How To Help If Your Sister Has An Eating Disorder

Seeing someone you love suffering is never easy. It can be particularly hard when it’s your sister.

Anxiety and depression are increasingly common in our crazy world, but unexpected events, even seemingly small ones, can trigger a change in a person that leads them down the path of an eating disorder.

If you see your sister suffering from a diagnosed eating disorder, or what you think might be an eating disorder, what can you do?

Firstly, don’t panic and don’t pressure her to get help. She needs to know and feel that you really care for her and want what’s best for her.

Real support is not enabling. It involves you setting aside your own feelings and agenda, really listening, and reassuring your sister that you love her.

An eating disorder can be a lonely experience.

Sufferers are often misunderstood. It can be scary for them to feel like the compulsive behavior that makes them feel ‘better’ is going to be taken away from them. This can actually lead to a worsening of symptoms.

So don’t try to scare or force your sister into doing what you think will help her. Do research, share it with her at a good time for HER, and maybe find some local therapy practices that specialize in treating eating disorders, and share those with her too. Keep reassuring her that you love her, that you want to help her, and that you will never give up on her.

It’s important that you know that there IS help available, and it does work.

Your sister can get better. But the decision to work towards wellness can only come from inside her - forcing someone to go to therapy can not be as effective as when they choose to engage in treatment for themselves.

A therapist who specializes in treating eating disorders will be able to support and guide your sister on her journey towards mental and physical wellness IF she chooses it. And choosing recovery is very terrifying for the person who is struggling even though it may seem obvious to you that they would be happier if they sought treatment.

Begin Eating Disorder Treatment in Provo, UT, & Beyond

If you are in the Salt Lake Valley, Utah Valley, Salt Lake City, Provo, or Orem, Inside Wellness can help. Our team of warm, empathetic therapists are highly trained in treating eating disorders and will work gently with your sister to help her back towards mental health and wholeness.

The choice must be your sister’s. Encourage her to reach out for help. She can schedule a call with our warm Care Coordinator, who will help her find the therapist that will be right for her.

You obviously love your sister to be reading this. Support her and gently help her to get the support she needs.

Other Services Offered With Inside Wellness

Our team understands you may experience a number of mental health concerns in addition to eating disorder treatment. This is why we are happy to offer support with a variety of mental health services. Other services offered include body image counseling, anxiety therapy, EMDR Therapy, and online Therapy in Utah. Feel free to visit our blog or FAQ to learn more helpful information!

Why do I have an eating disorder?

When you’re suffering from a physical or mental illness that profoundly affects your daily life, it can feel phenomenally unfair. ‘What did I do to deserve this?’ you may ask. Or ‘Why me? Why do I have an eating disorder?’

First of all, you did NOTHING to deserve the illness you suffer from. The sad reality is that our bodies and minds are not perfect and they can break down in seemingly endless ways. The good news is that there ARE things you can do to improve things. There is help available, and it DOES work.

The answer to the last question can be complicated. Many disorders can be traced back to negative thoughts that are triggered by trauma or exposure, prolonged stress, and environmental triggers. But eating disorders often stem from a complex interaction of biological, psychological, and environmental factors.

Some of the many triggers for an eating disorder include:

• Diet Culture

• Depression

• Anxiety

• Trauma

• Peer pressure

• Bullying

• Body dissatisfaction

• Genetic factors

This does NOT mean, however, that if you suffer from anxiety or negative self-talk that you will develop an eating disorder. The reasons why a certain mental illness affects one person and not another are many and complex.

One of the best people to help you explore why you’re suffering from an eating disorder and how best to treat it is a qualified mental health therapist. They will help you develop tools that can challenge unhelpful or negative thoughts, and work towards inner peace and calm.

Inside Wellness in Utah are specialists in helping individuals suffering from eating disorders. Each of our highly-trained therapists wants to help you recover and will treat you with warmth, respect, and dignity.

Reach out for help today - schedule a call with our Care Coordinator, who will help you find your idea therapist match.

Can Thoughts Affect An Eating Disorder?

Eating disorders are complicated afflictions, involving a web of triggers, negative thoughts, and downward spirals.

Thoughts not only affect eating disorders, they can be intrinsic in WHY the eating disorder started in the first place. This understanding may feel depressing…but it’s also good news, because if thoughts were involved at the beginning and now, they can also be retrained to work FOR you instead of against you.

