WASH OUT PHASE (originally posted my MEESHMEESH)

When you first start to eat normally, you are likely to experience a number of physical and emotional difficulties because your system is not use to it. we use the term washout phase to describe this difficult time when there are no obvious benefits to the recovery process. It is typical during this phase to experience an increase in gastrointestinal discomfort and pain (bloating, gas, constipation, reflux,), to feel more preoccupied with food, more dissatisfied with your body image, more anxious, more depressed, and to feel strong urges to restrict/binge/over-exercise. You are likely to feel a lot worse before you feel better.

Some say it’s like hitting a brick wall, and many report that its much easier to engage in symptoms than to experience the intense distress associated with normalized eating. you might believe you were better off when you were active in your eating disorder, and you might be tempted to relapse in this point. Unfortunately, there is no way around this phase. In order to get to the other side, you will need to continue with the eating, despite the discomfort. Eventually you will start to get better. You might feel “flabbier” or that you have gained a hundred pounds but you have to continue eating and try at all costs to not restrict. At this point when you’re feeding your body nutrients you must not listen to ED and restricting food again, because it puts you at greater risk for starvation mode. your body will hold onto the nutrients you have fed it to make new reserves to be prepared for the next "famine". its best to avoid this completly and continue eating and following your meal plan so your body can release itself from this cycle and begin to normalize again. Your going to have to "bite the bullet" as some say, and do all you have to do to ignore possible triggers.

THANK U I neeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeded TO READ THAT AGAIN!

no problem!  just keep going, mind over matter, make a plan and actively decide to follow it!

hope all is well!

thank you for posting that, thats very helpfull.

lucyxx

Thanks so much for posting that agru. You're actually the answer to my prayers xD

It's weird cos I've been praying to God to keep me motivated and commited to recovery, to stay on track because I feel like I'm slowly losing hope and determination. I kept asking him to help me find a message or some knowledge to keep me going and here it is ^^

THANK YOU

XFALLINGSTAR-wow, thank you and im so very happy to be of any helped t oyu.  i know that for, im doing this recovery thing completely on my own and the advice and support ive gotten on this board iis tremendous.

EDs do crazy things to our heads but keep fighting bc we all have these amazing futures and lives ahead of ourselves and we deserve so much more than this, you can do it!