Health is Wealth

If you have been following the news lately, you might have heard that the Duke and Duchess (Kate and William) had their first baby about a week ago. Needless to say, this has been long anticipated. The media was going crazy with this story - what would the baby's name be? How much would Kate spend on her hospital bill? How long would they stay in the hospital? The list goes on and on. Finally, the adorable little baby boy was born. And do you know what many of the media companies began to talk about? No, not his name. Not his birthdate. Not the hospital bill, either. Rather, they focussed on this one minor topic: how would Kate lose her 'baby bump'? SERIOUSLY? The woman just had a baby! Do we really need to know about her baby bump? It is a well-known fact that when you get pregnant, you gain weight. You need to gain enough weight so that both you and your baby will be healthy. Yes, it might not be exciting to see this weight go on. Bur reality is, most women do not rea...

ABC - three simple letters that we all know. These three letters can be helpful in deciding on a plan of action, and also when reflecting on our decisions and seeing whether or not we acted in the right or most helpful way. It may seem silly to some people, but I find that by planning out my actions and reflecting on them, I can make better decisions in the future. Try this out and see how it helps you! A) Antecedent - this is what happens before, or the situation that you are in. This is important because it determines what is going on around you. It could be anything - good or bad. Maybe you have revived a bad mark on a test, or perhaps you got into a fight with a friend or loved one. Or perhaps work is stressful, or you have too much to do. On the other hand, it could be something good, as is the case when you hear good news. Whatever happens, this determines your feelings or reactions. How do you feel about this situation? What is going through your head? What has happened that m...

I have received some suggestions asking me if I could post about how one can handle the balance between ED and religious customs, such as fasting and feasts. Although religions may differ, there are some similiarities in that they fast or abstain from food for certain reasons (for example, to remember an event), and this is often followed by a big feast to celebrate. I will talk about some of these issues and how one with ED can try to balance all of these situations. I pray that this helps! 1) FASTING. In my religion (Orthodoxy), we fast for many reasons: Christmas, Easter, etc. These fasts can be as short as three days to as long as three months! The absolute strictest sense is fasting without food from the morning until around 6 PM, which is when the Liturgy is held and we can take communion. If one cannot fast without any food, milk/dairy products as well as meat are withheld instead. In some cases, fish is allowed (depending on the fast occasion). I know what you are thinking: h...

I've struggled with accepting my body the way it is now, and I still do. It is hard for someone with ED to see and feel their body getting bigger. This is made worse when I feel full after eating, if I wear clothes that feel a little too tight, or if I am having a bad day and look in the mirror. 'Body exposure' is a term used to describe the process whereby patients with ED learn to accept their bodies. If you remember, I wrote a post about how I do not LOVE my body - I simpy accept it. This is normal for many people, but more so with those with ED. We do not need to love our bodies, as this is highly unlikely. However, we need to accept our bodies as being healthy and appreciate how much they enable us to do. Patients with ED, myself included, struggle with this acceptance. It is made worse when we try to avoid our bodies. For example, some do not wear swimming suits so that they do not see their bodies or skin. Others avoid mirrors, or dress in the dark. It sounds drast...

I'm usually a very flexible person. I'm not one to insist that things go my way all the time, nor am I the type of person that can't adapt to circumstances. In fact, I'd say that I'm pretty good at making changes and getting used to them.   Then came ED.   With ED, I always feared change. I could not stand a change in my 'normal day' because that meant that I had to find a new way to avoid eating. It meant that I had to figure out how I would excuse myself from all the food at parties, get-togethers, etc. I would get anxious when these events would come up because I'd have to put in the extra effort to avoid eating.   Now in recovery, things are a bit different. I no longer have to think of ways to avoid food. But I'm still not great with change. I need to plan all my meals: what I'll eat and when I'll eat it. I can't spontaneously eat if it isn't 'the time to eat' because I don't really ever feel hungry. And I can...

I'm blessed to have people in my life who are always ready to listen to me. I have days when I'm tired and angry, and all I want to do is scream. It's nice to know that there are people there who can lend a listening ear. What's important to me is not that this person gives me a solution - sometimes all we need is someone to listen to how we feel. These are some of the things that I find helpful. Let me know if they are helpful for you as well! 1) when I feel 'fat'. If someone I know tells me that I have not gained weight, I'll stare at them because I know they are not telling the truth. I have gained weight (a lot) and I know it's obvious. So telling me that I don't look like it will only make things worse. What WILL help is for the person to listen. I want them to know that this feeling is very real. I feel fat and big and ugly. That's part of my illness. It bothers me because it makes me feel like a failure. What would help is for the person...