

Rehabilitate, Rewire, Recover, Second Edition
Okay so here is a very odd admission; it is common for me to forget what I have written in a book within 6 months of writing it. Rehabilitate, Rewire, Recover has been playing on my mind a little due to this. People would email me and thank me for writing it and while...
I’ve not been blogging because I like being lazy
lazy adjective 1. unwilling to work or use energy. This year, “unwilling to work or use energy,” sounds about right when it comes to writing, reading, accounting, or anything related to my computer. It’s been the most unproductive year I’ve had...
When therapists say shit like: “Maybe your hunger is actually you trying to fill a void in your life”
Not much that makes me feel like slamming my head against the wall as much as when I hear that someone’s therapist has told them that their hunger is not actually because they are hungry, but because they are trying to fill a void in their life....
Lunchbox policing
I had a teddy-bear shaped red plastic lunchbox in primary school. Mum packed it for me. Generally a sandwich, yoghurt, piece of fruit, bag of crisps, biscuits, jaffa cakes, and a chocolate bar or sweets. If it was a good day, cake. There were no lunchbox police when I...
When Eating Disorder Professionals are a Liability: Fear of Weight Gain
I feel like I have been writing/complaining about eating disorder professionals promoting restrictive eating for 100 years. I haven’t, but that’s how it feels. How is it not bleedingly obvious that telling a person with an restrictive eating disorder to...
Fear of Weight Gain: Fight, Flight, Freeze, Fawn
It took me about 10 years to realise that my tendency to hit the roof in rage whenever my mother offered me food was actually an expression of fear. I’m kind of embarrassed it took me that long as it seems so bloody obvious now that someone popping their head...
Permission to Eat
If you can’t give yourself permission to eat, you can’t fully recover. This is because full recovery means that you are eating without restriction. You can’t be eating without restriction if you are unable to give yourself unconditional permission to...
Eating Disorder Recovery: COVID-19
I am seeing a lot of memes etc on social media pointing out to the rest of the world that this pandemic is particularly difficult for people with eating disorders. This post isn’t doing to be like that. I just don’t believe that sort messaging effectively...
Eating Disorder Recovery and Sex Drive
I’m writing about my own experience. Your experience may be different so don’t overly compare and contrast. Some people don’t ever lose their sex drive when they have an eating disorder. Some people lose it and don’t want it back; not having a...
Recovering Alone
Link to a video I made on this topic: https://youtu.be/07j4fIwjRkg I’ve been told off in the past for being honest about the fact I recovered fully without any professional help. I’ve been told this can make people feel like they too need to try and...
You were never supposed to be micro-managing your food intake
You know how difficult and stressful it feels right? You’re always trying to work out the “right” way to eat. It never feels right though. So you do more research, and you ask more people. Maybe you talk to another dietitian or some new diet guru....
Mental Hunger: “I don’t know if I am hungry or not”
Mental hunger is your body cuing you to eat. Mental hunger is important. It is a very valid communication from your body as your body attempts to bring the desire to eat into your consciousness. I personally think that physical hunger is beside the point if you are in...
I cried after talking with your parents tonight
I cried after talking to your parents tonight. I often cry after talking to parents. There are a hundred reasons why. Maybe I will be able to outline some of them here. The main reason, is usually because I can’t answer the one question that they so desperately...
Compulsive Movement: The answer is still “yes.”
Yes, you still have to stop complusive movement. Even if it is tiny. Even if it if just walking, or cleaning the house. Even if you already gave up running and your gym membership. If there are still elements of compulsive movement in your life, yes, you need to stop....
Being Responsible For Your Recovery Isn’t The Same As Being Alone In Your Recovery
I wonder why, when it comes to mental health, people often interpret me saying “you are responsible for your actions and reactions” as “you have to do this alone?” If I were writing about physical health, nobody would assume that by saying...
If you’re not actively recovering, you are dying.
“Eating disorders kill.” You’ve heard it said plenty of times. If you’ve been in the recovery community for long, you probably know someone who died as the result of an eating disorder. It is not that you don’t know this shit....Thanks for listening!
I’ve not written a blog for months. I’ve been moving house, had little internet connection, and been generally busy, and tired. I’m glad that this past couple of weeks I had felt like I have the time and space to start writing again, so there will be...
Unsuppressed Bodyweight. Unsuppressed Personality.
I think there are more things that change with recovery than don’t. It’s not only your eating and your body that will change, that’s for sure. Getting healthy means that just about every aspect of you will change (usually for the better). Change,...
Triple R Recovery Center
I’ve been harping on about how treatment for eating disorders is inadequate and/or misguided for years now. I’m happy to say that, thanks to the help of Becky Freestone, we’re about to really do something about that. It’s not like I’ve...![Recovery stories: Recovering from an eating disorder with bariatric surgery [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/My-Post-27-1080x675.png)
Recovery stories: Recovering from an eating disorder with bariatric surgery [Podcast]
In this podcast Tabitha talks to Donna about her experience of bariatric surgery and eating disorder recovery
“Thinner is better” is a cultural belief that’s making us sick
I’ve lived in England 29 years. USA 9 years. These two countries are culturally very different in many ways. They are culturally similar in some ways. One cultural similarity that they share, is the belief that thinner is better. That belief effects everyone I...
Food is so much more than just nutrition. By design.
I remember once, when I had an eating disorder, a new colleague (who didn’t know I had an eating disorder) asked me if a wanted a cupcake. “No thanks, I’ve already eaten,” was my response. “Tabitha.” she said, “Nobody eats a...
JD Ouellette: Experts by Experience Peer Mentoring in the Eating Disorder Field
This week, Tabitha talks to peer mentor JD Ouellette about experts by experience and peer mentoring in the eating disorder field. JD Ouellette is a peer coach with a specialty in “Full Metal Apron” Eating Disorders Parent coaching. She is...
How to rewire your brain to believe that your weight doesn’t matter
I wrote a book recently on neural rewiring. So if you want more, you can find it here. If you have a restrictive eating disorder, you are likely scared of gaining weight — weirdly, this can still be true for those of us who dislike being thin and want to gain weight....![For Sarah [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/Sarah-C.png)
For Sarah [Podcast]
Warning: This episode may be difficult or triggering for some listeners. It involves talking about a person who recently died of anorexia. In this podcast, Tabitha talks about a person who recently died as a result of the malnutrition associated with anorexia. Sarah...
Getting your weird little OCD traits to work for you in recovery
This is going to be one of those posts that some people will read and nod their heads “yep” the whole way through, and others will read and think I am utterly batty. I’m going to attempt to put into words something that is difficult to describe. Bear...![Ask Dr G: Considering trans and non-binary individuals in eating disorder treatment [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/My-Post-48-1080x675.png)
Ask Dr G: Considering trans and non-binary individuals in eating disorder treatment [Podcast]
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Dr Cynthia Bulik: Recent study identifies eight risk loci and implicates metabo-psychiatric origins for anorexia nervosa
https://eatingdisorderrecoverypodcast.podbean.com/mf/play/bkwkp4/Bulik_2019.mp3 In this podcast Tabitha Farrar talks to Dr Cynthia Bulik about recent study that identifies eight risk loci and implicates metabo-psychiatric origins for anorexia nervosa. Link to...
Atypical Anorexia (Podcast)
You can download and listen to this podcast here: https://eatingdisorderrecoverypodcast.podbean.com/e/atypical-anorexia/
How not to allow the Ditch of Fear to swallow you in recovery.
Fear is the biggest obstacle in recovery for most of us. Most commonly, fear of weight gain. For many of us, fear of our unsuppressed bodyweight is what keeps us circling through actions that are intended to suppress weight gain. Fear of change also factors in and...
Eating past tears, and choosing to smile.
When I was sick with anorexia I didn’t cry very much. I was angry a lot, yes, but I didn’t often cry from sadness. I wasn’t the complete emotional void that a person with anorexia stereotypically might be, but I didn’t cry a lot. Which is...
Eating Disorder Recovery: The brain doesn’t magically “heal” itself. You have to neurally rewire it.
“The brain takes longer to heal than the body does.” If you have been in or around eating disorder treatment for a while, you have probably heard this. It’s true. Yeah, weight gain usually happens relatively fast (if you eat enough, that is) compared...
Will I ever be able to exercise again?
I get asked this question a lot from people who are compulsive movers. The answer is yes, if you want. Actually, the whole point of full recovery is that you can do whatever the fuck you want. But …, and … do not be in a hurry to get back to exercise....![Actually it IS about the food: a talk with psychotherapist Danielle B. Grossman [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/My-Post-16.png)
Actually it IS about the food: a talk with psychotherapist Danielle B. Grossman [Podcast]
Dannielle B. Grossman is a California licensed marriage and family therapist in private practice in Truckee, California. She also works by phone and FaceTime with clients throughout California. Danielle understands that food deprivation and fear responses...
Rewiring Fear: Recognising, Challenging, Overcoming
You can’t overcome something that you can’t challenge. You can’t challenge something that you can’t recognize. Fear, despite being present in everyone I have ever worked with in recovery, is a bit of a slippery eel sometimes. My relationship...
Eating food is not a math equation. Stop methodizing eating.
Edit: A reminder I write for adults in active recovery. This is not a blog saying that children, or people who are generally resisting recovery, or people who are in need of IP care, or people who can not (yet) access desire should not be on a meal plan. As I have...![Funding deficit for eating disorders: Taking action in the UK [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/My-Post-3-1080x675.jpg)
Funding deficit for eating disorders: Taking action in the UK [Podcast]
From Sophie I am a foundation doctor in Stoke but also someone who has had anorexia since 10 years old. I have faced huge issues in getting treatment where I live as there is no funding for adults with Eating Disorders. For me personally, this has prolonged the course...