We all suffer from negative thoughts at times, maybe even often. However, the difference with someone who suffers from an eating disorder is that these thoughts have created a particularly complex thought matrix that results in compulsive behaviors towards eating.

Low self-worth, early trauma, perfectionism, depression, anxiety, peer pressure, societal pressure, and negative body image can all be involved in this web of thoughts. And once they become entrenched, they can be difficult to break free from.

Sometimes, a sufferer of an eating disorder may not even WANT to stop these thoughts because they lead to the compulsions that make them feel better - at least, temporarily.

Recognizing that these compulsions are negatively impacting your life and relationships is often the first step to getting help.

Thoughts CAN be retrained. It takes time, effort, and expert guidance, but you CAN make a difference and improve your life.

A therapist who specializes in treating eating disorders can guide you on this journey towards mental and physical wellness.

If you are in the Salt Lake Valley, Utah Valley, Salt Lake City, Provo, or Orem, Inside Wellness can help you. Our team of warm, empathetic therapists are highly trained in treating eating disorders, and we want to help you.

Reach out for help today - schedule a call with our warm Care Coordinator, who will help you find your ideal therapist match.

Can EMDR Help With Negative Thoughts?

EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing) is a proven therapy modality with many studies and research to back it up. It involves a mind-body approach to change, and can be extremely powerful for helping individuals change negative thought patterns, negative core beliefs, strong emotional reactions, and entrenched habits.

Although it may sound intimidating, EMDR is quite simple and involves mindfulness and guided meditation exercises combined with external stimuli (like guided eye movements) to ‘reprogram’ thoughts and behavior.

It is an 8-stage process during which you are always completely conscious and in control of your participation.

The goal is to help you work through memories that cause you emotional distress in a gentle way while moving you towards how you want to think and feel.

EMDR empowers you to change and even reverse negative thought patterns that have taken up residence in your mind, body, and nervous system. It can help you to reduce and even eliminate these negative thoughts and reactions, allowing you to move purposefully towards inner calm and mental balance.

If EMDR sounds like something you think you might benefit from, schedule a call with our Care Coordinator today.

Our EMDR-specialist, Angela, will gently work with you and support you through the process of restoring your inner peace.

How Perfectionism Can Ruin Relationships

Perfectionism can be exhausting to live with - both for you and your loved ones. Trying to reach and maintain extremely high standards in relationships can lead to depression, anxiety, stress, and burnout. 

While high standards can be a positive thing, moving us to do our best in a task or activity, constant perfectionism can wear you down. It can lead to feelings of being trapped, anxiety, depression, loneliness, and isolation.

It can also insidiously wear down your relationships, as people start to feel it’s impossible to reach or maintain your high standards. This can lead to feelings of sadness and disconnection in both partners even when ultimately you both want to see each other succeed while simultaneously feeling connected.

Some stress and pressure can be good. But humans are just not equipped to cope with extreme or constant pressure and stress. It affects our bodies and minds negatively.

Perfectionism often begins with a series of negative thoughts or beliefs that become increasingly entrenched. The good news is that this same downward spiral of negative thinking can often be unwound back to its source.

A trained therapist who specializes in treating perfectionism in relationships will be able to help you work towards the mental balance and inner peace you (and your loved ones!) crave.

At Inside Wellness Utah, we specialize in a holistic approach to your mental health. Our perfectionism and relationship expert, Angela, specializes in helping you restore balance to your mental health and your relationships.

A common side effect of perfectionism is procrastination. Don’t procrastinate with getting the help you need to restore your mental health and relationships!

Schedule a call with our Care Coordinator today to book your first session with Angela.

Is Perfectionism A Form Of Anxiety?

At its most basic, perfectionism is the desire to be perfect as a person or in some area of your life (eg. work).

Unfortunately, Western culture does not nurture balance. We’re under constant pressure from the media and society, in general, to be perfect - or as close to it as possible - in pretty much every aspect of our lives. Often, we’re so used to living with this type of thinking that we don’t even recognize it as unbalanced.

This pressure can be very difficult to resist and succumbing to perfectionist thinking is an ever-present reality. However, perfectionist thinking can have some major negative impacts on mental health. 

While perfectionism is not on its own a form of anxiety, it can absolutely feed anxiety and anxiety disorders.

People with disorders like obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), panic disorder, and social anxiety disorder can be even more vulnerable to experiencing issues with perfectionism.

