10 Ways to Take Your Recovery to the Next Level

Whether you're just starting to address your food issues, or you've already had some healing from eating disorders and food addiction, there is always a next level of recovery to be reaching for.

 

The truth is that if you get stuck in a rut in your recovery, it puts you in real danger of relapse. It's crucial to keep taking actions and work constructively on finding new solutions to your daily issues – because life will always bring new challenges.

 

"90 in 90" is a technique that people in 12-step programs use – they attend 90 meetings in 90 days, striving for one meeting per day (but sometimes doubling up). This method of enveloping yourself in recovery has a powerful impact. If you're new, it's an intense introduction to the 12-step way of life. If you're floundering, it's a fresh infusion of experience, strength and hope for dealing with the struggles of food addiction.

 

Compare that to someone who dips a toe into recovery once a week – maybe at a therapy session, group or 12-step meeting. That's still a strong commitment and a wonderful act of self-care, but what happens in between?

 

If you've stopped gaining new insights from your journaling, if you're struggling to stay clean with your food, or if you're just feeling stuck in your recovery, it's time to take that next step. Here are just a few possibilities to consider: 

1. Group work – Join a support group of people who are dealing with similar issues. If you're already in a group, try adding a second one.
2. 90 in 90 – If you're in a 12-step program, try the "90 in 90" approach.
3. Food log – Share your food log with someone every day as a way of staying accountable and honest with yourself.
4. Shared meals – Find a safe and supportive place to prepare and eat healthy meals. Ask a friend or family member (you may even want to move in for a short time), or see if your treatment center or counselling center can dedicate a space for this purpose. 
5. Inpatient care – There is something very powerful about surrendering your day-to-day responsibilities and putting yourself in the care of healing professionals.
6. Intensive therapy – If you're doing one therapy session per week, consider upping that to two or three sessions.
7. Support team – Add people to your support team. This will probably be a mix of professionals, friends and family. Make more calls, schedule more visits and ask for the support you need.
8. Community service – Volunteering to help others is a way to focus on something other than your food issues.
9. Creative expression – Write stories, poems or your own life story. Make music or art. These pursuits can be very therapeutic and personally fulfilling.
10. Sharing your story – At the White Picket Fence Counseling Center, we host events called "Living Room Stories." Sharing your experience can be healing and validating for you as well as very important for those who need to hear about your successes.

If things are going well in your recovery, you may be thinking you don't have to worry about any of this. Why rock the boat? It can be painful to keep pushing through every new issue that is revealed. It can leave you feeling raw and vulnerable.

Keep going up those steps. It's worth it. The amount of effort you put into your recovery will determine the level of relief you get from your eating disorder and food addiction. And don't forget – there are people who can help you walk through this tough stuff.