Why you can’t recover from an eating disorder on your safe food
Sounds obvious, doesn’t it? Yet, so many of us, when we are in “recovery,” continue to eat food that feels “safe.” More often than not, this is also food specifically designed for people on diets. That is, food marketed to...![Recovering when you’re a no-nonsense guy who totally doesn’t have anorexia but has some sort of problem [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/My-Post.jpg)
Recovering when you’re a no-nonsense guy who totally doesn’t have anorexia but has some sort of problem [Podcast]
In this podcast Tabitha talks to B, a guy who totally didn’t have anorexia … but probably did! B thought of himself as a normal guy, doing normal things: obsessively tracking calories, running absurd distances, and hiding in closets to avoid...
Eating disorder treatment: Fear of food is the epidemic we have to face, not obesity
This blog is a collection of some stories I was sent. My comments are at the end. I listened to your podcast this morning about how treatment professionals are failing by making eating more complicated. I wanted to make you aware of an appointment I just had with my...![Eating disorders and substance use: avoiding the whack-a-mole game in treatment [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/wiss-podcast.jpg)
Eating disorders and substance use: avoiding the whack-a-mole game in treatment [Podcast]
In this podcast Tabitha Farrar talks to David Wiss about eating disorders co-occurring with substance abuse. David Wiss, MS, RDN is the founder of Nutrition in Recovery, which specializes in: Addictions, Eating Disorders, Mental Health, Gut Health, Body Image, and...
PSA: The fat on your body is there by design
I know, I know. Those of you who read my books, blogs, listen to podcasts, and YouTube will be thinking “Why the heck is she harping on about this again? She’s already covered it everywhere … “ Every day the importance of this topic is demonstrated to me. So I’ll keep...![How eating disorders affect our values, and our decisions [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/My-Post-32.jpg)
How eating disorders affect our values, and our decisions [Podcast]
In this podcast, Tabitha Farrar talks about how eating disorder change our beliefs and values, and how recovery also changes these aspects. Podcast dedicated to “Mary.” I miss you.
Eating Disorder Recovery Questions: How do I know if I want more food?
I get asked this question a lot — by clients, via email, via Youtube — and it is one that tripped my up from time to time in my own recovery. Until, one day, I realised that there is one simple answer: If you are asking the question, “how do I know if I want...
Dr G: Muscles in recovery, and how you can have an eating disorder in any size body
In this podcast Tabitha talks to Dr Gaudiani about what happens to the muscular system when a person is in recovery from and eating disorder and/or malnutrition as a result of dietary restriction. Jen’s book on...
Eating disorders and disabilities: cerebral palsy
In this podcast Tabitha Farrar talks to Hannah, about eating disorders and cerebral palsy. Tabitha’s note: I have worked with a number of clients with anorexia who also have cerebral palsy. The aspects of body image and body control justification that Hannah...
Why ignoring lived experience is the biggest mistake the mental health field ever made
Lived Experience: In qualitative phenomenological research, lived experience refers to a representation of the experiences and choices of a given person, and the knowledge that they gain from these experiences and choices. In short, you have actually lived through the...![Migration/Adapt to Flee Famine theory and fear [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/podcast-shan-jan-1080x675.jpg)
Migration/Adapt to Flee Famine theory and fear [Podcast]
In this podcast, Tabitha Farrar has a discussion with Shan Guisinger — author of the Adapt to Flee Famine paper — about the biological fear of eating response.
Eating Disorder Treatment Lessons: Treatment should not traumatize patients
I get sent treatment story emails, and I sometimes ask permission to publish them. I think sharing stories is important, and hope that they reach treatment professionals. If treatment professionals can open themselves up to learning from patients rather than relying...![Recovery Stories: 11 years old and pushing for recovery [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/My-Post-19-760x675.jpg)
Recovery Stories: 11 years old and pushing for recovery [Podcast]
In this podcast, Tabitha Farrar talks to “S” an 11-year-old in recovery, about his recovery journey, and his desire and motivation to get well.
Change. Change. Change. Change everything!
Recovery from a long and enduring restrictive eating disorder is about change on every level. It is about changing every moment of every day so that your brain is unable to fall back into those old “safe” neural ruts of behaviour. Many people in recovery...![Six ‘biases’ against patients and carers in evidence-based medicine [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/My-Post-9-1080x675.jpg)
Six ‘biases’ against patients and carers in evidence-based medicine [Podcast]
In this podcast, Tabitha Farrar talks to Dr Trisha Greenhaugh about the paper titled Six ‘biases’ against patients and carers in evidence-based medicine.” Link to paper: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4556220/
Recovery Stories: Eating Disorders and Stealing
In this blog post I am sharing a story from a person in recovery. These stories and admissions are so important. Many of use find ourselves compelled to act in certain ways when we have a restrictive eating disorder and it is crucial that we share stories so that we...
Q & A on some aspects of Rehabilitate, Rewire, Recover!
Hello Tabitha, I have now finished reading both of your books and have read/listened to most of your posts/podcasts/videos, and I’ve learned so much from them. I have begun earnestly trying to let go of my many ED behaviours, and in so doing, I have discovered—much to...
Response to podcast on why eating disorder treatment fails people
I thought I would share a treatment story that a listener to the Eating Disorder Recovery Podcast sent me recently. I am writing you in reply to your podcast on eating disorder treatment failures and your question to share experiences as an adult having been to...
Intention, Motivation, Commitment: The difference between wanting to recover, and actually recovering
New Year 2019. In this podcast, Tabitha talks about her own recovery, and why wanting to recover isn’t enough.![“Surviving” the holidays [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/My-Post-21.jpg)
“Surviving” the holidays [Podcast]

Treatment Stories: Being shamed for wanting more food
In this podcast you will hear an audio recording of an account of a treatment facility from a person in recovery.
You can’t fight your biology and win. Your body’s only agenda is health.
Restrictive eating disorders are like a mental autoimmune disease. In the respect that you literally attack yourself. For years I lived as if my body was the enemy. The enemy, and one that had this secret hidden agenda to do … I don’t know what. Gain...
Treatment fails eating disorder patients. We can do better
This is another post in which I’m going to talk about the flaws in treatment that all too often we stay quiet about. I’ve been told so many times that “treatment centres are a necessity and they provide a vital service” so I should be more...![Bodybuilding, gyms, and eating disorders: A guy’s perspective [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/My-Post-2-1080x675.jpg)
Bodybuilding, gyms, and eating disorders: A guy’s perspective [Podcast]
In this week’s podcast, Tabitha talks to Ari Snaevarsson about bodybuilding, gyms, and his perspective on how the fitness culture influences people with eating disorders. Bio Ari Snaevarsson is a certified nutritionist* who has worked a great deal with...
Anorexia recovery: Act on the truth, and only the truth
I know your truth. Your truth is that you are tired and hungry — no, exhausted and starving — and all you really want to do is sit on the coach and eat mountains of food. I also know that this truth frightens you. So you are trying hard to ignore and reject it You...![Eating disorder treatment should never punish eating [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/My-Post-18.jpg)
Eating disorder treatment should never punish eating [Podcast]
In this podcast episode, Tabitha talks to a person in recovery about past treatment experiences, and how these led to this person being taught that unrestricted eating was a thing to avoid at all costs.
What Yoga Teachers Need to Know About Eating Disorders
I’m writing this as a resource for yoga instructors. It is by no-means complete and you are likely going to have to browse this blog and my podcasts to fully understand a lot of the things I talk about here. If you can’t be bothered to do that, however,...![Why eating disorder treatment fails people by making eating more complicated [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/My-Post-7.jpg)
Why eating disorder treatment fails people by making eating more complicated [Podcast]
In this podcast, Tabitha talks to a person in recovery who shares some information about how treatment has made her even more confused about how to eat. It is important that people in recovery are encouraged to listen to their bodies and eat what they want to...
Eating disorder treatment professionals: Stop telling people “binge” eating is bad
I’ve written about binge/feast eating many times before. There is a whole chapter in my book about it. I’m still going to keep blogging about this frequently as it is a message that I’m passionate about. I believe the the misunderstanding about...![Notes on Full Recovery [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/My-Post.jpg)
Notes on Full Recovery [Podcast]
In this podcast, Tabitha talks about full recovery.
Anorexia recovery: Be the agent rather than the victim
This is post about empowering you to know that if you want to recover, and if you take the actions needed in order to recover, you will. In order to fully recover, regardless of your deal in life, you have to have agency. You have to actively work for recovery rather...![The scale: To weigh or not to weigh in recovery [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/My-Post-7-2-1080x675.jpg)
The scale: To weigh or not to weigh in recovery [Podcast]
In this podcast, Tabitha Farrar talks to Bridget Whitlow about weighing in recovery Bridget Whitlow, MS, LMFT is a licensed psychotherapist that provides psychotherapy for adolescent and adult individuals, couples, families, and groups. Bridget has clinical expertise...
Full Recovery: Mental Flexibility
Full recovery is so so so much more than gaining weight. There are cascading and wonderful mental state shifts and changes that actually lead to the mental freedom that recovery is all about. And this mental freedom is why the often overlooked neural rewiring aspect...
Full recovery means even stressful situations aren’t as stressful
We haven’t had to move house for a long time. On purpose, because everyone knows how horrid moving house is. Well, we just did it again this month. This move was horrid — still is actually as we’re trying to remodel the place we are moving in to as we move...
Dr Adele LaFrance: Emotion Focused Family Therapy
In this podcast Tabitha Farrar talks to Dr Adele LaFrance about Emotion Focused Family Therapy in eating disorder treatment. Links to resources: www.emotionfocusedfamilytherapy.org www.mentalhealthfoundations.ca/resources...![Emotional Eating [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/My-Post-12-1080x675.jpg)
Emotional Eating [Podcast]
In this podcast, Tabitha Farrar talks about emotional eating, and why it isn’t really a thing Transcript with thanks to Marie: Hello welcome to this week’s podcast. This week I’m going to talk about emotional eating. But first of all, I’m going to...
