Eating Disorders on Campus
For many young adults, on-campus college enrollment is a time of tremendous transition and change, offering new freedoms, responsibility, and valuable education in and outside of the classroom. These abrupt lifestyle and environmental changes can be associated with the onset or exacerbation of mental health issues, including eating disorders (EDs) such as anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder, and orthorexia.
How Backpacking Helped Me Challenge Compulsive Exercising Behaviors
For many years, I would set my alarm hours before my first appointment or class of the day in order to get up and run three miles on the exact same route EVERY SINGLE morning with zero exceptions or deviations. I completed this exact same routine every day rain or shine, no matter how late I went to bed the night before or my energy level. If a friend invited me to an exercise class with them, I would STILL need to complete my morning run in part because skipping would generate anxiety, and in part because I had a fear that the fitness class might not be “challenging enough”. This fitness routine was in NO WAY rooted in actual health or wellness and it was not designed to make me stronger or work towards any specific fitness goals- it was all about controlling my body, focusing on outcomes, and avoiding change. During the peak of my eating disorder, my relationship with exercise transitioned from a genuine love of movement and athletics, to compulsive exercise focused on weight loss and relieving anxiety.
Recovery in Real Life: The Halloween Trap
If you’ve ever struggled with an eating disorder (or your relationship to food/treats and body image), it’s NO surprise that Halloween can present a huge challenge and potential pitfall on the road to food freedom and recovery. At it’s best, Halloween represents a holiday that prioritizes time with friends and chosen family, opportunities to gather and make memories together, to try on a new persona with a costume, and flex your creativity, all while having access to drinks and candy that offer a sensual experience of enjoyment and pleasure. At it’s worst, Halloween can make our bodies feel like they are on display for other people’s appraisal and comes with an impossible paradox of expectations, especially for someone struggling with an eating disorder.