Notes From the Early Days of Transformation
An unfortunate yogurt spill all over my backpack the other day led to a full-bag-excavation and, with it, the discovery of several papers crumpled in a side pocket. They were notes I’d written in February 2014, when I was in residential treatment at Renfrew. When an insight occurred during a rare moment I didn’t have my journal on me, I tore a corner from any paper I could find and wrote it down. Finding them last week was bittersweet. Reading them brings back the pain and fear of those early months of recovery. But it also reminded me that there was a strange kind of magic to...
Read MoreThe Documentary “Thin” and the Treatment Loophole
Thin If you know eating disorders, then you know the 2006 HBO documentary Thin, by Lauren Greenfield. The documentary follows four young women receiving treatment for anorexia and bulimia in a residential facility. Many of us with eating disorders know Thin for somewhat macabre reasons. Like other depictions of the illness (film, literature, or otherwise), the film served as a kind of “how to” guide, with little tips and tricks that hadn’t yet occurred to us. (That is disturbing, I know — but keep in mind that we are talking about a mental illness here.) I watched the film four or five years...
Read MoreRemembering Sept. 11
Remembering the day that each of us was changed in some subtle way. Anniversaries are hard — take care of yourself today. I send you love and kind thoughts. Share this:Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)Click to share on Google+ (Opens in new window)Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window)Click to print (Opens in new...
Read MoreHealing My Soul – Supporting Jackie
I’m sharing a link with all of you to a GoFundMe page. The page has been set up to help a friend I met in treatment at Monte Nido. (She didn’t ask me to share this, by the way – I just feel that strongly about her as person.) I met Jackie last fall when we were in IOP at EDTNY, and our paths crossed again this summer at EDTNY, this time in PHP. It was deeply moving to watch Jackie confront the traumas that have fed her eating disorder. Her courage at mealtimes was especially remarkable, since these were the moments that some of her worst flashbacks would surface. She would...
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I'm a writer, a mental health activist, and a 20-something in recovery from an eating disorder. This blog chronicles my journey through the middle ground toward full recovery.
