“Your eating disorder kept you a float when drowning,” Dr. Anita Johnston, author of Eating in the Light of the Moon.
In my last post I discussed that eating disorders can often be understood as a coping skill. That is, the eating disorder may help one deal with the ups and downs of life. Of course the problem with having an eating disorder as a coping skills is that it reeks havoc on ones health, personal life, occupation, etc. I am not proposing that if you have an eating disorder that recovery should not be a goal. However, I believe that seeing an eating disorder as a coping skill can help provide a framework to more effectively move through recovery. How does your eating problems help you cope with life?
In Dr. Anita Johnston’s video “The Log” offers viewers a metaphor for the eating disorder that offers this perspective.