I often get asked how I managed to finally recover and learn to eat “intuitively”, normally and basically be rid of the obsession.
I believe that one of the main ingredients to my recovery was believing that it WAS possible to have full recovery and challenging all of the things I had learned from professionals and others about the low success rate of recovery and that it will always be something that lives in you and you will always need to manage.
This is utterly NOT TRUE.
There are various methods of challenging and changing beliefs. Here is one that I am particularly fond of at the moment – The Work by Byron Katie. At the time of my recovery I mainly used creative visualization techniques, affirmations and hypnosis CD’s.
This is the part that you MUST work on. We need to question the belief that recovery is possible and all the other negative beliefs that prevent us from getting there.
Quite often it is our unquestioned beliefs that are running the show in our minds and keep us locked into that belief unless it gets broken down and questioned.
This is the part that is crucial – challenging the deeply ingrained thoughts that we have about recovery and our eating disorder. We need to challenge or “inquire” into the eating disorder voice, thoughts and the disease.
I also had to completely shift my mindset and realize that COMPLETE recovery was in fact possible for me. There are a number of ways of installing these new beliefs and they are CRUCIAL. I used affirmations, creative visualization and more recently “The Work”, by Byron Katie.
Here is an example of how it works and perhaps you could do your own questioning and see how much it is your thinking that affects your inability to recover.
The Four Questions from “The Work.”
The Belief: Choose a belief that you would like to challenge/inquire into
- Is it true?
- Can you absolutely know that it is true?
- How do you react when you think that thought?
- Who would you be without that thought?
and
Turn it around.
MY EXAMPLE: I will give you a personal one back from my days of disordered eating:
THE BELIEF: That I will never have full recovery and will always be on strict food plans and obsessed with my weight.
1. Is it true?
Yes.
2. Can you absolutely know that it’s true?
(Can you be 100% sure it’s true? Have other people recovered?)
Well yes I do know that some people have recovered so I guess it’s possible.
(So are you still sure that thought is 100% true?)
No.
3. How do you react, what happens, when you believe that thought?
I feel frustrated, depressed, hopeless and I end up isolating even more, avoiding people and it fuels my overeating even further.
(So when you have that thought it just makes the situation worse?)
Yes it keeps me in the depressed state and I get further away from recovery.
(Can you see any good reason to hold onto that thought – that you will never recover and that you are hopeless?)
No it doesn’t seem to do me any good at all
4. Who would you be without the thought?
I would be much more fun, I would go out with people a lot more, have interests and hobbies and be excited about life.
I would be more relaxed, sociable and open to life and people.
(So give me a reason why that original thought is beneficial for you)
Its not, it doesn’t help me at all
(So do you think more of those thoughts will end up freeing you from food obsession and giving you recovery?)
No, they make it worse and I feel more guilt and overeat even more
(So getting depressed about having the thought That I will never have full recovery and will always be on strict food plans and obsessed with my weight – is that still true?)
No, it seems like the opposite would be more true – if I was more positive and believed that I could fully recover.
Ok so lets do a complete 180 degree turnaround of that statement, how would you turn that around?
That I will never have full recovery and will always be on strict food plans and obsessed with my weight.
That I can absolutely achieve full recovery, eat things that I genuinely like and be free from the obsession around my weight and food.
(Feel it. Could that not be just as equally true? If you have seen others recover, then why couldn’t you? Is it entirely possible that turnaround statement is true?)
Yes it is, and it would probably be much more helpful if I thought that way!
(So what would be the opposite of that thought and could it be equally true?)
Yes it is possible to be completely recovered from eating disorders – if other people have done it why cant I?
(Turn around the concept you are questioning, and be sure to find at least three genuine, specific examples of each turnaround:)
- I am completely capable of achieving full recovery from all eating disorders.
- I WILL be able to eat what I want without the obsession with my weight.
- It is absolutely possible for me to be completely free and recovered from all eating disorders.
Can you see how these last 3 thoughts are just as equally true (and have happened in my life ) and that it is our THINKING that keeps us stuck, unable to change and not have healthy beliefs.
Please try this quick questioning on yourself, using any belief that is preventing your from reaching full recovery or anything else that you want to do further inquiry into to see if it is REALLY true or just diseased thinking.
So the 4 Questions are:
The Four Questions from “The Work.”
The Belief: Choose a belief that you would like to challenge/inquire into
- Is it true?
- Can you absolutely know that it is true?
- How do you react when you think that thought?
- Who would you be without that thought?
and
Turn it around.
