You can only get so far in recovery or make recovery even more difficult than it already is, if you lack self-love, self-care and compassion for yourself. Most have to be taught that self-love is a good thing. You have hated yourself for so long, felt so worthless and unloved or unwanted by everyone, that it is a new learned concept to relove yourself. It can be a life defining moment, when you realize you can love yourself (and are worth that) and no longer compare yourself to others.
In a nutshell, self-love and/or self-care means:
- following your meal plans
- listening and implementing the things you learn at your therapy sessions
- being open and honest with your team and your family members
- caring for your basic needs – brush your teeth, comb your hair, get dressed, put make-up if that’s your thing
- talk nice to yourself
- treat yourself even if it is just small things that don’t cost anything
- beginning your spiritual journey (don’t forget this step, many lives are deepened and changed by this. God isn’t not an old fashioned concept either)
- doing things you love not because they express who you truly are
- going for walks or some form of exercise
- getting enough sleep
- keep a journal or gratitude list
- taking your medication regularly and on time
- staying away from scales and your known triggers
- staying away from social media as much as you can (seriously these sites can be so demoralising, particularly Tumblr)
And in the end, be compassionate with yourself. You will get tough days, days when you break your recovery plan, relapse, binge, purge, restrict or self-harm. Don’t beat yourself up, don’t put yourself down. One or two blips doesn’t mean the whole thing is destroyed. Take note of the blips, learn something from them if you need to. Often blips provide inner insight as to what stresses you. Pick yourself off, put it aside and start again tomorrow. Don’t bring the things that happened yesterday into today to spoil the new day.