“Restriction” is Not a Bad Word

One of my biggest pet peeves about the eating disorder treatment community is the LIE that restriction is bad and that it’s “disordered“ to restrict.

If something harms me and I don’t stop engaging with this thing that harms me that is what is really disordered. Continuing to try to be something I’m not is disordered. People with eating disorders are not food moderators. Oh, we can moderate/use will power for snippets in time, but that’s not without massive willpower, lots of planning, and mental agony.

We restrict ourselves from doing harmful things all the time – we do not run into traffic, we do not put our hand on a burning stove, we do not eat rat poison, we don’t light a match while we’re filling our car with gas..... you get the point.

If every single time without fail I put something in my mouth that ultimately leads me back to binge or compulsive eating behavior, then that is a food I should restrict. What sense is there in continuing to try to moderate something that I’ve proven over and over I am unable to moderate?

Don’t let anyone tell you that restriction is bad. No one tells the recovering alcoholic that restricting themselves from alcohol the rest of their life is disordered. Nobody tells the recovering drug addict that restricting themselves from drugs is disordered. Those of us dealing with food addiction deserve the same respect.

#edrecovery #edwarrior #eatingdisorderrecovery #compulsiveeating #bingeeatingrecovery #bedrecovery #realrecovery #foodfreedom

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