Eating Disorder Recovery Support Group: Connecting with Others to FINALLY Connect with Your Body
By Alexandra Iula, MS, NCC, LPC
The past months our lives have felt completely out of our control- with rules and regulations in the city of Philadelphia changing week to week it’s so difficult to maintain any sort of a routine.
In light of this lack of consistency, many people are turning to their go-to coping mechanisms to manage this stressful time.
And yes, that means many people with a history of disordered eating may be tempted to fall back into old behaviors to find a sense of comfort and control- and this is completely understandable! While our world is taking extra precaution to focus on the health of our communities, there seems to be endless talk about food and physical fitness on social media- you saw those 2021 “New Year, New Me” resolutions, too right?- even though we are still facing a global pandemic. Disordered eating is everywhere, and unfortunately very often normalized. Take one scroll though anyone’s Instagram or TikTok feed and I guarantee there is an influx of “wellness” influencers promoting restrictive eating plans, “30 day-shred” workout regiments, and New Year cleanses.
It can feel especially isolating to work against eating disorder thoughts and urges when there are constant messages that not only encourage but also praise the same disordered behaviors as signs of health and strength.
Feeling alone in your eating disorder recovery?
In a time when we are more isolated than we have ever been before, you may be thinking you’re the only one who feels that keeping up with recovery is really hard right now. Yet I promise you, you are not alone. Whether that’s thinking about food and your body a lot or feeling completely overwhelmed or confused by all the diet content out there as we enter a new year, know that there is someone out there who is feeling the SAME way you are right now.
And, while it may feel more comfortable and safe to further isolate yourself due to shame, guilt, and protectiveness of your old habits returning, it is crucial now more than ever that you reach out for connection through an Eating Disorder Support Group. Especially during this time of staying safe at home virtual support groups provide clients in eating disorder recovery an opportunity to pull themselves out of isolation.
In reaching out for connection through a group, you will learn that you are not alone and the problem isn’t you. The problem is the way our society has taught you to think about bodies and health and diets and worth. We have been taught that your body is a constant “work in progress”. And time again we have been inundated with information around how to diet (although the latest diet trend is constantly changing) and overwork our bodies to change them because they are never good enough.
Self-deprecation is a cultural issue that requires a cultural shift.
Sadly, self-deprecation is valued as a form of connection in today’s culture- think about the last conversation you had with girlfriends around your appearance… most are spent nit-picking flaws and denying any compliment that is given.
It is no surprise that how we speak about our bodies impacts how we experience our bodies- if you are bonding with others by criticizing your weight or size you are reinforcing the beliefs diet culture is trying to instill- that your body is never good enough and a constant work in progress. Sadly, our mainstream culture does not promote eating for satisfaction and nourishment. We miss out on the opportunity to learn that our bodies are worthy of nourishment and compassion regardless of the size of your pants or the number on the scale.
An Eating Disorder Support Group will allow you the opportunity to hear the challenges diet culture presents in the lives of your peers and realize that you are not alone in an emotional journey of building trust with your body.
Learning to trust your body can feel daring in a world that constantly promotes adherence to external rules over honoring the internal wisdom your body holds.
When you allow yourself to understand and respond to your body, you empower the mind to increase flexibility in the beliefs you may hold around food, rest, movement, and hydration. You may learn that those very beliefs that are touted to better your body may be causing you to abandon your body.
Community and connection are essential in eating disorder recovery… maybe even now more than ever.
The beauty of a support group is that you do not have to debunk and unlearn the beliefs diet culture instilled in you all of your own. Challenging ourselves to let go of diet culture allows us to embrace our bodies as they are and gives others permission to unapologetically embrace their body as well. Joining a recovery support group allows you to let go of the belief that fighting diet culture and pushing away the eating disorder thoughts all alone makes you stronger. Yes, it is your journey and fight to recovery, yet imagine the pathways that may open when you have a community of like-minded others right next to you on this . There is so much strength in the vulnerability of asking for help no matter where you are on your recovery journey.
And, while a huge part of an eating disorder support group is to gain connection with others, it will also help you to gain better insight and awareness into yourself. Support group sessions help promote mindfulness and honesty in self-assessments, allowing you to be more truthful about your recovery and its barriers with yourself and those around you. Through emotional vulnerability you may find you are better able to connect with the needs of your own unique body.
It will allow you to trust that YOU and YOUR body are wiser than any Instagram blogger or fitness magazine. Your body is and always will be wiser than your mind and your relationship with your body is one of the most important (and long-standing) relationships throughout your lifetime- so give yourself the space to work on creating this connection.
Grant yourself the opportunity to release your body and mind from the chains of your diet culture and disordered eating by reaching out. Learn that your body and all bodies are worthy of nourishment and compassion through joining our 8 Week Virtual Eating Disorder Recovery Support Group on Wednesdays at 5:00-6:15 starting in February! Allow yourself the space to continue to heal your relationship with food and your body- because you deserve it.
Are you tired of feeling alone on your recovery journey?
Register today for our Eating Disorder Support Group- space is limited!
Led by Alexandra Iula, MS, NCC, LPC
484.784.6244
About the author:
Philadelphia Eating Disorder Specialist
Alexandra received her Masters of Science in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Johns Hopkins University School of Education in May 2017. She moved back home to the city of Philadelphia after graduation to start her career as a therapist. She worked for three years as a Senior Therapist an outpatient partial hospitalization and intensive outpatient treatment center specializing in treating women, from age 12 and up, suffering with eating disorders and their co-morbid diagnoses such as depression, anxiety, PTSD, borderline personality disorder, and substance abuse. Alexandra is currently a National Certified Counselor from the National Board of Certified Counselors and received her LPC in 2019 after accumulating two years post graduate school in the clinical field. She has extensive clinical training and experience in treating the whole person when approaching an eating disorder. She specializes in treating adolescents and adults struggling with disordered eating and body image issues, low self-esteem, trauma, depression, and anxiety. It is Alexandra’s hope that by being a non-judgmental professional she can create a safe and nurturing space that allows each client to work towards to developing confidence and acceptance in one’s relationship with food, their bodies, and their emotions.