Activities to Support Eating Disorder Recovery

By Megan Samuels, MSW, LMSW, Outreach Coordinator

Looking for extra recovery support in between therapy or coaching sessions?  Maybe you are a clinician looking for activities to incorporate into sessions with folks struggling with disordered eating.  This blog outlines three different eating disorder recovery activities that may be helpful.  

1. Writing a thank you note to the eating disorder.
   1. Supplies needed: Piece of paper (I usually prefer lined paper for this exercise) and something to write with.
   2. Eating disorders often develop as a coping skill for something that we weren’t able to cope with adaptively at the time.  The eating disorder typically serves a purpose and/or a function in your life.  Take this time to explore the ways that the eating disorder has helped you.  Here are some questions to consider:
      1. What did the eating disorder help you get through?  What was going on in life when you first developed symptoms of an eating disorder?
      2. How did the eating disorder help you?
      3. What was the function of the eating disorder?
      4. What would it be like to give the eating disorder a new function or role?  What would that new function or role be?
2. Dialogue with the eating disorder.
   1. Supplies needed: Piece of paper (I usually prefer lined paper for this exercise) and two different colored pencils, crayons, pens, or markers to write with.
   2. This activity can be helpful to give the eating disorder part a voice and to understand where it is coming from.  Oftentimes, I will have clients find a blank sheet of paper and grab two pens or colored pencils that are different colors.  Designate one color for the eating disorder voice and the other color for your recovery voice.  Then, start with what the eating disorder has to say.  Write out any thoughts or questions that it has.  Have the recovery voice answer by writing the response using the appropriate color.  Continue this conversation until it feels like both parts, the eating disorder part and the recovery part, have been heard and have had a chance to share what’s on their mind.  This activity can help to develop curiosity and compassion for these two parts, who are often very phobic of each other.  
3. Eating disorder/Body image timeline.
   1. Supplies needed: Piece of paper (any size) and something to write with and different colored pencils, crayons, pens, or markers to write with.
   2. Start by drawing a horizontal line on the paper to signify a timeline.  Feel free to add markers to designate different years on the timeline.  Then, think about different times in your life when you struggled with eating and/or body image symptoms.  Annotate those struggles on the timeline, in chronological order using one color.  Then, think about general life events that may have been stressful.  Using another color, add these life events to the timeline.
   3. Some questions to think about:
      1. Do you notice any correlations between stressful life events and eating disorder symptoms?
      2. What coping skills or support systems do you have now that could prevent eating and/or body image symptoms from worsening in the future?  How would you know when you would need to use those coping skills or reach out to those support systems?

To access a handout from our team to create your own eating disorder/body image timeline, click HERE!

Want more?  The therapists and coaches at The Eating Disorder Center often use creative interventions during sessions to support eating disorder recovery.  Contact us today for a free 15-minute consultation to see if we would be a good fit.

Are you a clinician looking to increase your skills or knowledge about treating folks with eating disorders or body image disturbance?  You have come to the right place!  We offer clinical consultations and trainings to support each clinician’s unique learning journey.  Contact us today for more information on these services. 

​*Disclaimer: The information is provided for educational and informational purposes only. It is not intended to be a substitute for your independent medical decision-making nor a recommendation or endorsement for any particular treatment plan, organization, provider, professional service, or product. The information may change without notice. You assume all responsibility and risk for any use of the information.

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The Eating Disorder Center is a premier outpatient eating disorder therapy center founded by Jennifer Rollin. We specialize in helping teens and adults struggling with anorexia, binge eating disorder, bulimia, OSFED, and body image issues. We provide eating disorder therapy in Rockville, MD, easily accessible to individuals in Potomac, North Potomac, Bethesda, Olney, Silver Spring, Germantown, and Washington D.C. We also provide eating disorder therapy in Arlington, Virginia and virtually throughout Virginia. Additionally, we offer eating disorder therapy virtually in New York (NYC), Florida, and California. We provide eating disorder recovery coaching via Zoom to people worldwide. Connect with us through our website at www.theeatingdisordercenter.com