National Eating Disorder Awareness Week is wrapping up and I've been thinking a lot. The photo picture is my mom, about to marry my dad. Like me, she also suffered from an eating disorder. She recovered, but the effects of it lingered for the rest of her life. She finally contracted and succumbed to pancreatic cancer which may have inadvertently been the cause of her cancer. I never knew that she suffered until after I had suffered from an eating disorder for years and went through five weeks of treatment at a mental hospital. I know mental health is a touchy and taboo subject in our society. It lingers under the surface where people are too ashamed to admit when and if they suffer. I was told "why do you have an eating disorder? You're so skinny!" "How can you think you're fat?? You're so small!" "You're overreacting, this is just for attention" "just eat a fucking sandwich". Having an eating disorder isn't about being vain, and most of the time, it isn't about what you look like. When I was in the hospital I was with people of all shapes, sizes, ages, ethnicities, and genders. No one is exempt. It's more than just food. It's not something you can just get over. It's a lifelong, and often deadly battle. Since I've been in recovery, which has been over four years now, I've grown an appreciation for my body and an appreciation for what it can do. I still struggle, don't get me wrong, but I have come so far and I am so proud of the progress I've made. But not everybody recovers. Not everyone gets better. When someone tells you they think they have an eating disorder, stop and listen and try to help, it may save their life. #nedaweek #nedawareness #neda #enddietculture #stopdieting #endbodyshaming
