20 Reasons Recovery is Awesome
One of my readers sent this list to me, and I had to share it.
20 REASONS RECOVERY IS AWESOME
1. With each new day, I look less and less like a sickly little fuzzy rat-person.
2. My butt is coming back! And it’s sexy!
3. There is more hair on my head than on my hairbrush/shower drain.
4. I feel like a part of the world, rather than merely floating above it like a shadow. I feel my feet on the ground and the wind in my hair, and my senses can’t get enough of it.
5. My skin and hands are moist and lovely without gobs of lotion.
6. When I wake up, my first thoughts aren’t about food!
7. As a feminist, I no longer feel guilty about buying into cultural pressure that tells me that my worth is dependent on my size.
8. I get to eat whatever the hell I want (well, within reason…)!
9. Ordering off of a menu is super exciting rather than super anxiety-inducing.
10. My body temperature is HIGHER than normal due to the return of a functioning metabolism. No more shivering and excessive layering!
11. I get to share meaningful moments with people I care about, whether at dinner, out shopping, or whenever, without food issues getting in the way.
12. Energy! Without 50 oz. of caffeine!
13. In my experience, it seems that body weight and sense of humor are positively correlated. Someone should really conduct a study on that… Think about it.
14. Improved hormone function => Puberty (Round Two ) => Giddy as a schoolgirl with the dirty mind of a teenage boy. And yes, that’s a good thing.
15. My brain can CONCENTRATE and ANALYZE and CREATE again. Feeling smart and being productive is a major self-esteem boost!
16. Saying YES to food is like saying YES to all that is delicious in life.
17. Being a “food saint” (ie., eating a diet composed of ONLY “healthy” or lower-calorie foods) is fucking boring and depressing. No one wants to hang out with a saint.
18. I actually get my ass out of the house and party, and feel like hot shit while doing it. “Another drink? Oh, why not…as long as you’re buying!”
19. I fit into the clothing sizes sold at most major retailers, and it flatters rather than hangs off of my body.
20. I’ve learned that life isn’t black and white, good or bad, wonderful or terrible, and that living in gray areas is normal, healthy, and even—dare I say it?—rather thrilling.
What's on your list? Please share in the comments!
17 comments:
1. I don't have to live my life hungry
2. I am not losing bone anymore and am furthering my chances of a long healthy life.
3. I am a good example for those in my life, specifically my son.
4. I get to be proud of myself and my choices!
What a great list! I recently did one (actually of 20 things too) on my blog and it's so nice to see it all laid out like that. I agree so much with all of these. Well, except maybe #11. I hated being hot all the time and having night sweats when I started eating better. But mine for today is: Cooking again. I never cooked for fear I'd eat what I made and I forgot how much fun I have cooking.
Thank you for posting my list, Carrie!! I hope people get some encouragement from it. It makes me happy every time I look at it. My therapist asked if she could make copies for her other clients, which I think is SUPER fab. Funny how something like this can be so therapeutic to write AND potentially encouraging for others. I guess that's part of the purpose of this blog, right?
And yeah, cooking! I definitely agree. Totally forgot about that one. I made delicious homemade black bean burritos the other day, and they taste incredible with (real, full-fat) cheese! Who knew? Oh wait...everyone. :)
great list! so completely agree with the correlation between weight and sense of humor!!
I'm able to focus more on helping others rather than trying to figure out what it is I'm going to be eating in a few hours.
I'm able to feel better about myself.
I'm finally making my body healthy - which should have been the original intent for losing weight.
And it just feels awesome!
I love this list :). I'm going to print it out, or better yet, use some of these ideas to make my own list! Thanks for this post, seriously.
Thank you for this post! I'm struggling with making it into the "true recovery" mindset, instead of half a**ing it... and this helps SO much!
This is such a great list!!
i am also going to print it out and hang it up where i can see it everyday. thank you !!
such good reminders!!!
thank you :)
x
Terrific list. Even though I don't completely believe a couple - I'm just not "there" yet. Thanks for all of your insight.
Thank you so much for this list! It's a great reminder that I'm not quite 'there' yet- but it's worth it to keep going!
What a fabulous list! Good to remind yourself of these points regardless of your age or length of time living with an eating disorder. Not too late to shift perspective and behaviors!
This is such a lovely post! I can't wait to make my own, one day :)
Loveeeee your post!
I slapped my knee whole time when reading it :)
I just started recovering so there are still a lot to work on but I think i can get through this. I know we all can :)
Keep up the good work <3
SUCH a fantastic post, Carrie. I sincerely thank you.
The last two weeks have been a major struggle for me. I admitted to my best friend that I feel like I'm relapsing, badly. Stress, exams, horrible body image etc. have been ridiculous lately, and I haven't been doing well.
This post gave me much needed insight to hang in there and get the help I need so that I too, can write a list like this.
This is such a great list that makes you laugh! something to smile about and something to be proud of! Love it!!!!!!!!!
Thanks for the post. I translated it in Portuguese (Portugal). Here:
http://esqueciaana.blogspot.com/2011/04/recuperacao-testemunho.html
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