The One Thing We Need to Stop Doing While in Eating Disorder Recovery
Please stop apologizing for eating.
Please stop justifying yourself for what you’re eating.
Please stop feeling the need to explain why, when, or what you’re eating.
Please stop apologizing for eating.
I am so guilty of doing this. I do it often. And the thing is, it makes me feel much worse about myself than if I had just eaten my food and sat with the guilt and inner narrative that’s already going through my head when I eat, especially if it’s with other people or something I don’t deem “safe.”
“I haven’t really eaten today, I was waiting to eat this, that’s why I ate so much.”
“I can feel myself getting sick, so I really needed to drink all of this.”
“I was really craving this, I had to order this instead!”
“I’ve been so good all week, that’s why I can indulge!”
Do any of these sound familiar to you? Have you heard someone say this? Maybe it’s been you saying this. I know I’m guilty of saying all of these things, especially recently. Being in recovery, I’ve found it necessary to justify what I’m doing and why, because it’s a way to vocally fight against my eating disorder. The thing is though, it never makes me feel better.
Food is not a privilege.
Food is not a reward.
Food is not a punishment.
Food is food — it’s a necessity to live and a right. You don’t need a reason or an excuse to eat, so there should also be no reason to have to verbalize why you’re eating either.
Please stop apologizing for eating.
Please stop apologizing for existing.
This is a huge reminder for myself, and others. You do not have to apologize for engaging in one of life’s most basic necessities. You are essentially apologizing for existing and being here, because you need food to live and you need to be alive.
You are allowed to eat.
You are allowed to eat without apologizing.
You are allowed to eat without justification or reasoning.
You are allowed to exist, and to be here.
Follow this journey here.
If you or someone you know is struggling with an eating disorder, you can call the National Eating Disorders Association Helpline at 1-800-931-2237.
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Getty image via Grandfailure
I am a graduate student studying public health, with an emphasis on community mental health at NYU. I am passionate about using my voice to eliminate stigma and create a social change, and to share that recovery IS possible.
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