Perfectionism usually happens as a result of trying to live up to an internally-created ideal, but it can also stem from fear of judgment or the perception of others. 

These negative thoughts and beliefs may begin to result in avoidance behaviors, isolation, and depression. Some people become so overwhelmed with the stress and constant demands of perfectionism that they become paralyzed by fear and negative thinking. 

If you are struggling with perfectionism, or perfectionism and anxiety, help is absolutely available.

With the help of a trained therapist who specializes in anxiety, perfectionistic thoughts can often be traced back to the originating core beliefs and challenged in a safe environment. There are also practical tools you can learn to help you cope with the effects of perfectionism.

Begin Addressing Perfectionism With An Anxiety Therapist in Utah

At Inside Wellness, we can offer you a safe space to work through these challenges with a trained expert. Our team specializes in helping clients with perfectionism and anxiety. We would be honored to help you work through the traumatic life experiences that can trigger perfectionism. To start your therapy journey, please follow these simple steps:

1. Schedule a call with our Care Coordinator to book your first session.

2. Meet with a caring therapist

3. Start learning to cope with perfectionist tendencies!

Other Services Offered at Inside Wellness

We understand you may experience a number of mental health concerns in addition to anxiety counseling. This is why we are happy to offer support with a variety of mental health services. Other services offered include body image counseling, eating disorder therapy, and online Therapy in Utah. Feel free to visit our blog or FAQ to learn more helpful information!

Compulsive Exercise and Eating Disorders

Frequent and regular exercise is seen as a good thing in our culture. And when done in moderation it certainly can benefit our physical and mental health.

However, Compulsive Exercise Disorder (sometimes referred to as Exercise Addiction) is different and is actually classified as a significant symptom of an eating disorder. It happens when a person is driven to exercise too much. Pretty much nothing will stop a suffer from exercising, even injury, illness, bad weather, or going out with friends.

Compulsive Exercise and eating disorders are often seen together. An individual with bulimia may exercise excessively as a way to compensate for binge eating. Or someone with an eating disorder may work out excessively as a way to compensate for eating “too much” food or certain types of food.

A person with Compulsive Exercise Disorder may exhibit some or all of the following behaviors:

• They won't skip a workout, even if they’re tired, sick, or injured

• They can't take time off from working out

• They may seem anxious or guilty when they miss even one workout

• They are constantly preoccupied with their weight and exercise routine

• They exercise even more after eating a lot or missing a workout

• They will eat much less if they can't exercise

• They give up seeing friends or other activities and abandon responsibilities to make more time for exercise

• They appear to base their self-worth on the number of workouts they complete and the effort they put into training

• They are never satisfied with their own physical achievements

• They may have irregular periods or stress fractures

This disorder can be completely exhausting for the sufferer. They may feel trapped in an endless cycle - and believe ‘just one more workout’ will make them ‘feel better’.

It can be difficult to diagnose Compulsive Exercise Disorder because what amounts to ‘too much exercise’ is so subjective. Often, it takes the sufferer recognizing and admitting to themself that something isn’t right and reaching out for help.

If you think you may be suffering from Compulsive Exercise Disorder, there are things you can do to help yourself. They could include:

• Eating 3 meals and snacks on days you do and don’t excercise

• Enjoy exercise by being active together with friends or family.

• Try to increase your flexibility around exercise by exercising for less time or intensity or frequency

• Try to find new ways to cope with and ease stress.

If you think that you might be exercising too much, talking to a licensed therapist trained in eating disorders and/or Compulsive Exercise Disorder can really help. They have the experience and tools to help you examine your thoughts and behaviors, and see where you could introduce more balance.

Inside Wellness Utah specializes in the treatment of eating disorders. Our caring, empathetic team want to help you regain your balance and inner peace.

Schedule a call today with our Care Coordinator, who will help match you with the best therapist for you.

Is Binge Eating A Real Eating Disorder?

Western culture has created certain ‘rules’ in peoples’ minds that tell them certain things are ‘fact’, when, in fact, they are not.

Eating disorders have long been misunderstood, and Binge Eating Disorder is no exception.

There are people who think that a person ‘should just stop themselves from eating’ or ‘can’t you control yourself?’, when the sufferer of Binge Eating Disorder can no more stop themselves from eating as they can stop the earth from moving around the sun.

This is a disorder that can make the sufferer feel profoundly alone and isolated, and struggle to reach out for help because their experience has long been one of judgement.

