With more and more people social distancing and actively participating in self-quarantine alone time is becoming the new normal. For someone trying to recover from an eating disorder, isolation and being alone is dangerous. Alone time means more time for the eating disorder thoughts to play with your reality. The voice of the eating disorder is strong and without a support team and a toolbox full of things that help you fight against that voice recovery feels impossible. Because of this, it is important to have positive and supportive responses ready to go to fight back against the negative and destructive eating disorder thoughts you might encounter during quarantine.
The more time that passes by when people are stuck in their houses the more time and space that the eating disorder voice has to twist your reality. DO NOT GIVE ED THAT CONTROL.
Examples of How to Respond to Eating Disorder Thoughts During COVID Self-Quarantine.
- Example of an ED Thought:
“You are along. You have no one and no one cares about you.”-ED
When the ED voice says that you are alone remind yourself that you are loved and you are supported. Just because you are physically alone do not mean that you do not have a community that wants the best for you and respects you. Try responding to the voice with a mantra:
Saying this mantra, even if you don’t believe it at the start, will help you develop positive and supportive internal dialogue. As a reminder try writing down your mantra and placing it on all your mirrors. This way you will have a visual reminder each time you see your reflection.
In addition, remind yourself that the whole world is dealing with social distancing and self-quarantine. You are not alone in this. Reach out to a friend or family member virtually. Chances are they will appreciate a little virtual chat as much as you will.
If you need a video chat platform to check out Zoom and Skype. Both are great programs for chatting online with video. You can download the apps on the App Store and then make an account on the respective programs.
2. Another possible eating disorder thought:
“You are lazy. You need to exercise so that you are worthy.”- ED
The longer people are stuck in their houses the more likely it is for people to use behaviors that help them feel like they are in control. One behavior for someone in recovery from an eating disorder can be over-exercising. It is common to feel that you are not moving enough. That you are sitting too much and should be doing more. But it’s okay. These are stressful times and we don’t always have access to our regular gym and workout routine. That doesn’t make you any less worthy.
Instead of focusing on exercise try figuring out ways to actively participate in mindful movement. Try dancing, or practicing yoga.
3. Another example of a possible negative eating disorder thought during quarantine:
“Everything is out of control. The only way you can feel balanced again is to use behaviours.”-ED
It’s no lie that things are feeling very overwhelming and there are a lot of unknowns out there about what will happen in the next couple of months. But using behaviors does not give you balance or control it gives the control back to the eating disorder and that is not what you want.
Instead of using behaviors, take a step back, breathe and try meditation. Headspace is a great app that has tons of different meditations for all sorts of distinct reasons. If you need help calming down, sleeping or dealing with anxiety and stress there are meditations for that.
CLOSING THOUGHTS
Overall, these are very stressful times and it is easy to feel extremely overwhelmed. If you are currently struggling with an eating disorder you might see an influx of eating disorder thoughts during quarantine because of COVID-19 stress. But that doesn’t mean they get to control you. The important thing is to keep focusing on using your positive coping tools. If you are able to have virtual therapy and nutritionist sessions do that. Our world is forever changing but that change doesn’t have to control us.
PLEASE COMMENT your feelings and struggles below and I will do my best to respond as soon as possible.
If you or someone you know is struggling with an eating disorder you can call the NEDA HOTLINE: 800-931-2237 or for crisis situations Text ‘NEDA’ to 741741 . You can also visit www.neda.com for online chat.
In addition, you can contact me on INSTAGRAM @bolddestinations_
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