Eating Disorders & Self-Care, Day 4
Hey there! Let's keep the discussions moving! We have seen some great answers and it is surely a helpful reminder to take care of ourselves. Here is the question for today:
Question 4: How can we overcome the challenges that we discussed in the post yesterday, you can also see them by clicking here!
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I have no idea - I'm still facing those challenges...
@HeyItsMish
Same buddy, same...
@HeyItsMish, I am sorry to hear that you are still facing them. I hope you are able to find a way in which they become more manageable 
Have you tried anything to try and overcome them?
@Hope
Thanks :)
Well, not really - I couldn't find much help and I have to wait a few weeks before I get a counsellor, which isn't that helpful at the moment, but oh well.
@HeyItsMish, I understand. Maybe you can try to do self-care with simple things such as drink your favourite tea or watching a movie that you like etc
@Hope
I'll try that, thanks :)
@Hope
I was never one for self-care. It seemed like a selfish indulgement to me but I've completely changed my impression on that. I started out small. I put my phone away after 6pm because work was stressing me out. I let myself get an extra hour of sleep in the mornings or I went to bed early with a book for an hour. Now, self-care is almost like a daily thing for me. As soon as I get home from work or school, I don't go straight into my studying. I sit down for an hour, catch up with my boyfriend, have something to eat, change into comfy clothes and just take a breather. Little things like that make a huge difference.
@Hysterria I totally love your answer because it shows that even simple acts of self care can be easy/beneficial. For me I try to make a small goal at the beginning of the day and then i try to refocus throughout the day on the self care goal i set. An example would be to drink my whole water bottle or take an hour sometime during the day to sit and enjoy a cup of tea.
@Sammie1997
Yes! I so look forward to my evening peppermint tea before bed. I'm not even a big tea drinker but there's just something so soothing about the routine of it. It's like my body has been trained to know that peppermint tea = relaxation for bed time. I really think it helps me sleep better.
@Hysterria
I can understand how self-care can seem selfish, I think we all have felt that way at a point in life about it. I like how you started small, that approach usually lasts longer and is easier to go along with while big changes can be scary. Thank you for sharing that, I do agree that little things go a long way. It is also important that we make sure to be consistent with these practices.
That is a hard question actually! To be honest, I have no idea. My mind is always telling me something like "Self care? Ah, yeah, that thing... Well, only if you'll lose weight and become more beautiful! Wait, isn't that a self care instead?" (Sorry for anyone reading this, I didn't mean to trigger anyone, I just wrote how I feel! You are beautiful just as you are and you don't deserve any mental illness!)
@MyDreamIsToBeANeurobiologist
It looks like for you the challenge is your own thoughts and many of us can relate to that to an extent. I feel you! I am sorry that you have these thoughts. In my experience challenging these thoughts can be a good start when you get these thoughts try to ask yourself "How would me neglecting self-care impact my life in the long term? reflect upon the answer that you get. While it is true that we don't often feel like we are worthy of self-care but if we are being honest with ourselves, neglecting it makes things worse, if not for you, try to do these self-care activities for someone else like maybe you want to meditate every day so you can be in a good mood to interact with your family etc Sometimes tricking the ED voice is the way.
Wow, difficult question! I guess if it was easy we'd all be doing it lol. I had to adjust my thinking about before I could do any self care without a lot of guilt. I actually had to get really sick before I took it seriously; I had migraines with visual disturbance 2-3 a week for months and I was so fatigued and unwell my doctor thought I might have a pituitary glad tumour (I didn't, it was exhaustion). After that I began to realise I had to do it if I didn't want to be sick again. So in some ways I've been lucky, I know I have to take it seriously or I won't even be able to work. I don't want that to happen to other people, but maybe it might help if people remind themselves that if they don't take care of themselves they won't be working at full power and won't be able to look after anyone else. I don't know 🤔 lol, just a thought.
@Iliketherain
Yes it is a difficult question but in my experience, the questions that challenge us the most are the ones that we really need to discover the answers to. I understand how negative thoughts can make self-care difficult. I am sorry you had to go through that experience, sounds really unpleasant. Yes, unfortunately, some of us learn it's importance the hard way. I like the way you see it, sometimes we need to practice self-care not for us but also for others, people deserve the best versions of ourselves.
