5 Tips to Find Freedom from Food Anxiety and Body Negativity
Quarantine has obviously taken its toll on everyone’s mental healths. But there’s so much more within mental health during COVID that isn’t being talked about enough. One being the amplified struggle of those with disordered eating habits and eating disorders.
I can tell you from first hand experience that I would be in so much anguish every time I ate, even alone, and eating in front of others felt like I was on stage with a spotlight. While I had disordered eating patterns, I did not struggle with a full blown eating disorder. For people challenged with anorexia, bulimia, orthorexia, binge eating, and EDNOS, the dining table is a battle ground.
“Why are you eating so little?”
“Eat more you look too skinny”
“Why are you eating so much?”
“Eat less you’re getting fat”
“Finish everything on your plate”
“Don’t waste food, eat more”
Those are just the external voices. Internally, it’s harsh criticism and anxiety on blast.
“You shouldn’t eat that, you had too much earlier for lunch”
“only eat the meat and veggies, the rice will make you fat”
“That’s _____ calories, you’ll have to do another 30 minute workout if you eat that”
“You’re in the red already, just eat everything and deal with it later”
You have the power to create your truth.
A new story.
A happier you.
Here’s 5 tips to help you find freedom from all of this negative self talk.
1) Know that healing from food anxiety is a journey. There isn’t a set duration of time that someone can tell you it will take to “get over” food anxiety. While it can be challenging and frustrating to not see immediate results, the value and transformation comes in the consistency of sustainable actions. Don’t compare yourself to other people’s journeys because everyone has different amounts of micro-traumas in their life that constitutes to how much work needs to be done to undo negative beliefs reestablish a healthy sense of self.
2) Practice the “silly” self-help tools. I know affirmations like, “I am beautiful” and, “I am enough” can feel awkward and uncomfortable to roll off the tongue, but it’s absolutely necessary. Oftentimes, food anxiety leads us into a dark place where we feel trapped and take ourselves, our lives, and our food too seriously. Breaking the pattern with something seemingly silly like affirmations, making funny faces, and smiling at yourself in the mirror help to break the current self-hate patterns.
3) Ask yourself what you truly want your life to look like. Think about what’s actually important to you. Most likely it’s not going to be how many calories you eat in a day or how much you weigh, but rather the quality of your friendships, the mastery in your career, and the experiences you’ll have. That will lead you to tip #4.
4) Create action steps that lead you to where you want to be. Whether it starts with ditching calorie counting, starting a meditation practice, working with a health professional, or working to transition into intuitive eating, decide on what the smallest step that you can take to get to where you want to go is and put it into practice.
5) Lastly, Tie your values to your newly established self-care routine. Know your why and make your new body positive habits tied to it so you stay accountable to yourself. Understanding why you do what you do (better long-term mental health, less social anxiety, trusting yourself, etc) will help you stay on your recovery journey.
While the journey to find freedom from food anxiety can seem scary or even hopeless, know that it is totally possible for you. Resources like Intuitive Eating by Evelyn Triboll, body positive social media influencers, like @jencuihealth, @victoriagarrick and My Self-Love Supply, can really help keep you in the right mindset.
So to anyone reading this far, I want you to know that I see you. I see your struggle. I see how much you hate yourself. I see how much you’re fighting. And I want you to know that you don’t need to prove anything, you don’t need to look a certain way, and you don’t need to do this for your pain. You have the power to change and you can heal, you are loved, you are beautiful, you are strong, you are powerful, you are heard, and you are believed 💕🙏🏻
To learn more about rewiring body negativity and learn 5 more actionable steps that you can do NOW to start your journey, check out my wellness workshop “5 Steps to Rewire Body Negativity.”
Jen Cui is a holistic health coach, certified personal trainer, and authenticity advocate helping busy individuals reconnect with their bodies and minds through creating sustainable self-care routines. She is the founder of Jen Cui Health and has helped hundreds of women and men reclaim their lives and bodies through her invigorating live workouts and her signature “Find Your Freedom” mindfulness-based coaching program. You can find her on Instagram @jencuihealth or on LinkedIn.