“My therapist was more scared of my weight gain than I was …” and other recovery stories
This blog is a collection of things that people have told me — unedited — in the last couple of weeks. This collection circles around what I see to be one of the primary problems with eating disorder treatment: Professionals reinforcing the very fears that the eating...![[Podcast] Dr Lauren Muhlheim’s new book: When your teen has an eating disorder](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/teen.jpg)
[Podcast] Dr Lauren Muhlheim’s new book: When your teen has an eating disorder
Lauren Muhlheim, Psy.D., FAED, CEDS is a psychologist and eating disorder specialist who provides evidence-based treatment for eating disorders in the outpatient setting. She practices in Los Angeles and is able to provide teletherapy in California and New...
Stigma, stereotypes, and under-diagnosis of eating disorders
We’re told that women get eating disorders more than men do. I have never thought this to be true. What I think is true, is that more women get diagnosed than men do. Outdated information, misrepresentation, stigma, assumptions, ignorance. These things all...
Neural Rewiring For Full Recovery From An Entrenched Eating Disorder
In this podcast Tabitha Farrar explains why she believes that neural rewiring is a crucial and often not understood aspect of achieving full recovery from a long-term restrictive eating disorder such as anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder....![Recovery Stories: Blue Milk [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Blue-milk.jpg)
Recovery Stories: Blue Milk [Podcast]
In this podcast Tabitha talks to a guy in recovery Transcript thank you Marie! Hello there, welcome to this week’s podcast. This week I had the pleasure of talking to a guy called Chase. And Chase is in recovery from an eating disorder. First Chase got in...
Recovery stories: Cannabis and eating disorder recovery
In this week’s podcast, Tabitha talks Sophia — a person currently in recovery — about medical use of cannabis in recovery from anorexia. Hello there, welcome to this weeks podcast. This week we are talking about medical marijuana/cannabis for use...
Malnutrition is a serious medical condition. Talk therapy isn’t always sufficient
People are still dying from eating disorders. This means that people are dying of malnutrition. Yes, in the West, in our world of abundant food, people are dying of malnutrition. And they are doing so right under their doctors, dietician, and therapist’s noses....
Malnutrition is a serious medical condition. Talk therapy isn’t always sufficient
People are still dying from eating disorders. This means that people are dying of malnutrition. Yes, in the West, in our world of abundant food, people are dying of malnutrition. And they are doing so right under their doctors, dietician, and therapist’s noses....![Recovery Stories: Connection and Advocacy [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/My-Post-5.jpg)
Recovery Stories: Connection and Advocacy [Podcast]
This weeks podcast is a conversation with Aimee Becker on recovery, connection, and advocacy Aimee Becker is the Chief Operating Officer of the Gaudiani Clinic. She spent 10 years dedicating herself to developing the infrastructure for Monte Nido &...
Recovery From Restrictive Eating: Other People’s Food
“Other people’s food.” You know, the food that other people eat. The food that is for them. Not for you. Not eating other people’s food makes you different. Special. Less dependent. Until you realize it doesn’t. I’d been getting...
Fiona Willer: Weight stigma, lifestyle assumptions, and how to spot a true HAES practitioner
Fiona Willer, AdvAPD, is the author of ‘The Non-Diet Approach Guidebook for Dietitians’, and co-author of ‘The Non-Diet Approach Guidebook for Psychologists and Counsellors’. Her business, Health, Not Diets, provides online and...
Recovery Commitments: No compulsive movement, rules, or rituals
These recovery commitments posts are outlining some of the most common reasons that people in recovery get anxious and stressed and suggesting some simplifications for those moments. I believe that one of the fundamental reasons that we feel stressed in recovery is...
HAES Series: Going deep with Deb Burgard
Deb Burgard, PhD, FAED* is a psychologist and activist from the San Francisco Bay Area specializing in concerns about body image, eating, weight stigma, and relationships. She is also one of the founders of the Health at Every Size(r) model, the original...
Recovery Commitments: Unrestricted eating
These recovery commitments posts are outlining some of the most common reasons that people in recovery get anxious and stressed and suggesting some simplifications for those moments. I believe that one of the fundamental reasons that we feel stressed in recovery is...
Recovery Commitments: Weight Gain
These recovery commitments posts are outlining some of the most common reasons that people in recovery get anxious and stressed and suggesting some simplifications for those moments. I believe that one of the fundamental reasons that we feel stressed in recovery is...
June Alexander: Recovery as an adult, and writing.
This week I talk to June Alexander, who was in her fifties when she fully recovered from long-term anorexia. June’s personal bio: I love sharing my writing passion by helping people with eating disorder experience to tell their stories. I believe...
Recovery commitments: Allow it to be simple
Over the next couple of weeks I will be posting blogs focusing on “recovery commitments.” These recovery commitments posts will be outlining some of the most common reasons that people in recovery get anxious and stressed and suggesting some...
Rebecca Scritchfield 2018: Body Kindness and postpartum body image
Rebecca Scritchfield is a registered dietitian nutritionist, certified exercise physiologist, author of the book Body Kindness, and host of the Body Kindness podcast. Through her weight-inclusive counseling practice, she helps people make peace with food, find...
When you partner has an eating disorder: Avoiding intimacy
This blog is for partners of adults with eating disorders. However, I’m writing it from the perspective of a person with an eating disorder. I was a person with an eating disorder who loved her partner, but there were times when my actions might have given the...![Family support: is it appropriate for adults too? [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/family-support-podcast-1.jpg)
Family support: is it appropriate for adults too? [Podcast]
In this podcast I talk about my personal highlights from the ICED conference presentation that I was part this year with Rebecka Peeples, Rachel Millner and Therese Waterhaus. Rebecka Peebles Rebecka Peebles, MD, is an Adolescent Medicine Specialist and...
Complusive Movement Cold Turkey: Creating space for new things
I mentioned the uncomfortable silence that stopping the compulsions and rituals that many of us with anorexia establish in a previous blog on lower-level movement here. This post is an elaboration on that. A “spiritually enlightened” person once said this...![Why my eating disorder turned me into a grocery thief [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/My-Post-9.jpg)
Why my eating disorder turned me into a grocery thief [Podcast]
Personal story time! Not everyone who is suffering from long-term malnutrition turns to stealing, but I think it is a lot more prevalent than most people assume it is. It makes sense why a brain that believes resources are scarce would feel the need to take without...
Your Brain on Malnutrition: Stealing
This is a tough one. Other scarcity mindset traits like hoarding items, and obsessively saving money are weird but don’t have the same shame and guilt attached to them as stealing does. I have written in detail about my own kleptomania. In this post I want to...![Restrictive Eating Disorders and Hoarding [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/My-Post-2-1.jpg)
Restrictive Eating Disorders and Hoarding [Podcast]
Transcript – thank you Marie! Restrictive Eating Disorders and Hoarding Hello there and welcome to this weeks podcast. Just me this week, I’m not going to talk to anyone so you’re just going to have to put up with my voice. Today I’m...
Your Brain on Malnutrition: Eating Disorders and Money
I know I have blogged about eating disorders and money before. I have even done some podcasts on it. But I want to make sure that people link anxiety around spending money, and the scarcity mindset that food restriction creates. Scarcity mindset: For the evolving...![Recovery Stories: Unrestricted eating and freedom [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/My-Post-2.jpg)
Recovery Stories: Unrestricted eating and freedom [Podcast]
In this podcast, Tabitha talks to Drake, who is in recovery from an eating disorder and wanted to share some hope. The Eating Disorder Recovery Podcast Transcript (With thanks to Marie) Hello there, welcome to this weeks podcast. The week we’ve...
Your Brain on Malnutrition: Anorexia and Hoarding
I blogged about the scarcity mindset last week. Now I will go a little more into some of the more common behavioral repercussions that I have noticed people with malnourished brains tend to develop. This blog post is about hoarding. Not all of you reading this will...
Your Brain on Malnutrition: Scarcity Mindset
I’ve done a load of YouTube videos on “your brain on malnutrition” but this is such an important aspect of understanding your anorexia or eating disorder behaviours that I’m going to start a series on it in this blog too. Scarcity mindset is...
Recovery Stories: The dangers of diabulimia
In this podcast Tabitha talks to a person in recovery about her struggles with diabulimia. link to the BBC diabulimia documentary mentioned: The Eating Disorder Recovery Podcast Recovery Stories: The Dangers of Diabulimia Tabitha: Hello there, welcome to this...
If you are restricting, purging, compensating, regardless of your body size, this blog is for you
This is another post I should have written a long time ago. I am aware that I use “anorexia” almost exclusively in this blog, but the reason for that is that I try to keep it to my personal experience and anorexia (with a very hefty side of exercise...![Ask Dr G: Edema [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Edema.jpg)
Ask Dr G: Edema [Podcast]
In this podcast Tabitha talks to the wonderful Dr Gaudiani about the important and often misunderstood topic of edema. In this podcast we cover: pitting edema dangers of long-term edema triggering aspects of edema edema and purging medications for edema if long-term...
Mid-Recovery Clusterfuck: Body Guilt
I’ve written about Mid-Recovery Clusterfuck stuff before, more in the sense of the emotions that blow up when your brain starts to care more about other people and life experiences than it does about obsessing over food and exercise. And the discomfort and grief...
Lower-level movement and why it is scary to be still
Lower-level movement After stopping exercise, it became clear that my lower-level movement urges — walking, cleaning, shopping-without-buying, etc — were increasing. It took me a while to work out I had to cease responding to all these compulsions too. More on...![Recovery Stories: Recovering despite weight stigma in eating disorder treatment [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/My-Post-4.jpg)
Recovery Stories: Recovering despite weight stigma in eating disorder treatment [Podcast]
In this podcast Tabitha talks to Sarah Thompson about her recovery, and her journey into body positivity. We also discuss: Being queer and having an eating disorder Weight stigma in eating disorder treatment The Be Nourished retreat and certification Recovery in an...
