Navigating The Holidays In Eating Disorder Recovery

Gentle, Supportive Guidance for a Tender Season

The holidays can bring joy, connection, and celebration - they can also stir up anxieties, food-related challenges, family-related challenges, financial stress, overstimulation, emotional stress, open up wounds and reflection from the last year, etc. They are a tender time for many, especially if you find yourself currently trying to heal your relationship with body and food.

If you find yourself at the cross-section of recovery and holidays - you are not without help and support. Here are some grounding, compassionate strategies to increased feelings of sturdiness during this holiday season:

Create A Plan with Your Treatment Team

Before the holiday rush settles in , spend time with your dietitian and therapist to prepare. As a team, plan meals, predict potential triggers, process emotions, brainstorm options, and identify a support system. This kind of proactive work can boost confidence and provide structure where things may otherwise feel untethered and unprepared for. Whether you have to use the plans or not, you may feel comforted knowing they are there.

Gently Challenge Yourself With Support

Depending on the place you are in within your recovery, the holiday table may be an opportunity to show yourself how far you have come, an opportunity to expand food choices in a supported way. Trying a new dish, adding variety to your plate, or practicing balance and exposure to continue to build confidence in your recovery. Aim for your Thanksgiving plate to reflect nourishment, flexibility, and growth - not rules, rigidity or restriction

Watch For All-Or-Nothing Thinking

Holiday gatherings can bring up "inner critic," "I blew it" thoughts quickly. When you notice black-and-white thinking, pause, take a deep breath, and remember you can start over as many times as you need. You can always start again. Practice some cognitive defusion, observing a thought, letting it pass, without becoming overly attached to it.

Allow yourself to take a holiday from self-criticism, rigidity, and perfectionism. Thank it for trying to help you, but it's service is not needed here. You will turn to gentle, self-compassionate flexibility, and begin again, a gift to yourself and your future self.

Stay Consistent with Your Meal Plan

During the holidays, there is often talk around skipping meals to earn one big meal or to earn certain foods. This is all very unhelpful and ultimately neither based in truth nor anything constructive. Our bodies and our nervous system thrive on consistency. Our bodies need predictable nourishment, consistent self-care (which includes food, but also includes, hydration, sleep, movement, self-kindness), always, but especially during times of higher stress. Our bodies need to be able to trust that we will show up and care for them, over and over and over again. Our nervous system recognizes consistency as safety and is able to rest in this state.

So, think of holiday meals as just a part of your normal food intake. Still eat breakfast, still eat lunch, still eat snacks, still eat dinner, still continue to show up for your body, just as you would any other day.

Plate Your Food, Then Shift Your Focus

When it's time to eat, make yourself a plate, find a seat away from the serving area, and settle in. Then, redirect your attention toward the people around you - the stories being told, laughter, the connection. Allow your senses (sense of touch - my back against this chair; sense of hearing - directing my attention to what is being said).

The holiday season can be about relationships, tradition, giving, togetherness, gratitude, try to let those be where you give your focus and energy.

Set An Intention Before You Go

Before heading to a holiday event or meal, take a moment and mindfully check in with yourself. Give yourself a gentle pep talk, set your intention, or choose a ground phrase/reminder to repeat if anxiety rises. A little preparation can create a sense of steadiness when you walk through the door.

Identify Your Support Person

Choose a loved one to act as a safety net if needed. Let them know ahead of time how they can support you - whether that's a private check-in, a short step outside together, or simply someone who makes you feel safe. If no one in the present feels right, identify someone you can call or text, and let them know in advance that you might reach out.

Ask For a Reality Check If You Need One

If portion sizes feel overwhelming or confusing, pick one trusted person who can be your "reality check." They can help you plate your food or offer reassurance about portioning. This is about reminding yourself that it is okay to utilize extra support during times of vulnerability.

Final Thoughts

Holiday recovery does not have to be perfect. It just needs to be supported, mindful, and rooted in as much calm and consistency as possible. You are allowed to do this holiday season your way, at your own pace, and with gentleness and care.

If you feel as though you are needing additional help, please do not hesitate to reach out for a free consultation call and/or to schedule an appointment at Brittany.Gilchrist@peaceandpurposecounseling.com.