Posts Tagged “Anorexia”

**Content warning: This is one person’s story; everyone will have unique experiences in recovery and beyond. Some stories may mention eating disorder thoughts, behaviors, and symptoms. Please use your discretion when reading and speak with your support system as needed.

By Brooklynn Raacke

My name is Brooklynn Raacke. I’ve overcome anorexia and am now a survivor. Through living with an eating disorder, I have been able to foster empathy and understanding for human struggles. While I would never wish disordered eating upon anybody, I am grateful for what my journey has taught me.

I entered my first dance class at age seven. Right off the bat, my heart fell in love. Little Me enjoyed performing with all she had for anyone and everyone. When I began sixth grade, dancing in front of the mirror started to affect how I felt about myself. Compared to my friends around me, my body had matured faster. At dance now, I would never take off my shirt. In middle school, I never liked my body, but I did not try to change it. My family bonds over food, and it was always a happy thing for me because it meant love and joy.

**Content warning: This is one person’s story; everyone will have unique experiences in recovery and beyond. Some stories may mention eating disorder thoughts, behaviors, and symptoms. Please use your discretion when reading and speak with your support system as needed.

Abby Anderson (she/her) is from the Twin Cities area and underwent treatment at The Emily Program following her anorexia nervosa diagnosis in the spring of 2018. After graduating from business school in 2020, Abby worked in corporate retail and consulting before eventually finding her passion in healthcare. Today, Abby works in a job that blends her skillset with her vested interest in eating disorder treatment, research, education, and accessibility. Abby spends her free time hanging out with friends, doing yoga, listening to podcasts, taking long walks outside, and, of course, writing.

If you are interested in connecting with Abby, don’t hesitate to reach out! You can follow Abby’s personal Instagram or her writing platform. You can also send her an email at eaten.alive.a@gmail.com. To learn more about Abby’s recovery story, listen to her on our Peace Meal podcast. Abby’s book can be purchased here.

In this blog, Abby tells us about her new book, Eaten Alive: Anorexia: Learning to Thrive after Living to Survive, how writing her memoir supported her healing, and why others should join her in pushing back against societal misconceptions of health.

**Content warning: This is one person’s story; everyone will have unique experiences in recovery and beyond. Some stories may mention eating disorder thoughts, behaviors, and symptoms. Please use your discretion when reading and speak with your support system as needed.

By Abby Couture

When I was 14, I stopped eating animals. During that time, I developed anorexia and started restricting food. Today, I am recovered both mentally and physically, although it’s important to acknowledge that I do experience intrusive thoughts related to eating—just as I experience intrusive thoughts related to my obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). However, I am able to stop myself from acting on those thoughts and feelings. 

Throughout my recovery, I never stopped being vegetarian. In fact, I have been vegan for the past six years (with the exception of locally-produced honey every now and then). My passion for animals and the environment is a core part of my values, as evident by my academic and early career pursuits. 

**Content warning: This is one person’s story; everyone will have unique experiences in recovery and beyond. Some stories may mention eating disorder thoughts, behaviors, and symptoms. Please use your discretion when reading and speak with your support system as needed.

Megan Bazzini is a writer⁠—an aspiring YA novelist, cringe-worthy poet, and mental health essayist. She’s also a business school grad who has lived in LA, Hong Kong, and Milan. Now she’s returned home to New York, where she is a proud chihuahua rescue mom and works in technology strategy. Megan’s eating disorder recovery mantra is, “Keep going. Recovery is worth it.” You can follow her on Twitter (@BazziniBooks), visit her portfolio, or read more of her work on her blog, Butterfly Mind.

Recovery is non-stop work. I’m not here to sugarcoat that. You can read my other essays celebrating how rewarding it is, but today I’m here to give you a pep talk. You can do this.

**Content warning: This is one person’s story; everyone will have unique experiences in recovery and beyond. Some stories may mention eating disorder thoughts, behaviors, and symptoms. Please use your discretion when reading and speak with your support system as needed.   

Megan Bazzini is a writer⁠—an aspiring YA novelist, cringe-worthy poet, and mental health essayist. She’s also a business school grad who has lived in LA, Hong Kong, and Milan. Now she’s returned home to New York, where she is a proud chihuahua rescue mom and works in technology strategy. Megan’s eating disorder recovery mantra is, “Keep going. Recovery is worth it.” You can follow her on Twitter (@BazziniBooks), visit her portfolio, or read more of her work on her blog, Butterfly Mind.

When I began recovery for my restrictive eating disorder as an adult, telling loved ones about my illness was an out-of-body experience. I was acutely aware of how fast my heart beat, how my insides heated. I’d wring my hands together and hear a voice that must have been mine sharing the facts of my illness, reminding me of my commitment to recovery. Now that I am solidly in remission, I know those were my body’s physical tells of how uncomfortable it is to be vulnerable.

Episode description:

In this episode of Peace Meal, guest Avery Mock discusses how a goal to “get healthy” spiraled into an obsession with food and exercise that led to anorexia. He describes how he was a different person at the height of his eating disorder, burning bridges with the closest people around him. Thankfully, Avery was able to get into treatment to start his journey to recovery. Structure and support have been key to protecting his mental and physical health, he says. In recovery, he has learned that food doesn’t need to take up so much space in his brain and that clothing size does not define his worth. Now he doesn’t need—or want—to change his body to be happy. Avery ends the episode by giving advice to those struggling with eating disorders, encouraging them to accept recovery. 

Avery is an anorexia survivor and mental health advocate dedicated to helping people recognize the warning signs of eating disorders and help others in recovery.

Episode description:

In this episode of Peace Meal, Rachael Steil shares her past struggles with anorexia and binge eating and her current passion for helping athletes with eating disorders. Rachael loved running from a young age, but the drive she felt to improve in her sport contributed to restrictive eating behaviors. She says she became obsessed with food and started pulling away from her friends and hobbies. Once Rachael started her recovery journey, she received incredible support from her college running coach. Reflecting on this experience, Rachael explains the essential role that coaches can have on their athletes’ lives and the importance of educating coaches on eating disorder warning signs. Rachael ends the podcast with the inspiration for creating her memoir Running in Silence and her nonprofit of the same name and previews the topic of her next book. 

Rachael Steil is an eating disorder recovery advocate and the author of Running in Silence, which details her story as an All-American athlete struggling with anorexia and binge eating. She is also the founder of the Running in Silence nonprofit to break misconceptions and raise awareness for eating disorders in sports, serves on the board of the Michigan Eating Disorder Alliance, and is currently a mentor for the USTFCCCA Female Coaches Mentorship Program. 

Eating disorders have stereotypically been associated with slim, white, young, heterosexual, cisgender women. In reality, eating disorders can affect anyone, regardless of how they look or identify. Eating disorders are brain-based biological illnesses that have complex causes and require specialized care. However, the stereotypical idea of someone with an eating disorder has serious ramifications on who is diagnosed and who then receives proper treatment.

Consequences of the Thin, White Woman Stereotype

Historically, there has been a misconception that eating disorders affect only thin, young, white females. Early research was conducted on only white women, which led people to believe eating disorders were only a white woman’s disease. Despite most providers now knowing that this is false, the initial belief had serious implications for eating disorder treatment today.

This initial stereotype became ingrained in the larger society, with both patients and healthcare providers working under the assumption that eating disorders only happened in certain individuals. Not only did this lead to providers missing eating disorder diagnoses in people of color, but it also caused people of color to question if they really had disordered eating that was worthy of treatment.