Let’s talk about sex … (and relationships)
Salt and Pepper. Yeah, I’m old. Sex and anorexia don’t usually go all that well together. I’ve known one or two people who have told me that their sex drive actually went up when they were in malnutrition, but that tends to be the anomaly. Most of us...![[Podcast] Dr Colleen Reichmann on recovery, HEAS, body diversity, and advocacy.](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/colleen.jpg)
[Podcast] Dr Colleen Reichmann on recovery, HEAS, body diversity, and advocacy.
In this podcast Tabitha chats to Dr Colleen Reichmann about her recovery, health at every size, body diversity, and advoacy and activism. Dr. Colleen Reichmann is a licensed clinical psychologist, practicing in Williamsburg, VA. She works in her private practice,...
Just because you are an adult with anorexia doesn’t mean shouldn’t have support
I’ve got a presentation coming up with the fabulous Rebecka Peebles, Rachel Millner, and Therese Waterhaus in April at AED that stems from this topic. It is titled “Why go it alone? How Family-based Treatment of Young Adults with Anorexia is Possible and...
Podcast: Study shows diet talk and behaviour passes down through generations
In this podcast Tabitha Farrar talks to Jerica Berge about a new study illistrating how diet talk and encouragement to diet can be passed down through generations Parent Encouragement to Diet From Adolescence Into Adulthood May Cause Intergenerational Harm...
“If start eating I won’t stop” and other anorexia recovery worries
I know that one of the things that used to worry me when I had anorexia was the fierceness of my hunger. My hunger could be absent physically until I started eating something. And then I wouldn’t want to stop. Of course, the mental hunger was there pretty much...![Recovery Stories: Kayla K and why all diets should be damned! [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Kayla.jpg)
Recovery Stories: Kayla K and why all diets should be damned! [Podcast]
In this podcast, Tabitha chats to Kayla Kotecki about her path to recovery, and the story behind damnthediets.com. We talk about: unrestricted eating diet culture obcessive and complusive exercise bikini contest culture social pressures to lose weight and exercise...![Force feeding yourself as an adult [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/My-Post-3.jpg)
Force feeding yourself as an adult [Podcast]
In this podcast I talk about the skill of being able to force feed yourself as an adult in recovery from anorexia. In the process of making yourself eat food you are afraid of you achieve both nutritional rehabiliation and neural rewiring goals. You train your brain...
New Book: Rehabilitate, Rewire, Recover!
Note: this is available for Kindle pre-order right now. Give it about 10 days and the print option will also be available. I have put all my blogs, podcasts, and YouTune channel information into one book! This book is for adults in recovery from anorexia, as the...
Once again, dear doctors: A person can have anorexia at any size!
I’m going to share with you an email I got earlier this week. Sadly, the things written here do not surprise me at all. I hear stories like this very often. Many doctors are ignorant to the truths around eating disorders, and often rely on the myths — such as...![Recovery Stories: Anorexia recovery with kids [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/My-Post-11.jpg)
Recovery Stories: Anorexia recovery with kids [Podcast]
In this podcast, Tabitha Farrar talks to an adult in recovery from anorexia who has young children. We talk about things children pick up on, dealing with children when you are going through recovery stress, and ways of talking to young children about eating...
Recovery Stories: Allow for body diversity when setting target weights
(Transcript for this podcast is available if you scroll down! Thanks toMarie for transcribing it!) In this podcast Tabitha talks to the fabulous Carrie Arnold about the problems associated with setting target weight too long: Topics covered: – Body diversity...
My cold turkey journey: Fear
I’ve talked about stopping compulsive exercise. I get lots of questions on this topic, and requests to elaborate. Here is a little more information on how cold turkey played out for me. In this post I will focus on the obstacles to cold turkey. The things that...
Why Weight Watchers can go to hell with their “FREE” teens membership
Where to start with this one? You’ve probably heard the news that Weight Watchers is targeting teenagers now with a free membership. Looks like they are on the hunt for more lifelong members. Lifelong being the word, because dieting behaviour tends to lead to a...
Stop gaslighting eating disorder patients (and parents)
Gaslighting = manipulate (someone) by psychological means into questioning their own sanity. Gaslighting is usually thought of in a domestic abuse setting but also happens in many other settings — including therapy. This sort of behaviour is not limited to eating...![Recovery Stories: Elisa Oras, feast eating, and coming out the other side [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/My-Post.jpg)
Recovery Stories: Elisa Oras, feast eating, and coming out the other side [Podcast]
In this podcast Tabitha talks to Elisa Oras about recovery. Topics covered include: – Anorexia in people in larger bodies – Bulimia, and binge/purge subtypes – Feast eating in recovery – Eating lots of food! – Non-traditional...![Recovery Stories: How allowing my parents to refeed me saved my life [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Adobe-Spark-5.jpg)
Recovery Stories: How allowing my parents to refeed me saved my life [Podcast]
In this episode, I talk to “Simon’s Cat” a woman in recovery from anorexia. She shares her story about going back home to live with her parents for 3 months in order to start her recovery and get though the thoughest parts of the refeeding process....
Question/Answer: Why is it so difficult for me to eat more?
Here’s a question I got via email today. I will write here my opinion on this question. I would like to remind readers that my opinion is just that, and that we are all unique individuals so it would be impossible for my general opinion on anything at all to be...
Rachel Millner: School Dinner Policing, BMI Report Cards, and the importance of a HAES approach for kids
In this episode, Tabitha talks to the wonderful Rachel Millner about fat-phobia in schools: BMI report cards School dinner policing Health at Every Size Body Diversity Fat-phobia How to trust kids to eat Find out more about Rachel Millner here...Podcast on eating disorders and yoga
I recently was interviewed for The Connected Yoga Teacher. You can listen to the podcast here: We cover my story with anorexia, men with eating disorders, veganism, the words that we use around body size, food, and diet, in the yoga studio and the world, and a ton...
Why recovery blogs (such as this one) should be read with discretion
I write a recovery blog, so I understand the irony of this post. I need to write it anyway. When I had “active” anorexia, I never read a thing about it. I remember a couple of times people trying to send me a newspaper or magazine clipping on anorexia...
Ask Dr G: Anorexia, malnutrition and your bones
In this podcast, Dr Jennifer Gaudiani talks about your bones, and what the effects of malnutrition caused by a restrictive eating disorder such as anorexia, can be on your bone health. We talk about: How malnutrition affects your bones Bone density Osteoporosis...![Dr Laura Hill: Motivation to Change in Anorexia Recovery [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/De-Hill.jpg)
Dr Laura Hill: Motivation to Change in Anorexia Recovery [Podcast]
In this podcast Tabitha talks to Dr Laura Hill about motivation to change in anorexia recovery. But this time we’re talking about motivation to change on the side of the clinician, rather than the patient. Link to Dr Laura Hill’s book,”A...
Recovered. Not perpetually “in recovery.” Not forever “recovering.”
I believe that full recovery is possible for every person who is currently suffering from or in recover from anorexia. Here’s my two cents on why I don’t thing that the the “in recovery,” or “remission” rhetoric is particularly...![Recovery Feast Eating [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Recovery-feast-eating.jpg)
Recovery Feast Eating [Podcast]
Saying goodbye to 2017, and looking back over the year and what I have learned. In this podcast I talk about what I call recovery “feast” eating, which is more commonly referred to as “binge” eating. Looking at eating a lot of food as a highly...
Why BMI is Bullshit
Oh, the magic “BMI 19.” “Get to a BMI 19 and you’ll be healthy,” they tell us. Bullshit. Utter crap. Hear me out… Body Mass Index (BMI) is a very basic, and arguably erroneous, way to estimate the amount of fat that a person has on...![The State of Science: Sugar Addiction [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/State-of-sugar.jpg)
The State of Science: Sugar Addiction [Podcast]
In this podcast Tabitha talks to Maggie Westwater, one of the authors behind a study looking into misconceptions behind the notion of sugar addiction. We talk about: – Animal studies into addiction and what they can tell us about human behaviour. – What...![Event Restriction [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Adobe-Spark-3.jpg)
Event Restriction [Podcast]
In this podcast Tabitha talks about what she refers to as “event restriction.” Event restriction is when you anticipate eating more or resting at an event or time in the future, and therefore try to create a “buffer” by restricting more or...
You can be underweight at any size
Underweight = being at a weight that is lower than the weight that your body would be if you did not suppress it with restrictive eating or exercise. So, taken from my definition of what “underweight” means above, it stands to reason that a person...
Why eating without restriction really is the healthiest option
There was a heated discussion on Facebook after I posted a podcast on orthorexia last week. It seems that many people interpret the message of “it is okay to eat “unhealthy” food without restriction” as “all you should eat is...![Don’t be the martyr! Relax! [Video]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/tea.jpg)
Don’t be the martyr! Relax! [Video]
When I was in a state of malnutrition I was forever running about doing chores. I never felt okay about sitting and relaxing. As I explain in this video. Life doesn’t have to be like that! Did you know I have a YouTube channel? [sm-youtube-subscribe]...
Happy Thanksgiving 2017!
I know this is a tough day for many of you. I made a little video to cheer you along, and to also remind you of the importance of not doing what I call “event restricting.” Event restriction is when you “save” calories for later. You perceive...
Dr G: Hormones (and how eating disorders affect them!)
In this podcast Tabitha talks to Dr Jennifer Gaudiani from the Gaudiani Clinic in Denver about the important and interesting topic of hormones and how they are affected by restrictive eating disorders. Topics covered include: How malnutrition affects the endocrine...
Orthorexia: Why it’s healthy to eat “unhealthy” foods. Unrestricted.
