Illuminating Anorexia & Eating Disorder Recovery

The reason I differentiate anorexia from other eating disorders is because there are two sub-types of anorexia – a restricting sub-type and a binge-eating/purging sub type. Understanding the difference is important when considering how best to approach and support someone with anorexia. Unlike most ED presentations,  a person with anorexia (restricting sub-type) does not present wit...

Free to be wrong and free to be loved…woohoo! Bring on the freedom. This is a continuation of the previous post. Amazing, wonderful, mysterious, sublime how the realities of life, the vulnerability, the humbling, the movement down from our lofty ideals and self-importance are the very means by which we rise and are liberated to live and love in new and wonderful ways. I’m learning, alw...

One of the most liberating experiences of my life is to know and accept my frail, flawed, finite humanity. It reads like a misprint doesn’t it? As human beings we often spend much of our lives ‘protecting’ ourselves from this vulnerable reality but I have discovered it to be the very bedrock of  freedom. And to discover that I am loved and chosen in my imperfection is t...

This is a brief addendum to the episode on Beating the bully in your head. When I said get out of the environment (change your perspective) and get going (release some of the energy bound up in the mental battle with the bully ), I was not advocating that you go out and over exercise if this is something your bully hounds you to do. The bully always punishes. In the example I gave my bul...

I love this play on words. I use it deliberately. Perfectionism is a losing game. The more you chase perfectionism the more it will elude you. You will find yourself chasing your tail and getting worn down in the process. And who knows what you may lose along the way…health, friends, money, time… opportunity…JOY! I have loved (& hated) the journey of losing my perfe...

Have you ever found yourself getting beaten up by the bully in your head? Most people are familiar with this experience. It’s good to know how your bully operates. After five days cooped up at home trying to recover from flu I was aware of a sense of ‘time’ pressure building to complete some work. There was a legitimacy about the pressure because I have constr...

I just listened to an interview on Hack radio regarding ‘Treating Anorexia.’ Canadian professor Louis Charland (?spelling), Philosopher of Science and Bioethicist, was speaking with Sarah McFee about the merits of treating anorexia as a “passion” (an affective disorder of   feelings rather than thinking). He said current cognitive therapies are “just not effective enough” and that people wit...

I was speaking with a young lady last night and it reminded me that when you’re in a healthy weight range it can be difficult for others to recognise that you are struggling with an eating disorder. If you need help with disordered eating please don’t think you have to get “sicker”  for others to believe you have a problem. Even if you haven’t yet...

I was reading a newspaper article this morning about the doubling rates of anorexia in young people under 14 years of age in the UK. We have similar figures in Australia. I thought I’d share some thoughts about how can we (adults) can help build resilience in our kids and younger people. Here are a few quick thoughts: Commend character – things like honesty, trustworthiness, reliability...

Have you ever felt overwhelmed by bad news and challenging life circumstances? I’m sure we all have. When wave after wave crashes in on your world or ebbs away at you over a long season it can make it difficult to rise out of the bog and see (or believe for) anything hope-full in your future. There is such power in shifting our focus away from what we don’t have (the bad news or difficult circumst...

Following on from the last episode (where I spoke about some of the factors I believe are giving rise to the increasing prevalence of eating disorders and disordered eating in our communities), I want to say a little more about the importance of the roots of our security going deep into a foundation of unconditional worth and value. We need to know this more than just as a mental construct. It nee...

Two unrelated articles stirred my mind this week. One by journalist Brian McNair from University of Technology Queensland, about “terror going viral” where he explores some of the downside of our interconnectedness via Internet and social media. The other, by the National Eating Disorder Collaboration interviewing Prof Susan Paxton about the rising prevalence of eating disorders in Australia. She...

Following up my last episode with SB, realise I got a bit feisty but I know that when a person is feeling too ashamed to reach out for human help they need to know at a deep gut level (deep in their soul) that they are OKAY as they are; that their reality is NOT too big or too broken for them to experience the liberating (& HEALING) truth and power of their loveability,  worthiness, and v...

The most powerful truth I know to help you get FREE from an eating disorder is to know (by experience) that you are loved, desired, of inestimable worth, chosen. You may never have experienced these things, and if you’ve been on the ED treadmill for a long time, the lies you’ve believed may blind your mind and block your heart from receiving these truths and taking in the nurture (physical an...

A young lady wrote in to ask how she could get free from the ED mindset. This was my response. You can watch it on YouTube where I refer to the model I created to help explain the ED ‘solution’ to the problem of pain (you can download a copy of this model here ). Getting FREE from the ED mindset is a process that requires tackling both the behaviors and the underlying self experience (...

Have you ever felt like you would NEVER be free from your eating disorder or disordered eating experience? Have you ever wondered, "How on earth did I get stuck in this place where thoughts of food and weight (and exercise) consume me?! I didn't start here. How did this happen?" i want to reassure you, you are not alone. And I want to encourage you, you can be FREE! Completely free....

Have you ever watched something you wished you had not? I had this experience recently. It was a reminder that I need to be discerning about what I “let in” to my inner world via my eyes and ears. If I want to be healthy and at peace within, I need to guard and nurture my soul. To feed on images and words that bring life, hope, peace, joy. Predominantly. I don’t bury my head in the san...

Pt 2 in a 2 part series originally shot on video and available on my YouTube channel. Recovering from an eating disorder requires (re) connecting with your self, your body and other people in healthy ways. You will need support. We all do. It’s part of being human. Reaching out is not a sign of weakness but of strength. Help is available. Here are some options and things to consider as...

Recovering from an eating disorder requires (re) connecting with our self, our body and other people in healthy ways. You will need support. We all do. It’s part of being human. Reaching out is not a sign of weakness but of strength. Help is available. Here’s some options and things to consider as you look at what support might mean for you. Feedback and questions welcome.

In May this year the Butterfly Foundation put out a “Mayday” call seeking to raise awareness and support for those suffering with eating disorders in Australia. They estimate there are now 1 million sufferers in Australia with less than 25%of those with an eating disorder in treatment despite the fact that eating disorders have the highest mortality rate of any mental illness. The...

When you’re battling the lies, self rejection and self destructive behaviours that come with an eating disorder you need natural and super-natural (spiritual) help to overcome them. I’m talking about light, truth, power and love…experiencing these things as more than a mental construct. We need help on all levels – biopsychosociospiritual. This one was key for me in my recovery. I welcome your fee...

When you’re battling the lies, self rejection and self destructive behaviours that come with an eating disorder you need natural and super-natural (spiritual) help to overcome them. I’m talking about light, truth, power and love…experiencing these things as more than a mental construct. We need help on all levels – biopsychosociospiritual. This one was key for me in my reco...

I was an outpatient at Rivendell for two months before being admitted as an inpatient. The most significant development of this outpatient period was that my bingeing intensified. At the time I had no idea that the “binger” was a part of me. I identified only with my restricting “good girl” (anorectic) self. I was convinced the binger was my enemy, threatening to explode the safe, secure world I h...

Part 2 in a series describing the escalating conflict and development of ‘voices’ I experienced as my anorexia progressed and my eating disorder “solution” became increasingly untenable. I knew I needed to eat. I hated feeling like a “burden” on my parents but the fear that drove my journey down the scales overwhelmed my rational self. This excerpt from Illumina...

I recently uploaded “Escalating Conflict” – a chapter from my book describing the period when, after a few years on the restrictive path I clearly recognised my food control ‘solution’ was no longer working. It was now causing the parents I loved great concern. I was so conflicted – wanting to conform (to put on weight, to please mum and dad) but in being a...