In our latest blog, we delve into a common yet often misunderstood phenomenon known as the abstinence violation effect (AVE) and its impact on individuals in eating disorder recovery. Explore how a perceived lapse or violation of self-imposed rules can trigger intense negative emotions and potentially derail progress. Discover strategies for recognizing and managing the AVE to promote resilience and sustainable recovery.

Discover how Candy Salad is breaking down societal expectations and beliefs about 'healthy' eating! Click here to learn more about how Candy Salad encourages us to tap into sweetness and indulge without feeling guilt.

Did you know that many individuals have found EMDR therapy to be an effective and beneficial treatment option for those in eating disorder recovery? If you are interested in learning more about this approach, we invite you to visit our blog where you can delve into the details.

Are you curious to see if EMDR therapy can be beneficial for addressing your struggles with an eating disorder or negative body image? Explore our latest blog post for valuable insights and information on how EMDR may offer support in navigating these challenges.

Recovery, while different for everyone, often encompasses physical, emotional, and psychological liberation from the restrictive grip of disordered thoughts, belief systems and behaviors. Though the road to eating disorder recovery may be challenging, the transformative power it holds is immeasurable. With time, commitment, and unwavering support, individuals can emerge from the depths of their eating disorder to find a newfound sense of freedom, self-acceptance, and healing.

Just because you are struggling with your mental health, doesn’t mean you aren’t deserving of love, support, or connection. Nor does it mean you have been less value. And that specifically is also what this year’s Mental Health Awareness Month 2023 focuses on! The year’s Mental Health Awareness Month focuses on #MoreThanEnough.

It’s such a colorful time of year in Philadelphia when the weather begins to warm. More people frolicking out and about on the historic, cobblestone streets. But you wonder why you aren’t experiencing the same sense of excitement and joy as it seems your fellow Philadelphians. All you can find yourself thinking about as you travel the Center City streets is how uncomfortable you feel in your body. You find yourself worried that others are judging the way your body looks in your newly purchased spring attire. You want so badly to feel happy in the changing of the seasons, but you can’t. You dread the warmer weather and the body shame it brings.  

It never feels good enough when it comes to food decisions and our minds are always racing. We want to feel like we are making the right decision but we always end up back in the same cycle of punishing our bodies, feeling shameful and moody, and ultimately are left feeling negative about ourselves. It doesn’t have to be this way. We don’t have to live in society's food ‘rules, ’ feel guilty, shameful, or confused about food any longer. There is another way! 

It’s hard to love your body when you have so much dislike, even hatred for it. Our thoughts, feelings, and emotions about our body image heavily influences our personal experiences and plays such a big role in how we experience life. Oftentimes, (from my own personal experience too), our negative body image holds us back from truly experiencing present moments because we are too preoccupied with our appearance. 

Despite what society, the world, your family, or even you, yourself, has been told about eating disorders there are unfortunately so many misconceptions. You can be intensely restricting and obsessively over exercising and still think you are too big to have an eating disorder. You could also be restricting or binging and still show up in a body that is considered ‘normal’ or ‘overweight.’ You can be purging daily and your labs could still come up normal. 

You feel captive in your own body and don’t know how to become free, but you are beginning noticing that parts of you are ready to change. You are becoming more open to the idea of eating disorder recovery because a part of you is exhausted from all the work you have been doing. However, you are struggling to know what direction you should move in or what ED recovery could look like. 

NEDAW begins on Monday, February 27th and ends on Sunday, March 5th and is focusing on two key components–the lived experiences of individuals with eating disorders and providing education to others about eating disorders. Both of these components align with the theme of this year's NEDAW, which is It’s Time for Change.

We have been taught for so long to place judgments on ourselves, especially when it comes to our bodies. But it doesn’t have to have to be this way. We have the internal wisdom to manage the negative thoughts that we are having about our bodies…we just have to tap into them and be mindful of actually putting them into motion.  

Are you thinking about starting therapy but feel hesitant in moving forward? Maybe you are worried about the timing or aren’t sure how to find a therapist. Maybe you’re worried about what other people would think or say. Perhaps you just aren’t sure if therapy is right for you or if therapy will be beneficial. All you know is that you are tired of convincing yourself that you ‘don’t really need’ therapy or that you don’t ‘have it bad enough’.  You feel that you have finally reached a space of curiosity with therapy and what the therapeutic experience has to offer.

Whether you are fearful of the foods you will encounter on Thanksgiving Day, concerned about how you will manage your eating disorder voice, or just feel anxious about the pressure to eat or not eat you have the power right now, to prepare a toolbox of coping strategies to pull out of your back pocket when you are feeling overwhelmed and anxious this Thanksgiving.

Every culture has their own food likes and dislikes that have been heavily influenced by their ancestry. However, when we begin to restrict ourselves from our cultural foods because of diet culture and society's expectations, it can make us feel separated from a core piece of ourselves. And again, we often easily convince ourselves that we should restrict ourselves from that food because it is a smart nutritional decision.

Wouldn’t it be nice if nutrition was presented to you in a truly neutral way? Without dieting, weight loss, or some new fad? Instead you had someone walk you through your own personal lifestyle and help you construct your own nutritional roadmap. You can! That’s what a nutritionist would do with you.

Are you tired of all the chit chat and want to find a way to go deeper into your healing journey? Do you have trouble connecting with your body or are you painfully aware of your body and the space you take up in this world? Does it feel like talking just doesn’t always cut it for you? Are you stuck in your current therapy process and need some help getting deeper into your process?

Right now, you may be feeling that you have lost a sense of how to navigate the world around you, because you are in the throes of recovery and you have lost parts of yourself to the eating disorder. Eating disorder support groups can be a way to support your recovery journey and claiming your life back…

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. Learn how to access community to boost your eating disorder community

With routine being thrown out the window and heightened levels of anxiety around a pandemic that feels completely out of our control, many people are turning to their go-to coping mechanisms to manage this stressful time. If you or your loved one has a history of disordered eating, here is why this time may be particularly difficult and what you can do to support recovery.

DBT therapy offers skills-based learning to strengthen coping skills for difficult emotions while also providing opportunities to develop a new way of thinking about life, emotions, relationships and your sense of Self. Learn more to see if this could be the right therapy for you…

Recently, I created a list of questions to ask when vetting an eating disorder treament program to see what they actually provide. I thought I’d share this with all of you in case you’re looking for a higher level of eating disorder treatment.