Blog - Eating Disorder Recovery for Adults

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 what your brain adopts...

Recovery Stories: The dangers of diabulimia

In this podcast Tabitha talks to a person in recovery about her struggles with diabulimia. link to...

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 compulsion) is my...

Ask Dr G: Edema [Podcast]

In this podcast Tabitha talks to the wonderful Dr Gaudiani about the important and often misunderstood topic...

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 that...

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]

In this podcast Tabitha talks to Sarah Thompson about her recovery, and her journey into body positivity. We...

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 experience a...

[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...

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 Productive in...

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...

“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 all of...

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...

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...

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 that a...

Recovery Stories: Anorexia recovery with kids [Podcast]

In this podcast, Tabitha Farrar talks to an adult in recovery from anorexia who has young children....

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...

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 scared...

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...

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]

In this podcast Tabitha talks to Elisa Oras about recovery. Topics covered include: - Anorexia in...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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 helpful. I'm sometimes glad I didn't...

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...

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 their body based on their height...

The State of Science: Sugar Addiction [Podcast]

In this podcast Tabitha talks to Maggie Westwater, one of the authors behind a study looking into...

Event Restriction [Podcast]

In this podcast Tabitha talks about what she refers to as "event restriction." Event restriction is when you...

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...

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 "unhealthy" food all the time." And it is...

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 that you will eat more...

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...

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...

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]

People with eating disorders, parents, and doctors share what they think doctors should know about...

A note for yoga instructors, about eating disorders

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 spent the last...

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...

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...

Male vs Female Treatment Experiences in Eating Disorder Treatment

In this podcast Tabitha talks to Philipa Hay about recent research that looked into male...

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 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 when I was a teenager. Probably...

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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. There...

Malnutrition is a serious medical condition. Talk therapy isn’t always sufficient

Recovery Stories: Connection and Advocacy [Podcast]

This weeks podcast is a conversation with Aimee Becker on recovery, connection, and advocacy Aimee...

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 braver. So much braver. I'd eaten more...

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...

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...

Recovery Commitments: Unrestricted eating

Recovery Commitments: Weight Gain

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...

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 simplifications for those...

Rebecca Scritchfield 2018: Body Kindness and postpartum body image

Rebecca Scritchfield is a registered dietitian nutritionist, certified exercise physiologist, author...

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]

In this podcast I talk about my personal highlights from the ICED conference presentation that I was part...

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 to me: "You...

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...

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 further...

Restrictive Eating Disorders and Hoarding [Podcast]

Transcript - thank you Marie! Restrictive Eating Disorders and Hoarding Hello there and welcome to...

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...

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