- Calls to this hotline are currently being directed to Within Health, Fay or Eating Disorder Solutions
- Representatives are standing by 24/7 to help answer your questions
- All calls are confidential and HIPAA compliant
- There is no obligation or cost to call
- Eating Disorder Hope does not receive any commissions or fees dependent upon which provider you select
- Additional treatment providers are located on our directory or samhsa.gov
Who Am I Without Anorexia? Finding Purpose, Meaning, and Your True Self in Recovery – Part 9
The Role of Personal Values & Spirituality in Eating Disorder Recovery
In order to work on personal values and spirituality, I’ll often start with asking people about their favorite movie or what kind of hero they identify with.
Through this, we get to explore the values of that hero and what they like about them. This helps them to externalize themselves because they aren’t talking about themselves, but they are talking about their values when they discuss the values or their hero or role model.
Having these role models can also help them to guide the action they take in their lives. We want to make sure they are acting in a way that can build confidence and help them develop a new sense of identity and, sometimes, taking on the values of a hero can help.
I once worked with a client where we ended up integrating art. This person was very interested in roles, and she drew out a wolf pack and each wolf had a superpower.
As we explored more together, we found that each of these wolves was a component of herself. We used them in our therapy sessions, and she was able to tap into how different wolves would handle different situations.
We were able to identify which one would be best for this particular circumstances and what they might do to deal with this specific problem.
Roles can be an interesting way to come through the back door, so to speak. They help to talk about things that are difficult to talk about when we hit them head-on.
As such, it helps to look into the strengths of the people you are working with and bringing that into their treatment to use it to their advantage.
The Spiritual Self
One of the things we have to assess for in terms of the spiritual self is a spiritual history.
Getting someone involved in treatment that specializes in spirituality can be fantastic in this aspect, as there are different spiritual assessments that a person can do to understand which spiritual, or even religious path, is best suited for them based on the values that they already hold.
One thing that is interesting and helpful about religion and spirituality is the moral framework that it provides. In the search for values, it can be difficult even to pinpoint what one’s values are.
I have countless “Values” groups with people in various diagnoses, and it is a tough group. When I ask “what are your values?” people come up with a couple, but they often get stumped a bit.
So, the more you can bring in external material such as heroes and look at their values, the more you can find them.
This is where spiritual and religious affiliations also help. You can ask them what ways they agree or disagree with these beliefs.
Often, with anorexia being worshipped as a sort “higher power,” this is where 12-step programs such as Eating Disorders Anonymous or Overeaters Anonymous can be pretty helpful. Note that asking someone “have you worshipped anorexia as your higher power?” bluntly can be a loaded question, so we do want to be careful about how that question is framed, so we aren’t shoved away.
Instead, ask open-ended questions or simply ask the individual to consider it, for example, stating, “are there any ways you feel as if you worshipped your eating disorder or that it has become the center of your life?”
Sometimes, people will just say “yes, absolutely” but some others may need you to tread a bit more lightly around that question.
Part of the struggle of working with someone with eating disorders can be that tunnel vision, where the disordered behaviors are the focus all the time, and all of the individual’s attention is spent on anorexia. This becomes a way of life and is part of what makes these disorders so time-consuming.
Reconnecting
We want to make sure that we honor that and help them explore how much time they were spending on it, how it has affected their relationships, how it disconnected them from people.
I was recently doing a “Gratitude Group,” and one person struggling with anorexia was able to identify just how disconnected it made them feel. The group then talked a great deal about the importance of reconnecting.
Connecting can be really important, and this isn’t only referring to a spiritual or religious connection but an individual’s connection to their spiritual or religious community. It may not only be a personal practice but an opportunity for this person to join in and connect to other people in a meaningful way that has shared values and beliefs.
This can work to create the long-lasting friendships and support that is imperative in long-term eating disorder recovery. By helping people get a spiritual self, that tunnel vision lifts its gaze a bit.
This can even be visible physical. Some may have noticed that an individual in the throes of an eating disorder may appear hunched over, avoid making eye contact or give mumbled responses. They may even develop something called “apraxia,” which is the difficulty identifying a feeling, which makes communication exceptionally difficult.