Binge Eating Disorder is a very real affliction. Some of the signs that set this disorder apart include:

• Having a love-hate relationship with food & your body

• Chronic dieting or restriction followed by episodes of eating rapidly & feeling “out of control”

• Eating larger than normal amounts of food within a short period

• Repeatedly eating past fullness, to the point that you often feel sick

• Avoiding eating around other people due to intense fear of judgment from others

• Feeling intense shame about your behaviors

Binge eating disorder is can be present across the size, age, and gender spectrums even though no one talks about it.

If you or someone you love is suffering from Binge Eating Disorder, there is hope! Real help is available! You CAN get better from this affliction.

Inside Wellness Utah is a safe place where sufferers will find understanding, empathy, support, and expert guidance. Our specialist therapists want to help you recover.

Schedule a call today with our Care Coordinator, who will help match you with the ideal therapist for you.

How Can I Fix Cure My Eating Disorder?

Your eating disorder may feel like a cage from which you can never escape.

You want to change your thinking about food and eating, but it just seems like climbing a mountain in slippers and an evening gown - impossible.

There is hope, and it is absolutely possible to recover from an eating disorder, or at the very least improve it.

The first step is to admit that you have a problem. This may seem obvious to you and you may be thinking, ‘I’ve already done that - that’s why I’m reading this article!’ But admitting to yourself and being willing to admit the problem to someone who can help you are two parts of the same step. Both are needed for you to move forward towards recovery.

The behavior surrounding eating disorders is learned: we aren’t born with it. And just as this behavior and thought patterns were learned, new ones can be learned to replace them. This is not easy and will take effort from you, but with the right guidance and support, it is absolutely possible to achieve.

To truly recover from an eating disorder, you must learn to:

• Listen to your body

• Listen to your feelings

• Listen to your thoughts that create those feelings

• Understand yourself

• Accept yourself

• Love yourself

Some of these steps may sound easier than others, and that is absolutely true. However, this is a process that has been proven over and over to improve eating disorders and your quality of life.

The best, quickest way to see improvement is to enlist the help of a licensed therapist who specializes in eating disorders. They have the training, experience, and tools available to you to help you get where you want to be.

If you’re thinking, ‘Of course, you would say that - you’re a practice specializing in eating disorders!’, you’re right, of course. However, the reason each of the therapists in our practice chose to specialize in helping individuals with eating disorders is because it is something they feel extremely passionate about, for various reasons. We each know that this process works and we’ve seen it work with countless clients who start out feeling just like you, and go on to achieve great results.

You need support, the right support, expert support, to help guide you back to health.

That second person (outside of yourself) you admit you need help to? Let it be a trained therapist who will walk alongside you every step of the way, guide you when you feel afraid or hopeless, and support you back to health.

Every therapist at Inside Wellness Utah wants to be that person for you. Schedule a call today with our warm Care Coordinator, who will help you find the right therapist for you.

Help! I'm In My Thirties & I Think I Have An Eating Disorder

If you’re in your thirties and are concerned you may have an eating disorder, you are definitely not alone. 

In fact, it might surprise you to learn that eating disorders are actually most common in women in their thirties. 

According to a recent review, the majority of people reaching out for help are women aged between 25 and 35 years old. Not image-conscious teenagers, as you might imagine.

A large part of the reason for this development are our increasingly-hectic lifestyles. When you already feel out of control of your work or personal life, this can be a trigger (consciously or unconsciously) to take control wherever you can; in the case of an eating disorder, with the food you eat (or don’t eat).

There are many other possible triggers for an eating disorder - even when you’re in your thirties and feel like you ‘should be more stable.’ Just some of these triggers could be:

• Finishing college

• Starting a new job

• Going through a breakup

• Deciding to go on a diet

• Having a child

• Getting married

• Starting a significant relationship

Basically anything that unsettles you (even positively) or destabilizes your world can be a trigger for an eating disorder.

If you are in your thirties and think you might have an eating disorder, what can you do? The fact that you’ve sought out and are reading this article is a major first step - well done! 

An eating disorder is a serious condition that needs expert help and support. Reach out for support today from a licensed therapist who specializes in the treatment of eating disorders.

At Inside Wellness in sunny Utah, our warm and caring therapists will work with you to help you regain control of your thoughts, your relationship with food, and your life.

Schedule a call today with our friendly care coordinator, who will help you find your ideal therapist match.