In this podcast Tabitha talks about orthorexia and why it is important to be able to eat all kinds of food without stress — including foods that you judge as unhealthy. I see orthorexia as a restrictive eating disorder. The goalposts may be slightly altered, but it is...
Defining Mental Hunger
There is a podcast about mental hunger here if you prefer listening to reading: http://tabithafarrar.com/2017/10/defining-mental-hunger-important-anorexia-recovery-podcast/ What is mental hunger? Mental hunger is thinking about food. You might not even be thinking...![Dear Doctor … [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Adobe-Spark-13.jpg)
Dear Doctor … [Podcast]
People with eating disorders, parents, and doctors share what they think doctors should know about eating disorders. Support this podcast via Patreon! You can support this podcast and ensure the continuation of it by pledging a patreon donation...
A note for yoga instructors, about eating disorders
I recently was interviewed for The Connected Yoga Teacher. You can listen to the podcast here: We cover my story with anorexia, men with eating disorders, veganism, the words that we use around body size, food, and diet, in the yoga studio and the world, and a ton...
A couple of recent podcasts …
I’m skiving off publishing a podcast this week because I am on holiday with family in England. We were in Manchester for my sister-in-laws wedding last week, and now are down in Wiltshire staying with my parents in a tiny village. I’ve basically...![Ask Dr G: Eating Disorders and Metabolism [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Adobe-Spark-12.jpg)
Ask Dr G: Eating Disorders and Metabolism [Podcast]
In this podcast, Tabitha talks to Dr Gaudiani on the topic of metabolism in relation to anorexia and other restrictive eating disorders. We talk about: How the metabolism works How restriction affects the metabolism Mental hunger Physical hunger How to eat in recovery...![Defining Mental Hunger And Why It Is Important In Anorexia Recovery [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Adobe-Spark-11.jpg)
Defining Mental Hunger And Why It Is Important In Anorexia Recovery [Podcast]
In this Podcast Tabitha talks about mental hunger. We look at: – What mental hunger is – What mental hunger represents – Why responding to mental hunger is important – Why physical hunger cues are not reliable in Anorexia recovery – How...
Male vs Female Treatment Experiences in Eating Disorder Treatment
In this podcast Tabitha talks to Philipa Hay about recent research that looked into male autobiographies of eating disorders and recovery experiences. Link to the full research paper –> https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5485468/ Study...
How do I stop comparing what I eat to what other people eat?
Email question from a reader this week: I would appreciate your advice concerning the difficulty to stop comparing with others when it comes to exercise and the amount of food they eat. I know that my worries are not reasonable and that I have to care only for myself...
Before recovery vs. after recovery
In this podcast Tabitha answers questions about life before recovery versus life after recovery from Anorexia. Topics covered include: – Dining out – Social life – Feeling cold – Eating with others Support this podcast via Patreon! You can...
Anorexia Recovery as an Adult: Teenage Brat Syndrome
Me before Matt is home from work: I miss Matt. Hope he gets home soon. He’s so lovely. Matt: “Hey Babe, how was your day?” Me: OMG why are you always asking me questions. Can’t you just leave me alone! I wasn’t much of a teenage brat...
Defining Restriction. Defining Unrestricted Eating
In this podcast, Tabitha talks about restriction, and unrestricted eating. Restrictive eating disorders such as Anorexia are often misrepresented as total restriction and not eating. This is often not the case. Many people with Anorexia can eat seemingly...
Anorexia Made Me Tell Pork Pies
To my US friends, “pork pies” is rhyming slang for “lies.” (Pork pies are also these delicious little meat filled shortcrust pastry pies, which incidentally I refused to eat when I had Anorexia. Sod’s law that now I am recovered and would...
Dr Jennifer Gaudiani: Tummy Troubles in Eating Disorder Recovery
Tabitha talks to Dr. Jennifer Gaudiani about all things gastrointestinal in eating disorder recovery! We talk about bowel movements, irritable bowel syndrome, delayed gastric emptying, and so much more! In the podcast Dr Guadiani mentioned the following...
Eating Disorder Science: Variants in neuropeptide signaling are associated with disordered eating behaviors
In this podcast Tabitha Farrar talks to Micheal Lutter about the recently published paper titled: Novel and ultra-rare damaging variants in neuropeptide signaling are associated with disordered eating behaviors From the paper: Abstract Objective Eating...
Clinicians, you do not help us recover from Anorexia when you set low target weights and food intakes!
This is the first of a series of blogs aimed at eating disorder professionals. This series was inspired by the members of the recovery Slack group. “Pampering” as a restoration component of many IP systems is particularly troubling. I have actually had IP treatments...
ARFID: An interview with an adult with Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder
In this blog post, I interview HELEN S. Helen is in her early 50s and has struggled with restrictive eating for much of her life Background to, and description of my condition: I have had eating difficulties all my life: from the time I was weaned as a baby and fed...
Anorexia Fears: Using Migration Science to Explain Fear of Eating and Weight Gain
This week I speak to Shan Guisinger again, and this time we are talking specifically about fear in Anorexia. Fear of weight gain. Fear of eating more. How could a fear this great have possibly had an evolutionary advantage? Find out! Support this podcast via...
Anorexia Fears: Eating More
I hated being underweight. I hated that if I left the house, schoolkids would shout “skinny freak” at me as I walked past. I hated that I couldn’t sit down without it hurting. I wanted to gain weight. But, I feared gaining weight, and I feared eating...![Anorexia recovery while managing a young family [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Adobe-Spark-15.jpg)
Anorexia recovery while managing a young family [Podcast]
Recovery from Anorexia is often a time of heightened anxiety and stress. Managing recovery while looking after a young family is a reality for many adult sufferers. In this podcast Tabitha talks to an adult in recovery, Erin, about managing recovery with young...
Anorexia and Kleptomania
klep·to·ma·ni·a noun a recurrent urge to steal, typically without regard for need or profit. This is a hard post to have to write. It’s important as shame is a present enough feeling for a person in recovery from Anorexia as it is — thinking that you are a...
Shan Guisinger: Adapt to Flee Famine Perspective of Anorexia Evolution
In this podcast we talk about the Adapt to Flee Famine Perspective of Anorexia evolution with Shan Guisinger. The Adapt to Flee Famine Perspective puts forward convincing evidence for the case that Anorexia is an evolved genetic response to times of famine. A...
Anorexia Recovery, Weight Restoration, and Energy Debt
I published a podcast this week titled, Energy Deficit | Energy Debt | Target Weights | Weight vs State Restoration, and I will explain Energy Debt in detail in this post. Energy Debt: The accumulation of the effects of long-term energy deficit such as lack of bodily...![Energy Deficit | Energy Debt | Target Weights | Weight vs State Restoration [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Adobe-Spark-11.jpg)
Energy Deficit | Energy Debt | Target Weights | Weight vs State Restoration [Podcast]
Just me in this podcast! Responding to questions that I get frequently around Anorexia recovery and weight restoration. How to know when you are really weight restored? Let me tell you it is not something that you can calculate via a math equation or estimate...
Slack group question answers: If you’ve had treatment for your ED, what do you find has been most helpful?
This week I was totally swamped and also finished the first draft of my next book (a complete recovery guide for adults with Anorexia). It’s over 100,000 words and my head is swimming. I’m cheating this week by not writing a blog and instead — with the...![Eating Disorders and PTSD [Podcast]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/Adobe-Spark-10.jpg)
Eating Disorders and PTSD [Podcast]
Tabitha Farrar talks to writer, speaker, and songwriter Jenni Schaefer about her recovery from Anorexia, and subsequent experiences with PTSD. In this podcast we talk about: Hope and ACTION in eating disorder recovery Motivation to recover Trauma and...I don’t care what Lily Collins or anyone else says, there is no “safe” way to lose weight if you have Anorexia.
I don’t care what Lily Collins or anyone else says, there is no “safe” way to lose weight if you have the genetic predisposition for Anorexia. I’m so over the whole saga about the NetFlix film “To The Bone,” but very much understand...
Going Sane — exposing malpractice in the mental health industry
Lisa Sabey is the woman behind the documentary “Going Sane.” In this podcast we talk about: -Malpractice in the field of mental health -Lack of accounability and assessment -Low standards of care for patients -The importance of using evidence based...
You do not have to be thin to have Anorexia | You do not have to be thin to be underweight
All the horses in this picture are different sizes. All the horses in this picture are respected and thought of as beautiful. On Sunday I published a podcast I recorded with the wonderful Rachel Millner on the topic of Anorexia and people in larger bodies. I...
The importance of recognizing Anorexia in people in larger bodies
In this podcast Tabitha Farrar talks to Dr. Rachel Millner about Anorexia and people in larger bodies. This podcast was inspired by an email from a mother of a patient who has Anorexia and is in a larger body. Topics discussed include: The dangers associated...
Mental health patients do not fail treatment. Treatment fails patients.
You did not fail treatment. Treatment failed you. I lose count of how many times I say this. I had to say it again yesterday to someone who was convinced that she could not make a full recovery because she had been in and out of treatment so many times. So many failed...
Podcast: Challenging intake guidelines — Dr Graham Redgrave
Tabitha Farrar talks to Dr Graham Redgrave about the research done at Johns Hopkins looking into higher weights and a faster rate of refeeding patients with Anorexia in an inpatient hospital setting. The conversation includes: Refeeding intakes, traditional...
Anorexia Recovery: Becoming Recovery-Body Proud
Last week I wrote about The New Body Problem in Anorexia recovery. Today I am writing about the other side: becoming recovery-body proud. Here is the paradox, before I started recovery, and even when I was supposedly at a “recovered” BMI, the thought of...
Exercise Trackers, BMI, Obesity, and Anorexia Treatment
In this podcast Tabitha Farrar talks to Courtney Simpson about the work that she is doing looking at fitness tracker use amoungst people with eating disorders. We cover a lot of topics in this podcast that was originally about fitness trackers and the number of people...
