Some links, etc.

Hi, all:

Just taking a quick break from studying (ah, comprehensive exams, how I love thee), but thought I'd do a quick post.

This site has some really interesting things to say about treating one's eating disorder as if it were a relationship with a person -- e.g., as an abusive partner. Check out the "ED's Bio" & "Live without ED" links at the top. The concept they discuss is an interesting one, and one I'd heard before but not really grasped. It sounds a little like hooey at first, but it makes sense. Part of having disordered eating is generally low self-esteem & loads of self-criticism. It is very easy for me to get mad at myself for failing to do something that would be good for me & help my recovery (e.g., not eating in front of the TV), and then to feel worse. Having an eating disorder is having a disease, a potentially life-threatening, and definitely acutely painful disease. It is not about not having will-power or anything like that. In viewing one's eating disorder as a person, one may be able to separate one's sense of self from the abuse/perfectionism/criticism that comes with the disease. Disordered eating, which may be less severe, may still come with it's own painful criticism, and may also benefit from this viewpoint. I've been practicing viewing my thoughts about negative body image -- how I "should" look, what others are "probably" thinking about me, etc. -- as a separate person, "Ed", who is mean and abusive and wrong, and whom I am firing. Goodbye, Ed.

I just discovered this site, the blog site for Bitch magazine, as well. It is full of interesting links, thoughts, & analyses, and offers important information that isn't making it into the news, but should be. Very powerful.

--KT