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Tag: eatingdisorderhope

Reclaiming Your Body After Abuse and Assault

Written by nutritiousthoughtsblog on . Posted in Body Image, Eating Disorder Recovery, Education.

Trigger Warning: Impact of abuse and assault on physical, mental, and emotional health. Reader discretion advised.

au·ton·o·my
/ôˈtänəmē/
noun

You may ask: Where does the voice of a registered dietitian treating eating disorders/disordered eating belong in a conversation about the impacts of abuse and assault?

Our answer: Front and center.

Experiencing a loss of body autonomy through traumatic events such as abuse and assault is a topic that is becoming more openly discussed in media and research. Finally! – a realm of experiences that many (most) of us can relate to on some level is no longer “hush-hush”. With the growing amount and variety of community support for survivors, where does the non-diet, body neutral dietitian fit in?

Trauma affects everything. Survivors often experience changes in their physical, mental, and emotional health (sometimes gradually, sometimes suddenly).* Many of these changes are intricately weaved with digestive health and eating behaviors. Cue the non-diet, body neutral dietitian!

It is our hope to help survivors of trauma move forward in their healing journeys by encouraging a reclamation of body autonomy and educating on the specific ways traumatic events can alter the how we feed ourselves. This. Takes. Time. All the time one may need. Some ways in which a dietitian at Nutritious Thoughts** may support you in reclaiming your body autonomy include the following:

  • Restoration of balanced and adequate nourishment
  • Rehabilitation from eating disorder/disordered eating behaviors
  • Attunement to bodily cues (hunger, fullness, other digestive and emotional cues related to eating)
  • Creating a self-care plan
  • Cultivating a space where your voice and experience is heard and respected

If you or someone you know needs support around the topics of abuse and/or assault, please consider reaching out to or providing them with the following resources:

  • National Domestic Violence Hotline – 1-800-799-7233
  • National Sexual Assault Hotline (RAINN) – 1-800-656-4673
  • Our Voice (local Western NC support!) – 828-255-7576
  • For crises, medical emergencies, etc. – Dial 911

*Details on these changes can be found via Dialogues of Clinical Neuroscience here: Traumatic stress: effects on the brain

**A registered dietitian is an important part of a treatment team for survivors with dis-regulated eating behaviors but they cannot be the entire team. Survivors deserve a team that involves multiple clinicians and at minimum, the addition of a therapist and physician.

Back to School!

Written by nutritiousthoughtsblog on . Posted in Body Image, Eating Disorder Recovery, Self Care.

We are a few weeks into the 2019-2020 school year.  With returning to school comes a set of new stressors, deadlines, and social activities.  How do we maintain recovery when taking on the role of “student”?  Eating Disorder Hope recently released an article on this topic exactly, and we couldn’t have written it any better ourselves.  Therefore, we’ve provided the article for you here in this blog post!  Keep reading for some top-notch tips on staying recovery-forward in the midst of transitioning back to school.

 

Best Practices for Returning to School

Here are the best practices for returning to school in eating disorder recovery:

Make time for recovery. Even with a busier schedule, it’s important to prioritize recovery. This includes continuing to attend appointments with your treatment team at a frequency that will continue to support your recovery. This also includes keeping your long-term health and wellness in mind in spite of the stressors that come with school.

Identify your triggers. Before returning to school, identify what may trigger disordered eating thoughts and behaviors. Triggers may be things like overhearing classmates talk about their bodies, eating with others in the lunchroom, or the amount of math homework you’ll be facing.

Have a go-to list of coping skills and self-care plans that will help you manage these triggers. This will help reduce any risk of relapse.

Develop a healthy daily structure. Finding a daily structure means finding balance. It’s having a routine that provides regular sleep and regular meals.

It’s a schedule that includes social activities that make it difficult to isolate, as well as things like making time for academic efforts to prevent school work from “building up.”

Self-care is an important part of the daily structure — as part of the best practices for returning to school, be sure to build in time each day to take care of yourself and manage daily stressors.

Get support. Know that when things get difficult, you don’t have to figure it out all on your own. Call in your support system — whether it be parents, friends, teachers, the school counselor, or a formal support group — for support around whatever is troubling you.

Many students in recovery need support around academic workload, time management, stress management, meal prep, and/or mealtime support.

Consult with your treatment team. Work closely with your treatment team to address any triggers or challenges that may arise. If you have any concerns, be sure to share them with your treatment team, as they will be able to support you and offer up individualized recommendations.

If you begin to feel like things are getting on top of you, like you’re not coping as well, or returning to old disordered eating thoughts or behaviors, it’s important that you reach out to your treatment team as soon as possible.

Special consideration for student-athletes. Work closely with your coach.

For students in recovery who are returning to athletics along with school, it’s important that your coach understands how to support you in your recovery.

Coaches should be aware of any recommendations being made by your treatment team and be willing to support you in following those recommendations.

This is important for both your short-term and long-term health and wellbeing.

About the Author:

Chelsea Fielder-JenksChelsea Fielder-Jenks is a Licensed Professional Counselor in private practice in Austin, Texas. Chelsea works with individuals, families, and groups primarily from a Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) framework.

She has extensive experience working with adolescents, families, and adults who struggle with eating, substance use, and various co-occurring mental health disorders. You can learn more about Chelsea and her private practice at ThriveCounselingAustin.com.