Anorexia Recovery: The New Body Problem
New Body Problem = the thoughts and feelings that arise when we move through physical change in Anorexia recovery. I got an email this week from a person in a state of despair because he has weight restored somewhat and doesn’t like his weight-restored body....
How ARFID differs from AN/BN — science of picky eating
Tabitha Farrar talks to Hana Zickgraf about a recently published research paper titled: Adult picky eaters with symptoms of avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder: comparable distress and comorbidity but different eating behaviors compared to those with...
Do you need talk therapy in order to recover from Anorexia?
The short answer here is “No.” You do not need talk therapy in order to reach full remission from Anorexia. However, you might want it, in which case you should have it. Before we get into it, remember that weight restoration is one step in recovery, and...
Stomach problems in Anorexia recovery
As if recovery wasn’t already difficult enough from a mental standpoint, there are often physical discomforts too! This blog post is about stomach in Anorexia recovery. Reading this blog post will not make your tummy feel better, but it may provide you with some...
Anorexia Recovery: The problem with “intuitive eating”
I’ll preface this blog post with this: this post is about intuitive eating and Anorexia recovery. If you don’t have Anorexia, go ahead and do all the intuitive eating that your intuition asks you to do —this post is not about you. I agree that intuitive...
Anorexia Recovery as an Adult: Sustaining recovery when life happens
Recovery from Anorexia certainly becomes easier to maintain with time, however, large and stressful life events can make even the most solidly recovered individual feel dodgy all of a sudden. When the shit hits the fan, even the most dormant Anorexia behaviors will...
Anorexia and Exercise 2: The lower-level movement trap
I wrote about Anorexia and exercise last week and the case for cold turkey. This post is the follow up to that and it addresses lower-level, movement. If you read the last post and thought “well that doesn’t apply to me because I don’t exercise...
Exercise and Anorexia: The Case for Cold Turkey
Dr: “Are you eating?” Me: “Yes” Dr: “Hmm … Well. you are still very underweight, so maybe try eating a bit more?” Me: “Sure, I’ll try that.” What my Dr never asked me about was the extent that I was...
Anorexia Recovery as an Adult: Letting go of nutritional science
I have a nutrition qualification, but I don’t use it. In fact, what I was taught about nutrition on that course set me back a good couple of years in recovery. I was taught that fat was bad, calories should be minimized, meals should be planned as to balance...
Anorexia is a Obsessive Compulsive Spectrum Disorder and should be treated as such …
While it may be broadly understood that effective knowledge, diagnostics, treatment and resources for eating disorders are lacking, I think that until certain parts of this system are conceptually overhauled we will continue to only see change and improvements happen...
Anorexia recovery and food rules: Sometimes it gets worse before it gets better
Anorexia: You can’t have that bagel for lunch. That would be a breach of Rule #382 Me: Rule #382? Anorexia: Yes, rule #382: Bagel for breakfast cannot be followed by bagel for lunch. Rule #382 Me: Since when did that rule exist? That wasn’t there before....
Adults in Recovery Workshop Coming Up!
Not a usual post from me. I just want to tell you about the upcoming Boulder, Colorado workshop I am offering May 20-12. Actually first of all I want to tell you about a free ED-ucation on Eating Disorders Seminar that I am presenting at in Canada next week. I have...
Anorexia Recovery as an Adult: My body is not a calculator … and mental hunger counts!
When we start trying to control weight, food intake, and energy balance artificially we are messing with a system what we know too little about. Nutritional science is too immature to really know how and when the body uses energy and for what. In recovery from...
Anorexia Recovery: What about when I am not hungry?
I got the below email and decided that I would answer it in blog post because I think that these are questions that many adults in Anorexia recovery will have from time to time. Other than removing the writer’s name I have posted the email in it’s...
The trouble with target weights in Anorexia recovery: Living paycheck to paycheck
There are certainly problems that arise with “target weights” in Anorexia recovery. The biggest, overarching theme is that they are set too low. I wrote about this in length in this post titled Anorexia Recovery: Why is it that treatment seems to serve my...Donate

Anorexia Recovery: Why is it that treatment seems to serve my eating disorder better than it serves my recovery?
I don’t expect everyone to read this and agree with it. The TL;DR is that I believe that there is a fear that infests many eating disorder treatment approaches and this leads to inadequate intake prescriptions and target weights that do not serve individuals in...
Anorexia: Mid-Recovery Clusterfuck (Charlie Foxtrot)
This post contains swear words. This is not an apology, I’m just letting you know. 😀 When I went through what I refer to now as my “Mid-Recovery Clusterfuck” I didn’t know what it was. I thought that — despite considering myself at the furthest...
Finding Recovery Motivation — Scrapping the Anorexia Identity
One of the questions I get asked the most by both sufferers and parents/partners of sufferers is; “how did you find the motivation to recover?” often followed closely by, “how do I find the motivation to recover?” or “how does he/she find...
Anorexia Recovery As An Adult: School Of Failure
I’m not someone who berates herself for not getting everything right. Contrary to popular belief about people with Anorexia, I am not a perfectionist, not Type A, and don’t really care if I get an A, B, or C so long as it is a pass. I don’t like...
Eating Disorder Recovery and Family Life: Picky Eaters and Innocent triggers
Today I am going to look at a somewhat awkward but nonetheless important idea: the notion that the eating behaviours of children could in fact act as triggers or stumbling points for the a parent in recovery from a restrictive eating disorder such as Anorexia. ...
Eating Disorder Awareness Week 2017 Roundup
Phew. That was a busy week. In case you missed them, here is a recap on the podcasts and other projects we put out there this week. I’ve listed the podcasts out below. I think that the most exciting thing that came out of this week for me personally were the...![[Video] It is okay to eat a lot of food in Anorexia recovery](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/Adobe-Spark-9.jpg)
[Video] It is okay to eat a lot of food in Anorexia recovery
I am excited to announce that this week we launched Active Eating Disorder Recovery for Adults (AEDRA) Meal Support Service. This is a worldwide service where any person can receive support at a mealtime to help overcome anxiety. We also have post meal support slots...![[Video] It is okay to eat a lot of food in Anorexia recovery](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/Adobe-Spark-9.jpg)
Anorexia Recovery Eating: There is never too much food
This blog is based on my personal experience. We are all individuals, and you should always do what is right for your own body. When I went through extreme hunger in my recovery from Anorexia, my eating disorder told me that nobody on earth had ever experienced this....
Anorexia Recovery Binges: You do NOT have Binge Eating Disorder!
This blog is based on my personal experience. We are all individuals, and you should always do what is right for your own body. This is just a short blog. In my book, Rehabilitate, Rewire, Recover!, I have chapters and chapters on the concept of feasting after a time...
My Daughter is an “Ethical” Vegan (With Anorexia) …
I got the following comment on a post, and I woke up this morning realizing that by trying to be too kind in my response. I had done this women, her daughter, and any other readers an injustice. Here was the original question: My daughter is a vegan who is receiving...
Extreme Hunger in Anorexia Recovery: What Happens with the Meal Plan?
Meal plans can be very helpful in recovery. I never used one, but some people do. If you are using a meal plan, you have to be very careful not to treat it like a maximum. It should be a minimum. If you are hungry for more or can eat more food, then you must! But what...
Eating Disorders and Family Life: Household Triggers
In the last two posts I have looked at the way that eating disorders operate in a family setting when a parent is the sufferer in recovery. The first post addressed how to continue with mealtime support. The second on mealtime tension and shopping etc. This post looks...
Extreme Hunger in Anorexia Recovery
Ready and waiting for the criticism that I may get as a result of writing about this. I don’t care. I don’t believe that shielding adults in recovery from eating disorders from the events that can, and do often, happen along the recovery path helps anyone....
Eating Disorders and Family Life — Mealtime tension, shopping, food choices and exercise
In my last post on eating disorder recovery for an adult with children, I wrote about mealtimes and how to make them (more of a ) a success in terms of recovery goals with kids at the table. This week I wanted to touch on the impact that the eating disorder may or may...
Eating Disorders: How to Support an Adult with Children Present
I don’t have kids. However, the issue comes up for some of the people whom I coach who do. We’ve had to problem solve around this and there is never a one-size-fits-all answer. The purpose of these blog series is to help you anticipate things that...
Questioning Perfectionism In Anorexia
I am often told by eating disorder therapists and literature that I am a perfectionist. I am not a perfectionist. I was not a perfectionist before Anorexia. I was not a perfectionist during Anorexia. I am not a perfectionist now. If you don’t believe me, ask my...
Eating Disorder Recovery — A Matter of Life and … Half Life
Eating disorders are a matter of life and death. They can and do kill. Let’s not forget that. But they are also, for many, a matter of life and half life. I’m talking about the people for whom having an eating disorder turns from a year into a lifetime....
Meditation for Eating Disorders — A Cynics Guide
It cracks me up that people assume I am a spiritual person because I meditate. I’m not. I don’t meditate because I am trying to be a good person either. I meditate because it helps me keep my shit together. I’m a twice certified yoga instructor....
Turn Post-Festivity Eating Disorder Stress into Recovery Motivation
First off, thank you for following and reading this blog. Something that started as a place for me to blow off steam now has over 5000 followers! Those of you who write to me, tweet to me, and reach out mean so much. When you share a post, you know that you are...
Anosognosia and Eating Disorders — When We Don’t Know We Are Sick
Anosognosia is pretty messed up — and it messed me up good and proper! It means “without knowledge” and refers to the lack of insight that a person suffering from a disease has about their condition. It explains why, even in an incredibly emaciated state,...
