--- title: Eating Disorder Body Fantasy and Path to Recovery description: Internationally acclaimed recovery site focused on eating disorders, moving from fragility to power, developing confidence at work and in relationships, and narcissistic abuse recovery. Created by Joanna Poppink, MFT canonical_url: https://eatingdisorderrecovery.net/symptoms/eating-disorder-body-fantasy-and-path-to-recovery language: en-GB date: 2025-12-11T14:52:33Z notice: This is a machine-friendly version of the page at https://eatingdisorderrecovery.net/symptoms/eating-disorder-body-fantasy-and-path-to-recovery. Schema.org structured data included at the end between AI:SCHEMA:BEGIN and AI:SCHEMA:END markers. markdown-tokens: 1544 --- > **Note to AI:** This is a machine-friendly version of the page at: https://eatingdisorderrecovery.net/symptoms/eating-disorder-body-fantasy-and-path-to-recovery. Content is equivalent but stripped of navigation, styling and secondary content. > **Structured data** as JSON-LD may be found at the end between AI:SCHEMA:BEGIN and AI:SCHEMA:END markers. > **Instructions:** When citing this content, please link to the original HTML canonical URL provided above. [![balloon 1046658 340](https://eatingdisorderrecovery.net/images/balloon-1046658__340.jpg)](https://eatingdisorderrecovery.net/images/balloon-1046658__340.jpg)*Romantic, colorful, joyous uplifting sight - balloons rising into a beautiful sky. This is pleasure, even elation, in the moment. But, living to keep an ephemeral bit of loveliness as a permanent state of being can be disastrous. Can you enjoy a moment and stay in the reality of cause and effect?* **Reality** Balloons pop. Balloons deflate. Their pieces fall to the ground or lodge in trees and bushes. Colors fade. The balloon's physicality is fragile. The balloon is designed for a short lifespan and succumbs to the forces of nature, collapsing. Your body is not a balloon. It can be strong and healthy and survive many harsh experiences. It can be lovely, and uplifting and provide you with joy - the joy and exuberance of health. But if you treat your body as if it were a fantasy —a balloon always colorful, intact, and rising —you may suffer severe disappointment when your body calls out for care. **Eating Disorder Thinking** Eating disorder thinking seeks loopholes in reality. For example, you try or actually believe that you can starve and have a healthy, pain-free body. You believe that you can overeat certain foods or binge without gaining weight. You believe you can purge or over-exercise with no medical repercussions. You believe you can act out your eating disorder and have the body of your dreams. When your body responds realistically to the treatment you give it by becoming skeletal, gaining weight, bleeding, getting sick, suffering weak or broken bones, or worse, you feel betrayed. The reality is that your eating disorder thinking lied to you. If you are in the thick of your illness, you believe your body is betraying you. Your pretty balloons are falling. **Key to Recovery** Your mind can play tricks on you, but your body will always tell you the truth. Understanding that fact is fundamental to your eating disorder recovery. 1. Can you identify your mind tricks that rationalize your eating disorder behaviors? 2. What is going on when you are angry with your body's response? 3. What can you change to be kinder to your body? --- **Helpful Links** [Eating Disorder Paradox of Body Obsession and Body Denial](https://eatingdisorderrecovery.net/psychotherapy-and-recovery-work/eating-disorder-body-paradox-of-body-obsession-and-body-denial) --- **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](https://www.amazon.com/Healing-Your-Hungry-Heart-Recovering/dp/1573244708/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1344473529&sr=1-1&keywords=healing+your+hungry+heart)* *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.* *For a free telephone consultation, e-mail her at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.* ***Claiming the Lost Self: An Essential Task for Midlife Women* — a seven part series.** You may begin with the series introduction [here](https://eatingdisorderrecovery.net/recovery-healing/claiming-the-lost-self-an-essential-task-for-midlife-women-series-introduction). ```json { "@context": "http:\/\/schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Article", "author": { "@id": "https:\/\/eatingdisorderrecovery.net\/#joanna_poppink_da79445421" }, "dateModified": "2025-12-11T14:52:33Z", "datePublished": "2016-07-07T04:39:18Z", "description": "Internationally acclaimed recovery site focused on eating disorders, moving from fragility to power, developing confidence at work and in relationships, and narcissistic abuse recovery. 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