The Best Self-Care Isn't Sexy: A Guide to Basic Self-Care for Eating Disorder Recovery

When you hear the term "self-care," you probably imagine bubble baths, spa days, or luxury of some kind. However, eating disorder recovery requires real self-care that works. It’s not glamorous or about temporary indulgence; it’s about getting back to basics in times of great distress; a path toward healing even when it feels the the world is crashing down all around you. This is not the time for luxury - you need help to survive the moment or the day.

If you’re not working with a specialized therapist and dietitian for support navigating eating disorder recovery, here’s your sign to take that step. In Texas, Austin Center for Eating Disorders (ACED) offers the best care for eating disorders and body image concerns, as well as all the things that co-occur with them.

Foundational self-care practices aren’t sexy, but they are solid building blocks for your continued healing and the toughest times in eating disorder recovery, when you need an anchor to cling to in the storm. Let’s dive deeper into these fundamental self-care strategies, how they support eating disorder recovery, and what additional support can help you reclaim your life from the chains of your eating disorder.

5 Self-Care Strategies for Eating Disorder Recovery

1. Get Enough Sleep and Rest

You have permission to rest.

Sleep is often overlooked, but it’s needed for both physical, mental, and emotional recovery. Eating disorders wreak havoc on the body, leading to hormonal imbalances that disrupt sleep cycles. Whether you’re struggling with insomnia from not getting enough food consistently, fatigue from binge-purge cycles or bingeing behaviors, or restlessness due to anxiety, sleep is a non-negotiable aspect of recovery.

Quality sleep allows the body to repair itself, regulate stress hormones, and restore balance to the brain’s hunger and satiety signals (Kaye et al., 2004). Practicing good sleep hygiene, such as setting a consistent bedtime, minimizing screen time before bed, and creating a relaxing evening routine, can help improve sleep patterns and support healing.

Check in with your eating disorder treatment team or doctor if you cannot get enough sleep consistently, or if you are sleeping too much.

2. Nourish Yourself as Best You Can

Even when you’re struggling with body image, especially when, you still need to eat.

If you binge, forgive yourself, it’s ok.

If you don’t feel hungry, but it’s been 4+ hours from your last meal, you may need to eat mechanically to get the nourishment your heart and brain needs to function.

Any food is better than no food at all.

Coffee is not a meal replacement.

Struggling with an eating disorder means that nourishing yourself is often the hardest part of your day. Your relationship with food likely feels fraught with anxiety, guilt, shame, obsession, hypervigilance, and/or confusion. The invisible war that rages inside of you makes having a friendly interaction with food seem impossible.

There is so much more to say about this, and we need to know more about you to help. Having an eating disorder requires specialized treatment for sustainable, long-term recovery, and a specialized dietitian is part of the team. Nutrition therapy is like having a food therapist to work with you through the hardest parts of your eating disorder. No one can do this alone, as eating disorders generally do not resolve without treatment, and tend to come back and shape-shift over time.

3. Wash and Tend to Your Physical Body

Even when, especially when, you are steeped in body shame.

It may seem like a simple thing, but during periods of emotional distress, even basic hygiene can feel overwhelming. Whether it’s brushing your teeth, taking a shower, or washing your hair, caring for your is body sometimes the easiest thing to forego. These acts of self care — though small — send a message to your brain and body that you are worth care, comfort, and kindness.

If hygiene tasks feel daunting, try breaking them down. Start with something small, like washing your face or brushing your hair, and build from there. As you begin to tend to your body, it can help you reconnect with yourself and restore a sense of dignity and self-worth. These small rituals remind you that your body, no matter how you may feel about it or inside of it, is deserving of respect, love, and care.

4. Wear Clean, Comfortable Clothes and Make Your Environment as Soothing as Possible

Think soft, loose, and clean if possible. Clothes without waistbands, your favorite cozy socks, and nothing tight can be helpful on days that are particularly fraught with body shame or anxiety.

Consider your environment: how can you enhance it to make it more comfy or soothing?

Your physical comfort is easy to forget when you feel overwhelmed, and if there is any small things you can do for yourself on rough days, we hope that you will.

5. Engage the 5 Senses in Mindfulness Practices

Mindfulness is an incredibly helpful tool in eating disorder recovery. Engaging your five senses — sight, sound, smell, touch, and taste — can help you reconnect with the present moment and find pleasure or tolerance in everyday experiences, including distress. Sensory mindfulness can also help you shift your focus from self-objectification and hypervigilance regarding food and your body, to the experience of being inside your body and present moment.

Here are some examples of sensory mindfulness:

• Touch: Feel the warmth of water on your skin during a shower or the soft texture of your pet’s fur as you pet them.

• Sight: Notice the color of the sky or the sunlight streaming through your window.

• Sound: Listen to the calming sound of wind rustling the leaves or birds singing.

• Smell: Take in the scent of your favorite candle or the smell of freshly brewed coffee.

• Taste: Enjoy the flavors of a tasty, satisfying snack or a comforting cup of tea.

Attending to sensory experiences is a powerful way to slow down the tornado of anxiety and body shame that accompanies an eating disorder. It reminds you that you are more than a body, and that life happens when experiencing your world from inside your body, from your internal sensory experiences. See if you can, just for a moment, shift your perspective, take some slow, deep breaths, and connect with yourself. This kind of mindfulness practice fosters self-compassion and attunement, which will support you recovery over the long term.

6. Reach Out for Support: Professional Care is a Shortcut to Recovery

One of the most important and often the most scary and difficult steps in recovery is reaching out for help. Eating disorders are inherently isolating and overwhelming to manage, especially alone.

Therapists and dietitians who specialize in eating disorders can offer you so much support, expertise, and guidance to manage both the physical and emotional aspects of your recovery. Professional treatment should be tailored to your unique experiences and needs.

Reaching out for help is not a sign of weakness, but the opposite. It is one of the most powerful acts of self-care you can make.

If you’re not working with a specialized therapist and dietitian for support navigating eating disorder recovery, we hope you’ll seriously consider taking that step. In Texas, Austin Center for Eating Disorders (ACED) offers the best care for eating disorders at the outpatient level of care. We’re here for you.

References

Hudson, J. I., Hiripi, E., Pope, H. G., & Kessler, R. C. (2007). The prevalence and correlates of eating disorders in the National Comorbidity Survey Replication. Biological Psychiatry, 61(3), 348-358.

Kaye, W. H., Bulik, C. M., Thornton, L., Barbarich, N., & Masters, K. (2004). Comorbidity of anxiety disorders with anorexia and bulimia nervosa. American Journal of Psychiatry, 161(12), 2215-2221.

Legal disclaimer: The ACED team is comprised of mental health professionals licensed to practice in the state of Texas. Reading our blog does not create a therapist-client relationship between us. Our blog is designed for informational purposes only, and is not intended as a substitute for professional care. The contents of this blog should not be used to diagnose or treat illness of any kind, and before you rely on any information presented here you should consult with a trusted healthcare professional. If you are currently experiencing a mental health emergency please call 911 or the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at 1-800-273-8255.