Inpatient Treatment for Eating Disorders — A Kick Start. Not A Cure
I want to start with this: Inpatient treatment for eating disorders save lives. I often tell adults suffering from eating disorders who are underweight and struggling to re-feed themselves to seek inpatient treatment. It is the kick start to weight restoration that...
Negative Energy Balance or Energy Deficit in Anorexia
This post explains negative energy balance in eating disorders. What is a negative energy balance (sometimes called energy deficit)? Anything that means that the energy you put out is greater than the energy you put in. The most common — although not only —...
Thanksgiving Day Eating Disorder Contract and Survival Tips
Thanksgiving day is on the near horizon. I know that people suffering from eating disorders in the USA are already having a hard time dealing with the pre-Thanksgiving meal anxiety, so here are some tools to help everyone enjoy the day. Thanksgiving Day Eating...
How to Survive Thanksgiving for Adults with Eating Disorders
I’ve lived all of my life in the UK apart from the last six years so thankfully (pun intended) I didn’t have to deal with Thanksgiving when I was at my sickest with Anorexia. I did, however, have to deal with Christmas and other UK holidays. And...
Binge Eating in Eating Disorder Recovery
This blog is based on my personal experience. We are all individuals, and you should always do what is right for your own body. Many of us in recovery from eating disorder experience binge eating. I certainly did, and I wrote about it extensively in my book,...
Support for Parents of Adults with Eating Disorders
This post isn’t just for parents of adults with eating disorders. It’s for parents, spouses, grandparents, cousins, siblings, friends, loved ones, colleagues, neighbors, uncles, aunts, children, and in fact anyone who knows or cares about an adult...
7 Tips for Getting a Person with an Eating Disorder to Eat with Eva Musby
In this podcast you will hear my conversation with Eva Musby. We talk about her experience with family-based therapy (or family-based treatment) as a mother. We also go into the key points that Eva addresses in her book and give you Getting a Person with an...
How Anorexia Affected My Personality (Introvert/Extrovert)
Anorexia affected my personality in many ways. Today I am going to focus on the introvert/extrovert aspect. First off: I pass no judgement whatsoever on the values associated with introversion and extroversion, None whatsoever. This post is nothing to do with saying...
Eating Disorders and Money – Part Two
Last week I wrote about eating disorders and money for the first time. One thing the comments on Facebook and the post confirmed is that many people suffering from eating disorders also experience strange feelings/thoughts/ behaviours around money. In this post...
Anorexia and Money: Recovery meant I had to look at that relationship too!
What on earth has Anorexia got to do with money? More than you think. At least in my case. And, according to the comments and emails I get, I am not alone in having a very whacked relationship with money when I had an eating disorder. Starting at the beginning:...
Sustaining Eating Disorder Recovery — Conscious to Unconscious Competence
Last week I wrote about unconscious incompetence moving to conscious incompetence. Where that places you is knowing what you’re not great at. This week we’ll look into the next stages of eating disorder recovery so far as this model of competence goes....
Conscious Incompetence in Adult Eating Disorder Recovery
“Conscious Incompetence” sounds like one of those whack psych terms that I am convinced psychologists make up so that they sound more scientific and complicated than they really are. Bear with me. All conscious incompetence really means is stuff you...
Why I don’t use “Anorexic” to describe people with Anorexia Nervosa
I understand that most people just use the term “Anorexic” to describe a person with Anorexia out of habit and convenience. I just prefer not to use it myself. So much so, that I often use the term “eating disorder” just because that...
Eating Disorder Behaviours: Why Taking the Stairs Can Kill You
Eating Disorder Recovery means addressing the small things as well as the big and obvious ones. That is what I am writing about today. If you have an eating disorder, you are going to hate this post. Or rather, your eating disorder is going to hate this post. You will...
Taking Ownership of ED Recovery: Why it is my fault if I relapse and no excuses!
Taking what I call “extreme ownership” of my eating disorder recovery was an important step for me. As an adult with Anorexia, it was crucial for me to understand that the only person at fault if I relapse is ME. And to be crystal clear from the start,...
Adults with Anorexia
Resources around Family-Based Therapy (FBT) are getting better for parents who are caring for a child with an eating disorder. This is a very good thing. But for those of us who are adults with the disease, it can be very difficult to find help. Relapse rate is very...
Podcast Episode on How to Overcome Fear of Food in Anorexia
I explained in the last podcast how I used information from the FEAST website on Family-Based Therapy to kick start my own inner mealtime matron. That was probably the single biggest initiative for me in my recovery — establishing that my eating disorder was not...
New Podcast Episode: How I used Family-Based Therapy in Anorexia Recovery
This is not the podcast, to get it, you have to go to the Podcast Episode Here. If you subscribe in iTunes, you’ll get new podcast episodes each week as I publish them directly on your phone. Here is the intro: Last week I recorded a podcast with Dr. Lauren...
Podcast Episode: Dr. Muhlheim on Adults with Eating Disorders
Hooray! I’ve added a podcast to my blog. It’s called the Eating Disorder Recovery Podcast and is available for free download in iTunes and Google Play. You can also listen to it straight from this site by going to the episode here. For this first episode...
Adults and Anorexia: The need for understanding and treatment
This blog post is another that was inspired by a reader who wrote to me. We had a series of in depth email exchanges and I wanted to use her story as an example of the challenges that face adult sufferers of anorexia. More importantly, what we need to do in order to...
Writing the Book: Body Confidence. Body Love. Anorexia.
One thing that came up for me whilst writing the book, was the subject of body confidence. You might assume that because I am writing about Anorexia, that my body confidence is and has always been rock bottom — but that’s not true. The opposite is true actually....
Why “down-talking” the seriousness of eating disorders doesn’t help recovery
When one tells a person with an ED to recover when they are ready, one mulcts them of time spent ED free. I had this fantastically enlightening email conversation with a reader today. Let’s call her Jennifer. We were going back and forth over some...
Back to the veganism and eating disorders conversation
I wrote a post sometime last year now about my opinion on why people who have suffered from an eating disorder such as Anorexia cannot, and should not be vegan. When I wrote it I assumed that I would get a fair amount of backlash from vegans—I expected criticism and...![Keanu Reeves Stands Up for Eating Disorders [Video]](https://tabithafarrar.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/Snip20160531_1.png)
Keanu Reeves Stands Up for Eating Disorders [Video]
It’s a thrilling day for a group of eating disorder advocates who found one another via the internet and have been working as a sparse, yet determined, group ever since. I am so honoured to be a part of this! Long story short, we have our first ever World Eating...
It’s my 10-year Anorexia recovery anniversary!
It’s my 10 year Anorexia recovery anniversary this month, and I’m really bloody excited about it! Those who know me know that I don’t “do” birthdays or publicly celebrate anything much, but this—overcoming Anorexia—is something I am...
The Role of the Non-Professional Community in Eating Disorder Advocacy
I’ve been sprouting on about why I don’t think that sufferers and ex-sufferers of eating disorders make the best ED therapists. If you need to recap the posts are: Why Eating Disorder Treatment Needs an Overhaul Why I Don’t Think Ex-Sufferers Should...
Can you separate your triggers from your eating disorder?
Can you separate your triggers from your eating disorder? In my last post I skimmed over this point, but I think it is incredibly important for both active and long-term recovery. The day that I really understood that my eating disorder was a mental disease with a...
Midweek Rant: Rosewood Ranch
An advocate friend drew my attention to a particularly awful website today. It’s riled me up something rotten. “Love addiction and eating disorders both often start with dysfunctional roles in the family of origin.” You have got to be shitting me....
How ex-sufferers can help the eating disorder community
How ex-sufferers can help the Eating Disorder community I wrote last week about why I don’t think sufferers of eating disorders should become treatment therapists for eating disorders. Today I’m going to focus on something totally fantastic that...
Why Eating Disorder Treatment Needs an Overhaul
There was a study published this month that showed what many of us have been saying for a long time: eating disorder treatment is massively ineffective in many cases and the industry is badly in need of some sort of overhaul. The study was published under the...
BBC Woman’s Hour and Anorexia
[sgmb id=”1″] I have a confession to make. I love BBC Woman’s Hour. I download and listen to every single podcast, and delight in the breadth of discussion. Anything from sex in a long-term relationship to debating American politics goes down...
Veganism and Eating Disorders: Let’s Be Frank
Before I piss off any vegans with this post, let’s get one thing straight: I have nothing against vegans, nor am I saying that nobody can be vegan. I am not attacking veganism—frankly I don’t really give a shit what other people do and don’t eat...
Eating Disorder Recovery: Aim to Overshoot
This is my second post on Overshoot. The first one is here. The first post focused on what overshoot is and why it is difficult for a person in recovery. This post explains more about why it is important and why a person in recovery from an eating disorder should...
How to Prepare a Person for Overshoot in Eating Disorder Recovery
Note: I have been writing and talking about “overshoot” a lot. While I used this term because it has already been established, I do not think that the term overshoot is ideal to describe the process of establishing a recovery weight. The term overshoot...
Maybe All of Us Women Should Just Stop Buying Tampons
Luxury noun a state of great comfort or elegance, especially when involving great expense. There’s nothing I enjoy more than a good tampon. Sometimes, when I am feeling...
Overshoot in Eating Disorder Recovery
This blog post is going to address overshoot in eating disorder recovery. It is the first of a couple that I have lined up on this incredibly important topic. Here’s the deal with overshooting your pre-eating disorder weight in recovery: you need to do it. In...
Running Hostage to an Eating Disorder
This is another section of Love Fat that I took out of the book as I rewrote it in another chapter. It is following on from the last post that I published and the topic is my obsession with running. As I have explained before, I now have a healthy relationship with...
Anorexia and Obsessive Exercise
This is another section of Love Fat that didn’t make the cut. This section describes the mental anguish that I was in when my eating disorder was pushing me to exercise for a minimum of six hours every day. In the book, I have just come back from another run:...
