With summer just around the corner, you find yourself thinking and worrying about your body more than normal.
Going to the grocery store used to come with relative ease. And now you find yourself obsessing about your food choices and the negative comments people make about their bodies. The internal spin starts to speed up and you want off of this awful merry-go-round.
As an eating disorder therapist in Salt Lake, I want you to know that we understand that the struggle is real. The chatter that you hear all around you is always about learning to minimize your body and about controlling your food. And lately, the chatter has become the background noise that is disrupting your happiness. Here are a few tips you can try to challenge the chatter:
Exposure is Everywhere
Remind yourself that there’s a reason this feels so overwhelming. For years, be it in the news, and in the media, you have been saturated with stories and images about weight shape, and size. In response, diet culture has been peddling products and diets to change your body and “your health”. Despite the fact that diets don’t work. Despite the fact that dieting and other behaviors are the catalysts of eating disorders.
The negative messaging seems like the only truth that exists. Eating disorder therapists see this all the time and we know there’s a better path. So when you start to feel overwhelmed, remind yourself that there is a big backstory to the emotions you are currently feeling. It’s not your fault that you are thinking and feeling this way, and we know you deserve better.
Give yourself permission to eat the food you enjoy, guilt, free!
Well, this may seem like either a brilliant idea or a scary idea to you, or perhaps both! The research is very clear, how we feel about food impacts how our body responds to food. So if we view food negatively, we have a stress response to it. Guilt and shame have never been known to improve someone’s mental or physical health in my experience. If we can pull morality out of food, and stop seeing it as “good” or “bad”, we will feel much better.
Returning peace and pleasure back to food allows you to be more attuned to your body and eat in ways that honor its needs and its wants. This often feels scary to people because diet culture reinforces a belief that our bodies cannot be trusted when in reality the research is clear. We can trust our bodies, it knows when we need a broader array of food, it knows when we are full, it knows when certain foods stop tasting good, and the list goes on.
Remember that your relationship with your body is a relationship.
One that will ebb and flow, and change over time. It is similar to all other relationships in your life. Sometimes our relationships are going really well and other times we experience a rough patch. No relationship counselor would advise you to demean, punish, and control the other person in the relationship. And those same rules apply when it comes to our bodies. What will start to heal your relationships is compassion, understanding, and patience. And so it is with your body, you don’t have to always like it in order to treat it kindly and give it the respect and care it needs. Caring for your body means giving yourself permission to enjoy eating and moving in ways that connect you to others and bring you joy.
We understand that trying to re-write your patterns with food and your body can feel like a hero’s journey, and one you aren’t sure you can actually make happen. Healing your relationship with your body and food takes time. Changes are possible. You can recover from your eating disorder, you can stop swimming in body shame, and you can combat the negative messages that have harmed you.
Begin Working With An Eating Disorder Therapist in Salt Lake City, UT
Changing your relationship with food can take time, patience, and the right support. Our team can help. We are happy to offer support from our Salt Lake-based practice. You can start your therapy journey with Inside Wellness by following these simple steps:
Reach out and give us a call at 801-699-6161.
Learn more about our counseling services and the members of our team.
Start creating lasting change!
Other Therapy Services Offered with Inside Wellness
We understand that you may experience other concerns in addition to eating disorders. This is why Inside Wellness offers support with a variety of mental health services. Other services offered include body image counseling, anxiety treatment, and online Therapy in Utah. Feel free to visit our blog for more helpful information today!