“It turns out that a willingness to take a chance on yourself, to keep an open mind, and to keep fighting, goes a long way. I have no doubt in my mind that no matter where you are in your journey, maintaining your version of recovery is 100% possible.” – Mia Brown
As a client of Erica’s from Branz Nutrition Counseling, Mia is bravely sharing her eating disorder journey to recovery. Mia was diagnosed with an eating disorder at 10 years old. Fast forward 15 years later, it is still a journey that she is pouring resilience towards. Mia would like to share her story to show others that getting better is possible, no matter what challenges you face.
The information for Mia’s Recovery Talk can be found below!
Date & Time: January 25th (Thurs) @ 3:30pm CST Location: 24 South Gore, Webster Groves, MO 63119
How to Support Your Loved One Coping with an Eating Disorder During the Holidays:
Provide a support system they can feel comfortable coming to
Let them know that whenever things are getting hard for them, they can come talk to you about how they are feeling. Managing these difficult situations will be made easier for them with your support. Make sure to listen and make them feel heard, sometimes even the smallest thing can be a trigger. Being there for them and going through this together can be extremely helpful.
Avoid making triggering comments yourself
Avoid making any comments on body image or the health content of a food. Even if the comment is about your own body, it can still be triggering. Avoid saying things like, “This is so sugary,” “I’m going to have to work this off tomorrow,” “I’m going to be bad today lol,” or “Are you really going to eat all of that?”
Remove known triggers beforehand
Ask your loved one if there’s anything specific you can do to help make this time easier or minimize triggers. For someone with an eating disorder or recovering from an eating disorder, minimizing triggers can help them feel more confident. Here are a few ideas that could help:
Gently educate others
As long as your child or loved one is okay with it, it could be helpful to educate other family members about body positivity and disordered eating habits. This way you can minimize triggering situations when you’re around those family members during the holidays. As previously mentioned, family members can often make triggering comments with no ill intent, so putting the situation on their radar can help minimize the occurrence of those comments.
Finally, prioritize self-care!
Remember, your well-being is what’s most important! If your loved one needs to take a step back when things get too overwhelming, that is completely okay. That could be keeping some distance from a family member who is too triggering for the time being. That could also be engaging in non-food-centered holiday activities such as watching a movie, decorating, doing a craft, or going to see holiday lights. Remember to remind your loved one to give themselves some grace, because no matter what stage of recovery they are in, the holidays can provide some challenges, and they are doing their best to get through them.
Using some of these tips and having an understanding support system will help ensure that everyone can have a happy holiday!
Our St. Louis area dietitians specialize in pediatric nutrition counseling and eating disorder treatment.
