Be Honest with Yourself During Eating Disorder Recovery

Being honest with yourself and where you're at in your eating disorder recovery process can be challenging. At times I find I am trying to convince myself that I am doing better than I actually am. What we need to do is be honest with ourselves each day, checking in, seeing where we are at and what we need. Doing this will create self-awareness that will aid in keeping slips at bay.

Don't Make It Worse: Be Honest With Yourself

In my experience, when I am not honest with myself, things only become worse. I do this as a defense mechanism when I wish to believe things are "perfect".

When I am not honest with the way things affect my system and emotions, I start to bury them. When difficult things become buried and are not dealt with, the feeling grows, eventually boiling over. This can cause slips in your recovery.

An honest recovery requires daily reflection and constant check-ins with your system. This can look like journaling, meditation, really anything that involves quiet time with yourself. These check-ins allow us to take necessary "self time" everyday. It is important to make sure we do this everyday to ensure nothing is slipping through the cracks and we stay on track.

Avoid Avoidance

Avoiding difficulties you are having and thinking they will fade away unnoticed is what can potentially lead to relapse. It is more than okay to not be doing perfectly all the time. There is no such thing as a perfect recovery. What is not okay is pretending things are great when they in fact are not.

Keep truth and honesty at the top of your recovery list and be sure you are not using avoidance when challenging situations occur. Doing this will aid in lasting wellness.

Stay open, stay honest, stay well.