Holiday Food Joy - Nourishing Body and Spirit During the Season
The holiday season arrives in twinkling lights, festive music, gift guides, and a huge focus on special foods and flavors. For some, it’s the happiest time of year, and for others, especially someone in eating disorder recovery, it can feel hard and intense. This is a completely normal feeling, and there are 5 simple steps you can take to find holiday food joy while in eating disorder recovery.
Make Small Goals
When you think of the holiday season, do you think of Clark Griswold’s approach to the holidays and doing everything to the highest degree? While that is great for him and for others, let’s try a different approach and make small goals this holiday season. This might mean trying a special holiday food, attending a social event you might normally avoid, lingering at the table to visit with family, or fully tasting a food that’s only around during the holidays. Set small goals for yourself around holiday food- you can find joy in the small things and work up from there (if you want to).
Keep Up with Your Recovery Work
The holiday season is busy, there’s no doubt about it. Between parties, gift exchanges, shopping, dinners, and special events, it can be easy to abandon your work with a therapist and dietitian over the holidays, but keeping up with your care team is very important this time of year. Discuss what holiday food joy means with your care team, what you want it to feel like this year, and what some small goals you could set are. Having that accountability and support is so important to keep you feeling grounded. You may not be able to see your team as often as you usually do given hectic schedules for both your care team and yourself, but continuing to stick to your meal plan and goals is one way you can protect your recovery and continue to find joy in the holiday season.
Embrace the Meaning Behind the Food
Eating holiday foods may feel scary, but sometimes when you learn the meaning behind them, it allows you to embrace the food joy (even if you still feel the fear). Holidays are meant to bring people together- whether you cook with a grandparent, make a gingerbread house with your kids, or listen as a family member tells you the story behind Grandma’s famous cookie recipe. Allowing the meaning of the holiday food to take center stage rather than its nutritional value gives you the opportunity to experience true joy.
Allow Flexibility In
Eating disorder recovery isn’t linear, nor is it meant to be. It’s also not perfect, because perfection isn’t achievable or desirable. The holidays almost force you to be flexible with your schedule, your time, and your eating. Recognizing that this is the case for everyone this time of year may help you to settle into the good chaos that is this time of year. If you notice feelings of guilt or anxiety come up, especially after eating a certain food or meal, send yourself extra compassion. You’re human, and you’re recovering from an eating disorder, and both things are difficult on any day. Practice being flexible when you can, and be kind to yourself. You’re trying something new, and that is something to be celebrated.
Celebrate Small Wins
Take time each day to see how much progress you’re making on the above tips. Start small, and be sure to celebrate everything you’re doing, even if it’s just acknowledging that a situation didn’t go the way you wanted it to, or you went back to an old behavior around a holiday food. How can you learn from it? That’s a win! How can you be kind to yourself? Celebrate that! Try writing one thing you are proud of each day, if you are feeling up for it. This isn’t about perfectionism. It can be as small as, “I thought about putting another cookie on my plate,” to as big as, “I went back for another dessert because it was so yummy.” You’ll be impressed at how your small goals keep growing!
Remember that your holiday celebrations won’t look like everyone else’s, and that’s a good thing. Social media can make you feel like your holiday season has to be a perfect, beautiful scene, and the reality is that your joy can look like whatever you need. Eating disorder recovery isn’t about perfection, it’s about finding what’s true to you, and leaning into it. Happy holidays!
If you want additional support during this holiday season, please reach out to us. Our eating disorder dietitians can help you navigate this tricky time by helping you to figure out what brings you joy, and how you can add more of it to your life this holiday season. You deserve it, and we want to help support you as you find your holiday food joy.