End the Stigma-ED Awareness Week

We are in the midst of one of the most sacred weeks in my heart this week: Eating Disorders Awareness Week.  As you might expect why, this week is near and dear to my heart because it helps shed some much-needed light on a subject that millions of us suffer with, often in silence.  Millions us with eating disorders are often stigmatized as attention-seeking or vain, which neither are true.  Eating disorders are serious, deadly serious.  If you have an eating disorder, you either recover or die.  There is no door number 3.  The medical field and people in general are seriously lacking in education about eating disorders.  You see the eating disorder is only the symptom of the true underlying issues affecting a person.  We don't do the ED behaviors for attention or because we are so full of ourselves; quite the opposite is true.  Those of us with ED often feel immense hatred of our bodies or shame or feel the need to punish it, etc.  The list of reasons is endless, and we often do our behaviors in secret because of the guilt and shame we feel.  The rabbit hole goes much deeper than just simply not eating, eating too much, etc.  We often feel out of control, a lot of times due to trauma, but not always, so we use ED behaviors as a way to cope and to seemingly gain some semblance of control over our situation, environment, emotions, etc.  My point is that before you joke about an eating disorder or point out that poor person struggling with food in a restaurant, please educate yourself and show some compassion.  If we could "just eat" or simply stop binging or whatever the behavior may be, we would have a long, long time ago.  We're not abusing our bodies as just a simple case of acting out.  We have a disease, a disorder.  We need treatment and help just like someone with a broken bone would need medical help.  If you are one of the millions struggling with ED, you are not alone.  I hear you.  I see you.  I am you.  Come out of hiding because your struggle is worth acknowledgment and compassion, not ridicule.  You deserve help, no matter what ED tells you.  If you have a friend or loved one with an eating disorder, give them an extra hug this week or do something to let them know they are loved and not alone.  It's time to let the world see you and hear your voice.  You are enough.  You are worth being seen and heard.  It's time to heal.


Song of the day: "Fight Song" by Rachel Platten