Eating Disorder Recovery: A Checklist for Recovery

After a long struggle with an eating disorder, you must begin to look at life in a new way.

This involves far more than establishing a healthy relationship with food. It requires breaking old habits and learning new skills to cope with the ups and downs of life. It takes strength, dedication and patience to face the inevitable challenges. Additionally, it takes a real commitment to rediscovering oneself.

At the practice of Raul J. Rodriguez, MD, we applaud those who have made a commitment to eating disorder recovery. As an outpatient eating disorder treatment center, we know firsthand how difficult maintaining recovery from ED can be. Eating disorders are notoriously known as one of the most difficult mental health conditions to treat. Many who have eating disorders don’t recognize it to be a problem. If you have admitted you have an eating disorder and are taking steps to recover, we salute you.

In the spirit of recovery, here is a checklist of things to remind yourself of when starting the journey of eating disorder recovery:

•    Feel free to express what you believe about yourself and break apart from the rigid set of rules you’ve set for yourself
•    Develop self-acceptance through practicing compassion toward yourself
•    Practice mindfulness to ease your mind and relieve anxiety that you may feel throughout this process
•    Get treatment for co-occurring disorders such as anxiety, depression, or alcohol addiction if applicable
•    Find a safe space or person that you can go to if you struggle with trying to follow your old routines
•    Eat healthy, nutritious foods that fuel your mind and body
•    Listen to and respect your body’s hunger and fullness signs

Always keep in mind: You don’t have to do this alone. Our eating disorder and mental health center in Delray Beach, Florida offers assistance to those struggling with ED, at any point of their recovery process. Individual therapy, psychiatry, and nutritional therapy are all available to our eating disorder patients on an outpatient basis. Raul J. Rodriguez, MD and his team also offer support and process groups for body image, disordered eating, and more. Contact us today at 888-551-6281.