Quality nourishment makes flowers, and you bloom.

Part of the reason an eating disorder holds a tenacious grip on a person, particularly someone with anorexia, is that the brain is not able to think clearly or realistically. The brain is malnourished and struggling to keep brain cells alive.

When the brain is starving, either from no food or low-quality food or too many toxins, a person can get caught in eating disorder thinking. Then she sees anything that seems to threaten the eating disorder way of life as an enemy.

Poor logic, dangerous reasoning, distorted perceptions and obsessive commitment to unhealthy practices prevail. The person needs to nourish her brain well so she can align herself with the healthy and normal principles that support her recovery.

Following the basics of the Mediterranean Diet is a fine way to nourish the brain and restore mental clarity. Since "diet" can be a triggering word for people with eating disorders, a better description might be the Mediterranean style of eating.

Learn more about the Mediterranean style of eating by following the links below.

• Mediterranean Diet for Heart Health details as described by the Mayo Clinic
• Mediterranean Eating Habits Prove Good for the Brain in Scientific American
• Mediterranean Diet Can Protect Your Brain Power in the Wellness Blog

Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.

Written by Joanna Poppink, MFT. Joanna is a psychotherapist in private practice specializing in eating disorder recovery, stress, PTSD, and adult development.

She is licensed in CA, AZ, OR, and FL. Author of the Book: Healing Your Hungry Heart: Recovering from Your Eating Disorder

Appointments are virtual.

For a free telephone consultation, e-mail her at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

An EDR reader wrote that in her anorexic phase, she is afraid to sleep because, in sleep, she won't burn off enough calories. In her bulimic phase, she eats to pass out. In other words, she never gets normal, good, deep, restorative rest.

The sleep and sleep deprivation issues are important to explore and understand in working toward eating disorder recovery.In the reader's post, she describes how her anorexic and bulimic phases bring up different psychological motivations and behaviors.

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This story is my attempt to bring understanding to this painful, desperate and all too common experience in the life of a bulimic woman. It could be triggering. I wrote this because articulating the extent of a bulimic episode in detail can help a woman know she can be understood and accepted. If she can feel known in her darkest hours, she may experience a new sense of hope and reach for her recovery

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Trigger: Your Roommate Goes Out of Town for a Week.