Creating New Year’s resolutions can be particularly challenging for many of those in eating disorder recovery. Nine of our writers courageously shared their resolutions and words of inspiration for 2017. Check them out below!
Coincidence brought me SoulCycle but fate let me to Liah. My energetic, magnetic SoulCycle instructor and now dear friend not only has the physical strength I aspire to have, but the willingness to be authentically and unapologetically who she is. I hope to make these qualities my own in 2017. After all, she has every right to be rawly her (and I love her even more for it)! I am so used to apologizing for everything, but it is through Liah's example I see there is no need for a “sorry” for having emotions, an opinion, and/or a bad day. I have learned that true confidence and magnetic strength comes from being who you are no matter what the circumstance. In 2017, I hope to have this. Not the physical strength or even the confidence (as I know that is going to take a while), but the openness to be me, no questions asked and no apologies necessary. –Dayna Altman
New Year's resolutions can mean a lot to many people; however, they could mark a new chapter for a person in recovery. Their resolutions could be: staying with their meal plan, staying out of treatment centers, working with their treatment teams, or finally deciding that this year it will be the year to kick the eating disorder to the curb. My personal resolution involves writing goals that I would like to accomplish with the help of my therapist. I know that if I want to recover and achieve my goals, I will have to do my part and work on my goals during the counseling sessions and also in between. I know this will take a lot of determination to get done, but I know that I have the will to do this! –Katrin Alyss
An eating disorder recovery journey is not simply a resolution; it is a commitment. While many New Year’s resolutions fizzle and fade as the months pass by, determining to stay the course of recovery is a hard-fought battle that takes place every day. Resolutions may lead to temporary changes or improvements, but recovery achieves lifesaving transformations, something that can make all the difference between life and death, true health and disease, hope and disparity. So remember to always be kind and compassionate towards yourself, practice a self-nurturing lifestyle, and/or ask for help when you need it. I know it’s easier said than done. However, you can do all of this by: finding a new hobby, dropping the self-deprecating humor, getting out of your comfort zone, and doing things that scare you the most. –Lauren Myers
This year, my New Year’s resolution is to love and respect my body, mind, and soul. To treat myself with kindness and appreciate all the things my body is able to do for me. To fuel my body appropriately and to listen to what it needs. My New Year’s resolution is to treat myself with the love, positivity, and kindness that I strive to treat those around me with and to embrace all the 2017 has to offer. –Michelle Zaydlin
Life is busy and messy and unpredictable, but New Year’s always seems like a time when there is hope and newness in our days. It is easy to start the new year thinking about all of the places we fall short or get caught up in all of the things we would like to accomplish. Instead of focusing on the distance between where you are to where you would like to be, take time to reflect on all that you are and all that you have. Meditate on all of the things you have, the people in your life, who you are, and the possibilities that lay ahead. Observe these things. Take in the view. Don’t try to make a plan on how to change anything about your life, just be grateful for all that is. If you have trouble pinpointing things to be grateful for in your life (or even if you just want additional input), engage someone you know and trust in an honest conversation. It is okay to feel what you feel, but sometimes our perceptions of our lives can be skewed negatively without our complete knowledge. Others can help you get a more accurate picture of your life and all that you have. Make a list of these things and place it where you can easily refer back to it during bad days. You might be surprised to find that you have far more already in your possession than all of the things that you perceived you lacked! –Stephanie Virbitsky
My New Year’s resolution as someone in recovery is to treat myself like I would treat another human being: with kindness, respect, and love. I admitted myself into a treatment center later this year because I recognized old habits starting to form. I will put myself and my health first! This year will be my happiest and healthiest yet. –River Ceballos
My resolution for 2017 is to take care of myself first, before anything or anyone else. That means looking after my health, taking time to cook and enjoy balanced meals, getting enough sleep, and saying no without explaining myself. One thing I learned in 2016 is that my health is the foundation for everything else in my life: school, work, relationships, and happiness. My health suffered quite a bit when I took on more responsibilities than was necessary, just for the sake of saying I could. By the time it was all said and done, any sense of accomplishment I was hoping for was overshadowed by mental and physical exhaustion. However, when we take care of ourselves, everything else improves. We perform better because we have the strength and energy to fulfill our potential. Everything we work for is an extension of ourselves, meaning it would be nothing without us–not the other way around. By this logic, by taking care of ourselves, we ARE taking care of everything else (work, relationships, etc.) by securing it with a strong foundation. I am the foundation for my own beautiful life and as such I have to make sure the foundation is a strong one. That means putting my health and well-being first and trusting that everything else will take care of itself, too. –Annie Zomaya
My resolution – for life – is to stop counting! Calories, steps, failures...enough with the counting. I take heart in knowing that I was fearfully and wonderfully made and that I am enough. A whole new world reveals itself when we no longer burden ourselves with numbers. Calorie counts don't race through our heads, and movement becomes something much more precious. When we stop keeping tabs on the wrongs that others have done us, we are more open to the delights that life brings. When we stop stressing over the number of candles on the cake, we can live every day as if it were our birthday. –Kaitlin Irwin
We all know the saying: new year, new me! However, it was not that simple. I set myself up and then that triggered me downhill. I learned a new resolution: to stop listening to ED’s voice and to start doing at least one thing that truly made me happy. Each year from the day I changed the way I looked at my resolution; I would challenge fear foods, I would begin yoga, I would stick to my schedule, and I would reach out more. Being five years into recovery, I still make self-help goals because I know that they will continue to help me succeed in my next chapter in life. I want each of you in recovery to make a resolution of self-healing. Whether it be art, yoga, anything, start from that. If there is something you have always wanted to do, go for it. I also encourage you to journal, because on a rough day you can go back and remember that one resolution you did that was scary for you and it shows you can do anything. We are all unique, beautiful souls and we can do anything we put our minds to. You all are never alone and recovery is possible. I wish the very best for 2017 and remember: you can do anything! –Jeanette Suros
