“Connect, connect, connect,” therapists have told me far more times than I can count.
Isolation is what kills when it comes to eating disorders.
Trauma is disconnection. Recovery is connection.
Depression thrives in solitude, so support saves.
Enter a worldwide pandemic. Now what?!
Over a decade ago, Ed (a.k.a. my “eating disorder”) would have used the coronavirus as a perfect excuse to keep me holed up in my own personal quarantine of disaster and destruction. Depression would have wholeheartedly agreed: “You can’t reach out for support. It isn’t safe.” Years later, trauma, stuck on high alert, surely would have chimed in: “Yes, connecting is life-threatening. It could kill you.”
Has Ed — or another mental illness — hijacked the pandemic to strengthen its agenda? The first step is to see it. I wouldn’t be surprised to hear Ed spout off any of the following:
“It’s okay to binge because this is an extra stressful time. You can stop when COVID-19 stops.”
“Don’t eat. There is a food shortage.”
“Purging — just for now — is acceptable. You have to manage your extra high anxiety somehow.”
Here’s a key tip: If Ed is opening his mouth, he is lying.
Read the full post on The Meadows Ranch blog.
connection, eating disorder, mental illness