journaling your recovery efforts, hopes, dreams, and similar can be a great way to document your progress and guide your healing. The process doesn’t need to entail hours-long writing sessions but just check-ins throughout the day as an outlet. You can find journal prompts online for eating disorder recovery or simply write what you feel as you go.
Final Thoughts
Remember that what works for one person may not be best for the next. Every recovery journey is unique and requires a specialized approach for proper healing. Redefining who you are and what brings you happiness is completely justified.
As such, don’t hesitate to adapt your recovery activities to complement what makes you feel the happiest, healthiest, and most confident.\
This post was developed via a partnership with BetterHelp.