As a result, these individuals may retreat or be physically hunched over. When we help them connect with something outside of themselves, it lifts their gaze and opens their eyes to more possibilities in life in terms of opportunity and who they might become.
Spirituality can also help because being with people who are like-minded and connecting with a group can enhance self-esteem, self-worth, and personal value, all of which are very important for somebody with an eating disorder.
This is especially true when they feel as if their disorder is being ripped away from them and that they have nothing left.
We want to make sure we are giving them something else and, when they begin to take action on these values, that is what we give them.
TO BE CONTINUED IN PART X…
Please See
Who Am I Without Anorexia? Finding Purpose, Meaning, and Your True Self in Recovery – Part 1
Who Am I Without Anorexia? Finding Purpose, Meaning, and Your True Self in Recovery – Part 2
Who Am I Without Anorexia? Finding Purpose, Meaning, and Your True Self in Recovery – Part 3
Who Am I Without Anorexia? Finding Purpose, Meaning, and Your True Self in Recovery – Part 4
Who Am I Without Anorexia? Finding Purpose, Meaning, and Your True Self in Recovery – Part 5
Who Am I Without Anorexia? Finding Purpose, Meaning, and Your True Self in Recovery – Part 6
Who Am I Without Anorexia? Finding Purpose, Meaning, and Your True Self in Recovery – Part 7
Who Am I Without Anorexia? Finding Purpose, Meaning, and Your True Self in Recovery – Part 8
Source:
Virtual Presentation by Nicole Karst in the May 17, 2018, Eating Disorder Hope Online Conference II: Anorexia Hope & Healing in 2018.
Please view the press release Here.
Author: Nicole Karst, MA LVN
– Lead Therapist at Rebecca’s House Eating Disorder Treatment Programs
Nicole Karst has 17 years of combined experience in the health and mental health fields. After completing her service in the military as a Fleet Marine Force Corpsman, she started a career in nursing. It was through her nursing experience that she began working with those diagnosed with eating disorders, substance use disorders, psychotic disorders, and mood disorders. This experience inspired Nicole to return to school, and she is graduating this spring with a doctoral degree in Clinical Forensic Psychology.
Nicole’s experience includes individual and group therapy, psychodiagnostic assessments, mindfulness meditation, and medical assessing/monitoring of complications related to eating disorders. She joined the leadership team at Rebecca’s House Eating Disorder Treatment Program from Casa Palmera.
Nicole combines a psychodynamic case conceptualization with cognitive behavioral interventions, guided imagery, logotherapy and somatic awareness in her treatment approach. She works with those she serves to cultivate their ability to eat intuitively, exercise mindfully, engage life with purpose and meaning, and discover who they are in the absence of maladaptive behavior.
About the Transcript Editor: Margot Rittenhouse is a therapist who is passionate about providing mental health support to all in need and has worked with clients with substance abuse issues, eating disorders, domestic violence victims, and offenders, and severely mentally ill youth.
As a freelance writer for Eating Disorder and Addiction Hope and a mentor with MentorConnect, Margot is a passionate eating disorder advocate, committed to de-stigmatizing these illnesses while showing support for those struggling through mentoring, writing, and volunteering. Margot has a Master’s of Science in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Johns Hopkins University.
The opinions and views of our guest contributors are shared to provide a broad perspective of eating disorders. These are not necessarily the views of Eating Disorder Hope, but an effort to offer a discussion of various issues by different concerned individuals.
We at Eating Disorder Hope understand that eating disorders result from a combination of environmental and genetic factors. If you or a loved one are suffering from an eating disorder, please know that there is hope for you, and seek immediate professional help.
Published on July 30, 2018.
Reviewed & Approved on July 30, 2018, by Jacquelyn Ekern MS, LPC
Published on EatingDisorderHope.com
The EatingDisorderHope.com editorial team comprises experienced writers, editors, and medical reviewers specializing in eating disorders, treatment, and mental and behavioral health.