How Eating Disorders Ruin Relationships
Eating disorders are a bitch, and anorexia turned me into one too. In America, “candy” is what we Brits refer to as “sweets.” Today I’m not writing about sweets; I’m writing about my little sister: Candice. Below is another Love Fat...
Device Dependency: Longing for Less Connection
I was the kind of child who would take herself off and climb a tree, then sit there for hours completely enthralled in the sounds and creatures around me. I would study with wonder the bark patterns on the trees in the woods behind our house, or lie on my back in the...
Love Fat Editouts: Big Fat Binge Liar
This blog is another section that I edited out of Love Fat: Living at home meant that the binges were getting more frequent and bigger—basically because there was more food available. My parent’s fridge was brimming with treats that the uncontrollable...
Introvert, Anti-social, or Just Plain Rude?
“Introversion? Yes, I know all about introversion, I have many friends who are introvert, in fact, I am sometimes one myself.” It often surprises me how people react when I tell then that I am an introvert. It’s endearing for sure, as most respond by...
Can We Talk About the Difference Between Bring and Take?
Yesterday, a rather disturbing octothorpe was trending on Twitter: #ThingsNotToBringToAFuneral When I read that, I had to leave my desk and console myself by going to make a cup of tea. I felt low. Funerals are pretty depressing, but that had nothing to do with my...
The Modeling Industry and Anorexia
Before we get started: This post is based on my experience, and on my interpretation of the events that I experienced. It is not supposed to be a generalization of all modeling agencies, all sufferers of eating disorders or anything else for that matter. Even I am not...
Question: Does the Urge to Binge During Recovery Ever Cease?
I was asked a really good and relevant question asked by a reader this week. In response to the blog post that I wrote a while ago on the bloated fat tummy syndrome that a person in recovery from anorexia suffers, she wondered if the urge to binge eat during recovery...
Love Fat Editouts: Breastfeeding and Santa Claus
This part I took out of Love Fat because, quite frankly, I had written so much about breastfeeding already that I thought any more would boarder on creepy. Love Fat is about fat and why we should love it, and my reasoning behind including breastfeeding conversation...
Love Fat Editouts: Cooking Dinner
Love Fat is now published, and I am going through all the parts that I edited out for one reason or another and posting them in my Blog. Some things are obvious as to why the were cut out. Others, not so. This one just did not seen to fit in with the context of the...
Love Fat Editouts: Chia Seeds
Love Fat is now published, and I am going through all the parts that I edited out for one reason or another and posting them in the Blog. Some things are obvious as to why the were cut out. Others, not so. This I took out because it just didn’t seem to fit in...
Should PTSD for Disease Exist?
I’m in England this week. I talk about The Shire—my home village—a lot in Love Fat because it is where I was most of the time when I was ill with anorexia. I don’t go home often, in fact this is just the second time in five years. When I first moved to...
Holy Crap I Made a Book!
[schema type=”book” url=”tabithafarrar.com” name=”Love Fat” description=”A book about anorexia, eating disorders, diet culture, and the role of fat as a nutrient” author=”Tabitha Farrar”...
Don’t “DIS” the Eating Disorder That Could Have Killed Me
Being the irritable type that I am, there are many things that piss me off. Some of them however, take the biscuit. Case to point: this recent campaign run by The Butterfly Foundation. What are they doing? They have a campaign up called, “Don’t DIS my...
If Parents Cause Eating Disorders Then How the F@#k Did I Get One?
The short answer to that is: “Because they don’t”. Parents cannot, do not, cause eating disorders. Many people think that they do. I blame the psychoanalysts for this somewhat. Lets have a look at something Vanderbilt University Psychology Dept have to Say: In a...
Thinning Hair Is an Eating Disorder Effect That Recovery Can Overcome
Anorexia really wreaked my hair. When I was a child, my hair was thick and long. When I was a teenager, my hair was thick and long. When I suffered from anorexia, by hair was thin and scraggly. It didn’t happen overnight. I had anorexia for eight years before I even...
Question: Does the Urge to Binge Ever Stop?
I was asked a really good and relevant question by a reader this week. In response to the blog post that I wrote a while ago on the bloated fat tummy syndrome that a person in recovery from anorexia suffers, she wondered if the urge to binge eat during recovery ever...Liver Detoxification: Starve or Nourish?
The following post is a guest blog that I wrote for The Weston A Price Foundation’s Fall edition of the journal Wise Traditions. Liver Detoxification: Starve or Nourish? Click on the title in order to read the full post on the Weston A Price Foundation’s...
Coffee Enemas
Coffee enemas are based on the antediluvian concept of autointoxication. Autointoxication is the belief that one is being poisoned by toxins because one is not digesting food properly and is not eliminating waste as one should. As I...
Foods That (Might) “Help” Your Liver Cleanse
Disclaimer: I am not a doctor and I have no medical qualifications This post is not to be read and taken as a substitute for medical treatment This post was designed to be be read by adults, it may or may not contain swear words. In my opinion your liver is an...
Cleanses and the Liver
Disclaimer: I am not a doctor and I have no medical qualifications- I just read a HECK of a lot of research papers. This post is not to be read and taken as a substitute for medical treatment This post was designed to be be read by adults, it may or may not contain...
Low calorie formula!?
Such hideously bad news! In a nutshell, formula companies are reducing the calorific content of formula in a response to the growing obesity problem despite the fact that existing studies show that reducing caloric density does not result in fewer calories consumed....Ode to Fat
By Nichole Nurenberg Nichole is a friend of mine, she writes some very wise things: Truth be told, I love fat. I love the fat on my son and on other babies, in bacon, butter, on my own body, in my happy-chicken eggs, on the bodies of my neighbors and community, in...
Fat Definition, Word Origin, and Nutritional History
I have a simmering obsession with word origins. I also write about fat a lot, so it would be rude of me not to look into the word and where it came from. After that, we’ll look into its rise and fall in popularity. Fat: Word Origin and Use In Old English fætt...Pica
Pica Pica is characterized by an appetite for substances largely non-nutritive, such as ice, clay, chalk, dirt, or sand. According to the DSM-5 criteria, to be diagnosed with Pica a person must display: Persistent eating of non-nutritive substances for a period of at...
What Ancient Mummies Teach Us About Heart Disease and Fat
Ever wonder how the ancient mummies died in the first place? I have, many times. When I was young I remember thinking the that mummies must have died of old age, because they looked so very … old. The word “mummy” is derived from the Persian word “mumia,”...Other Specified Feeding or Eating Disorder (OSFED)
Other Specified Feeding or Eating Disorder (OSFED) According to the DSM-5 criteria, to be diagnosed as having OSFED a person must present with a feeding or eating behaviors that cause clinically significant distress and impairment in areas of functioning, but do not...Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID)
Eating disorders come in all different shapes and sizes, there is often parts and pieces that do or do not fit in with diagnosis. ARFID is a gap filler, it is relevant for those that do not fit anorexia or bulimia but still struggle to be an adequate weight and are...
5 reasons Anorexia is not about control.
I suffered anorexia nervosa for over eight years. In this time I was told by various people, some of them doctors, many of them concerned individuals that my eating disorder was a result of me trying to take control. And it was a convincing argument, although rather...
When Body Image and Eating Disorder Memes Do More Harm than Good
Sometimes things are posted with all the best intentions, but they can do more harm than good. An example of this is a body image meme that circulates Facebook every now and then: ...
3 things I wish everyone knew about Anorexia
See the full article as published in Mind. Body. Green hereThe Fat of The Land
Link to the full article published in Elephant Journal here!Can the nutrition of one generation can change the genetics of another?
Tweet “The environment that we are exposed to as fetuses or young children can cause permeant changes in the way our genes function” “Epigenetics” describe modifications to people’s DNA that don’t affect the sequence of the...My personal experience of the Modeling Industry and Anorexia.
Read the article – click here!Warming up, over- exercising and anorexia.
Tweet Today I was reading a study by Carrera et al (2012) that looked at over exercise in anorexia and pondered whether this was a product of low body fat and feeling cold. I can see how that makes sense, one might try and rationalize a seemingly non- rational...Study Review; Autism and Anorexia
Tweet Today I was reading a Cambridge University Study done just last year into the similarities between Autism and Anorexia. Here is the abstract that Simon Baron Cohen and his team looked into: “The objectives of this study were to explore associations between...Study Review; Minnesota Starvation Experiment
Key Points 1. Ironically, malnutrition makes a person not want to gain weight. The catch-22 is that once the person gains some weight, their brain starts functioning properly again and they then often are happy about gaining weight. A person with Anorexia who is...Exercise in Anorexics; Study Review
In my daily research I came across a study that sparked my interest today; Impact of exercise on energy metabolism in anorexia nervosa- Zopfel et al 2013 Personally having suffered an excessive exercise component to my anorexia I am always looking at further...Medical Marijuana and Anorexia
I have been reading over the last week about the latest research regarding Medical Marijuana and anorexia. While I do not have first hand experience of the effects of smoking pot on anorexia. I find the scientific study of it fascinating. (I never tired marijuana when...
How Science Helped Me Cope with the ‘Fat Tummy’ in Anorexia Recovery.
My Experience; When I had anorexia, I did not suffer from body dysmorphia, so I was acutely aware of how thin I looked and unattractive it was. I know that this is not the case for all sufferers, but I think that regardless, many will find this account useful for...Bring on the Fast Food!
It’s a new year, and I am already sick and tired of seeing the “New Year; New You!” memes on social media. It’s irritating, and it’s bullshit. Basically, the new year is a marketing opportunity for cleanse scams, such as Isagenix and Master Cleanse, that prey on...
Watching Time Heal
When I was 16, my parents took us on what was our first family holiday outside of Europe. Usually, we would be driven to France or Spain to stay in a green and red Eurocamp tent, which quite honestly was a whole lot of fun, but boarding a plane and heading...