“Any idea, plan, or purpose may be placed in
the mind through repetition of thought.”
— Napoleon Hill:
P.S Leave a comment or drop me an email to let me know how it works for you!
P.P.S You can also download my detailed strategy on how I achieved Complete Recovery from Eating Disorders .
Love and Freedom
Nina
I believe that one of the main ingredients to my recovery was believing that it WAS possible to have full recovery and challenging all of the things I had learned from professionals and others about the low success rate of recovery and that it will always be something that lives in you and you will always need to manage.
This is utterly NOT TRUE.
There are various methods of challenging and changing beliefs. Here is one that I am particularly fond of at the moment – The Work by Byron Katie. At the time of my recovery I mainly used creative visualization techniques, affirmations and hypnosis CD’s.
This is the part that you MUST work on. We need to question the belief that recovery is possible and all the other negative beliefs that prevent us from getting there.
Quite often it is our unquestioned beliefs that are running the show in our minds and keep us locked into that belief unless it gets broken down and questioned.
This is the part that is crucial – challenging the deeply ingrained thoughts that we have about recovery and our eating disorder. We need to challenge or “inquire” into the eating disorder voice, thoughts and the disease.
I also had to completely shift my mindset and realize that COMPLETE recovery was in fact possible for me. There are a number of ways of installing these new beliefs and they are CRUCIAL. I used affirmations, creative visualization and more recently “The Work”, by Byron Katie.
Here is an example of how it works and perhaps you could do your own questioning and see how much it is your thinking that affects your inability to recover.
The Four Questions from “The Work.”
The Belief: Choose a belief that you would like to challenge/inquire into
and
Turn it around.
MY EXAMPLE: I will give you a personal one back from my days of disordered eating:
THE BELIEF: That I will never have full recovery and will always be on strict food plans and obsessed with my weight.
1. Is it true?
Yes.
2. Can you absolutely know that it’s true?
(Can you be 100% sure it’s true? Have other people recovered?)
Well yes I do know that some people have recovered so I guess it’s possible.
(So are you still sure that thought is 100% true?)
No.
3. How do you react, what happens, when you believe that thought?
I feel frustrated, depressed, hopeless and I end up isolating even more, avoiding people and it fuels my overeating even further.
(So when you have that thought it just makes the situation worse?)
Yes it keeps me in the depressed state and I get further away from recovery.
(Can you see any good reason to hold onto that thought – that you will never recover and that you are hopeless?)
No it doesn’t seem to do me any good at all
4. Who would you be without the thought?
I would be much more fun, I would go out with people a lot more, have interests and hobbies and be excited about life.
I would be more relaxed, sociable and open to life and people.
(So give me a reason why that original thought is beneficial for you)
Its not, it doesn’t help me at all
(So do you think more of those thoughts will end up freeing you from food obsession and giving you recovery?)
No, they make it worse and I feel more guilt and overeat even more
(So getting depressed about having the thought That I will never have full recovery and will always be on strict food plans and obsessed with my weight – is that still true?)
No, it seems like the opposite would be more true – if I was more positive and believed that I could fully recover.
Ok so lets do a complete 180 degree turnaround of that statement, how would you turn that around?
That I will never have full recovery and will always be on strict food plans and obsessed with my weight.
That I can absolutely achieve full recovery, eat things that I genuinely like and be free from the obsession around my weight and food.
(Feel it. Could that not be just as equally true? If you have seen others recover, then why couldn’t you? Is it entirely possible that turnaround statement is true?)
Yes it is, and it would probably be much more helpful if I thought that way!
(So what would be the opposite of that thought and could it be equally true?)
Yes it is possible to be completely recovered from eating disorders – if other people have done it why cant I?
(Turn around the concept you are questioning, and be sure to find at least three genuine, specific examples of each turnaround:)
Can you see how these last 3 thoughts are just as equally true (and have happened in my life ) and that it is our THINKING that keeps us stuck, unable to change and not have healthy beliefs.
Please try this quick questioning on yourself, using any belief that is preventing your from reaching full recovery or anything else that you want to do further inquiry into to see if it is REALLY true or just diseased thinking.
So the 4 Questions are:
The Four Questions from “The Work.”
The Belief: Choose a belief that you would like to challenge/inquire into
and
Turn it around.
“Any idea, plan, or purpose may be placed in
the mind through repetition of thought.”
— Napoleon Hill:
P.S Leave a comment or drop me an email to let me know how it works for you!
P.P.S You can also download my detailed strategy on how I achieved Complete Recovery from Eating Disorders .
Love and Freedom
Nina