Recovery Letter – Mental Health Awareness Month – 2019

If you are curious about how to write your own letter here are some tips for helping you write a positive, supportive and constructive letter.

Guidelines for a Recovery Letter: 

1. Keep it short- Try to write no more than 1,000 words. The goal would be to write something that can be read in one sitting.
2. Open-Up- the more personal experiences and emotions you can share the greater the chance of connection can be.
3. Write in First Person- writing in first person helps create a deeper sense of connection
4. Address the letter using ‘Dear You’ and sign it with you first name.

My Recovery Letter:

Dear You,

I want to start off this letter by acknowledging how thankful I am that you have taken the time to read my letter. My name is Hannah. I am 24 years old and believe it or not consider myself to be RECOVERED from my eating disorder.

Depending on what stage you are at in your journey, me writing that I am RECOVERED might seem absurd, unreachable and/or mythological; and that is totally fair. I remember feeling the same way when I would listen to women speak about their recovery journey and say that they were completely recovered. But I am happy to report that full recovery (whatever that means to you) is possible.

I wanted to write this letter to you to let you know that you are not alone. While your story is unique from mine I do understand a lot of what you might be going through and feeling. I understand what it is like to look in the mirror or walk past a window and stare at yourself in disgust. I know what it’s like to secretly hope that today would be the day that a bus would just hit you and take you away from all the pain you feel on a daily basis. And I know how it feels to feel like you will never be enough; never be smart enough, or creative enough. Never be pretty enough or kind enough. 

I know that all of those feelings, no matter how dark, feel very very real to you right now. But I also know that one day those emotions won’t feel so overpowering. One day you might walk past a window or mirror and stop and think ‘wow I look pretty damn good today’. I also know that you will find people who love you and think you are amazing no matter what you do, say or weigh.

Now, don’t get me wrong, the recovery journey is hard and long. Recovery is not black and white it is grey. You may make positive progress and then fall backwards a bit and that’s okay. There will be days where you still are disgusted by your body and other days where you are proud of it. And that’s okay too. Recovery doesn’t have to be a straight line upwards. Infact, neither does life.

For me, recovery means living in the messiness of life. It means having a terrible body image day but still choosing to eat enough food that day to nourish and honor my body. Recovery, for me, means giving myself a break and unlearning the word ‘perfection’.

I hope that this letter can give you some hope and guidance on your own journey of recovery. If you take anything away from it know this: I may not know you or even have spoken with you but I believe in you. I believe that you are worthy of love, self-acceptance and kindness.

With love,

Hannah

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