The answer to the binge response dilemma:
Grow Your Way Out: You have to grow your way out. Eating disorder healing and recovery are directly related to nurturing and supporting young and wounded aspects of your psyche to health and maturity. A more sturdy, healthy and realistically confident inner world allows you to use self-growth and stress reduction methods to cope well in the world.
Developing that kind of inner world is the goal of eating disorder treatment. Stress reduction programs, inspirational and practical task lists, and articles, including some suggestions on my blog, are practical and helpful to people who can use them.
Need for Solid Inner Core: But, if you experience an inner shattering under stress, you can’t yet make use of such reduction resources. For example, if an abusive person continually makes hurtful and undermining comments to you and you cannot stop that behavior or withdraw from that person, you have a revealing and inadequate or even dangerous way of responding to crisis.
You may not even recognize that the person is being abusive because the person is a parent or spouse. Your helpless inability to recognize the abuse or care for yourself in the situation is a reflection of what is undeveloped in you.
So, if you are in collapse and acting out mode because of a real or perceived crisis, then even holding a book or reading words can be too much for you. Your eyes can blur. Your hands can tremble.
Your inner experience of anxiety can compel you to run in whatever form your way of running takes. Many women with eating disorders accept abusive treatment because they sense with a deep knowing that they will collapse and drown under a devastating wave of eradicating isolation.
It’s a horrible feeling that must be avoided at all costs. If this is you, then before you can take effective action based on the guidance and advice of stress reduction and self-growth programs, you need a more solid inner core so you can tolerate what feels to you like moments of great risk.
Healing Work Required: Please do not underestimate the depth of the work required for healing. Your eating disorder is not based on vanity, poor nutrition, hunger, weight concerns, body image, desire for praise, acceptance or validation. Your eating disorder is based on deep psychological wounds you may not even know about because the disorder works to keep you oblivious to your own experience.
See Lisa Ann Schnepfer's article, which gives an excellent breakdown of the situations that contribute to the development of an eating disorder.
Each person must find her way to recovery her way. Finding a knowledgeable and experienced psychotherapist who will honor you and help you in creating and developing your personal recovery journey is vital.
Finding Your Healing Path Your Way: 12 step programs can be helpful in teaching you a more healthy daily life structure and giving you an opportunity to hear and meet inspiring people who are dedicated to recovery. You may discover more than one program that can help you.
Meditation practice is taught now in spiritual and non-spiritual ways. Learning mindful practices in life, teaching your body, mind and heart to be still and aware, even for just a few minutes a day, will help your recovery process.
See The Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care, and Society (CFM), established in 1995 by Jon Kabat-Zinn, PhD. The Center is a natural outgrowth of the acclaimed Stress Reduction Clinic founded in 1979 at the UMass Medical School.
Go to "Other MBSR programs". You’ll find it toward the bottom of the left-hand list of contents and enter your zip code, or simply go to this page. (By the way, I’ve taken the eight week MBSR course in Los Angeles and am still reaping benefits.)
Nourishing your body can give your brain the food it needs to function properly. Distorted thinking and flooding fantasies can diminish when you feed your brain properly.
Exercise, not compulsive exercise, but regular joyous movement, preferably outdoors, can reawaken your senses and connect your mind, spirit and body. Just a daily 20-minute walk in a pretty or interesting place can make a huge difference in your state of being. Combine walking and meditation by learning about walking meditation.
Dancing is great. If you have any inhibitions at all, dance alone in your home to music you love. Just ten minutes will lift your spirits and remind you of who you forgot you were.
A thorough description of eating disorders at Eating Disorder Hope, a rich resource of information and sources of help.
To find your psychotherapist, see:
Academy for Eating Disorders (AED)
International Association of Eating Disorders Professionals (iaedp)
Good luck! I wish you a successful recovery journey and a rich rebuilding of your inner core.
Eating Disorders: Response to Crisis
Response to Crisis: Part I of VI - How to Heal From Binge Purge
Response to Crisis: Part II of VI
Response to Crisis: Part III of VI
Response to Crisis: Part IV of VI
Response to Crisis: Part V of VI
Response to Crisis: Part VI of VI
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
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