A significant hurdle is learning to accept your recovered body and not fixate on your eating disorder body. While this may sound straightforward, for those with eating disorders, it often feels like an unachievable goal.

This blog post will explore strategies to support body acceptance, delving into what this process entails.

Fact Check Beauty Ideals

When did you start to believe that your body was wrong and needed to be changed? 

What made you think cellulite, stretch marks, wrinkles, rolls, and folds were wrong? Who or what told you that beauty is the most important thing to work towards? 

When did you begin to believe your body was not good enough because of how it looked? 

For many of us, the answer to these questions is probably from a young age. We saw (and continue to see) these harmful standards upheld on television, social media, and magazines, and even in everyday conversations within family, friend groups, and society. Remind yourself that no scientific basis proves a particular body type and shape is better than another. Recognize that society has brainwashed you into believing that your body needs to change to determine your worth. Remind yourself that you feel hate towards your body only because that is what you have been taught to believe. But consider for a second: would you believe these perceived imperfections about your body were wrong if you were not made to believe so? Probably not.

Make a List of What Your Body Allows You To Do 

So often, we determine our worth based on what our body looks like or what the scale reads. But what if we instead determined our worth partly upon what our body does for us and what it is capable of? This list will be different for everyone, so be mindful not to compare your blessings and abilities with others. The goal is to find what makes you uniquely you. 

Remember the Moment, Not Your Body

Our camera roll can be our enemy if we let it. Remember the memory behind the photo instead of scrolling through old pictures and romanticizing your past body. Were you happy? Are you able to remember core moments from that photo’s capture, or is it filled with eating disorder thoughts that consumed that moment? They say a picture holds a thousand words, so take some time to reflect on what is behind the scenes of the photos and not how your body looks. And if you find that the photo causes more harm than good, delete it. Alternatively, if doom-scrolling puts you in a bad headspace, do not start.

Focus On What You Like About Yourself 

What makes you, you? It is not your physical appearance. Make a list of your morals, beliefs, and values. Journal about what you like about yourself that has nothing to do with your appearance. Are you trustworthy? Are you great at listening to others? Are you excellent at painting and drawing? Confidence does not make you selfish or arrogant; it makes you a person who knows and recognizes their value!

Get Rid of Clothes That No Longer Fit or are Uncomfortable

Holding onto clothes that no longer fit keeps you from continuing to let go of your eating disorder’s grasp. Consider cleaning out your closet and gifting, donating, or selling the clothes. Get them out of sight and out of mind, as they say. Additionally, if some clothes still fit but bring up memories that do not serve you, it is also okay to get rid of those. Sometimes, to move on and heal, you must let go, and going through your closet is a great first step. It can help you accept the body you have versus the body your eating disorder created.