I like to start my yoga practice my giving myself a big hug. Taking a few breaths and thinking about how my body continues to amaze me every single day. This body has survived trauma, an eating disorder, depression, multiple chronic illnesses with all the fun symptoms they come with, and yet, my body has not even once given up on me.

As I am approaching year 4 of my eating disorder recovery, I have a lot of big wins to celebrate. I have reached a level of comfort with my body that I did not believe was possible. This confidence, and this love I feel about myself, I thought was only possible when I was shrinking my body and engaging in brutal diets and workouts. Those were the lies I was told by our diet culture shithole society. “You will only be happy when you are the thinnest you can be”. 

Screw that! I choose to treat myself with kindness and compassion, eat when I am hungry, and eat whatever the fuck I want, whenever I fucking want to eat it. I am giving up that constant need to control my body, I am learning to let go. If you are struggling with you body image today, I am here to tell you that it does get better.

And there is a way to live life not worrying about calories all the time, a life where your body is not the enemy anymore. It takes a lot of damn work, but you are strong enough to get through this, like you have gotten through everything else in your life so far. 

My body has shown so much compassion to me, after everything I have put it through, all the pain and injuries, it shows up for me every single day, and it amazes me with its resiliency, and its ability to heal and put itself back together. My body deserves all the love and care in the world, and that is why I make sure to give myself a big hug often. And I encourage you to do the same. Take a minute to hold your body and thank it for everything it has done for you and for everything it continues to do. Feel the strength that exists in your soul and in your body.

My body is my home, and it is an honor experiencing life in this body. 

Resources to use/share:

Women’s Health Clinic - Eating Disorders | Women's Health Clinic (womenshealthclinic.org)

National Eating Disorder Information Centre - NEDIC | general information