The Squiggly, Non-Linear Path of Recovery
Ever wish that eating disorder recovery were as simple as deciding to recover? No big challenges, minimal roadblocks, hardly any frustrations, limited desire to go back to engaging in behaviors? If you said yes, you are not alone. Today, we are talking about the squiggly, twisty, non-linear path that is eating disorder recovery.
Now, I’m guessing at least part of you knows that eating disorder recovery won’t be easy and will come with some challenges. But, when you are actually in the middle of them, or notice more roadblocks than you accounted for, it can get incredibly frustrating and defeating.
The Squiggly, Non-Linear Path of Eating Disorder Recovery
Healing is not linear. In fact, it’s a squiggly, twisty, sometimes really long path that rarely has a specific stopping or ending point. The same is true with eating disorder recovery. I like to imagine recovery looking similar to how time is measured in the afterlife in The Good Place, a little Jeremy Bearimy.
If you have no idea what I’m talking about: 1) you need to watch The Good Place (it’s great!) and 2) Jeremy Bearimy is a physical representation of the timeline of the afterlife in the show, The Good Place. It resembles the name Jeremy Bearimy written in English cursive.
The Benefits of Non-linear Recovery
What I love about this visual is that there are loops, movement forward, backward, up, and down. And that’s what healing can look like. Non-linear healing - while it can feel frustrating, excruciating, lonely, annoying, and more - has so many benefits.
It allows you to practice:
building self-trust and self-compassion
utilizing new skills and coping tools beyond food and exercise
identifying and understanding your feelings and needs
communicating your feelings and needs
understanding and regulating your nervous system
set boundaries
The other piece of this that I think we can sometimes miss: yes, it doesn’t always feel good when we go backwards or perceive that we’ve gone backwards, BUT, was there anything different about it this time?
Did you respond differently? Can you see a different perspective? Did you use more adaptive coping skills? Did you set a boundary or speak up this time? Did sitting in the suck last as long? Were your emotions as strong? Were you able to utilize your support system in a different way?
Life is going to happen around us. It makes recovery even more challenging sometimes, but it also gives us the opportunity to practice habituation. If you remember from a previous blog post, habituation is the process in which a response to a repeated stimulus decreases over time. Each time you move back a few paces or revisit an area of recovery, you can utilize your skills and tools to move forward in a different, more adaptive way. This also helps to promote neuroplasticity and increase your brain’s ability to use a new neural pathway.
Navigating the Jeremy Bearimy
Here is a list of a few things that might help make your recovery journey more supportive.
remember WHY you are recovering
create mantras/affirmations geared toward recovery
create a self-care routine/practice
ADD IN fun things/enjoyable activities
join a support group
Speaking of support groups, our Eating Disorder Recovery Community Support Group has open enrollment. This group is a space for women moving through eating disorder recovery who crave support and a community that understands their experience. We meet weekly at the Collaborative Counseling and Nutrition Carmel office, June through September, on Mondays @ 4:00 pm. Grab the details and sign up here.
Moving Forward
We know recovery can be challenging and isolating. If you or someone you love is struggling with an eating disorder, please reach out to our team today!
Collaborative Counseling & Nutrition is an outpatient nutrition and body image counseling center, with locations in Indianapolis and Carmel, that provides compassionate, holistic eating disorder treatment. Through practicing mindfulness, intuition, and Health At Every Size, we are on a mission to help you find a true state of well-being! We take an anti-diet, weight-inclusive approach with all our clients and work to help guide you towards a way of healthy living designed by you, just for you! This post is for education purposes only and should not be used as a substitute for treatment for an eating disorder. If you are looking for a registered dietitian or therapist to assist you on your recovery journey, please reach out today!
