How to Get Your Relationship with Food Back on Track

Family. Friends. Soulmates. Everyone has relationships in their lives. One relationship that many people may not think about is their relationship with food. This relationship like all others, has its ups and downs, especially for those who struggle with disordered eating or food addiction. Whether it is a conflict with a friend, or a slip with your meal plan, things will happen. As we might say, “Life gets lifey.” 

Let’s talk about slips…

Slips, that are mistakes or imperfections in our food plan, can quickly turn into slides before we even realize it. To prevent an unideal situation from getting worse, keep these tips about slips in mind:

1. It’s important to accept that slips WILL happen. No one is perfect, and having that expectation tends to do more harm than good. What matters most is your ability to pick yourself back up after a slip occurs. It’s important to be able to stop the slip as quickly as you can and move forward, without allowing yourself to spiral further out of control.

2. Don’t allow yourself to live in the slip. Do not pack a bag, do not make a reservation, do not find a pet sitter. Whether it is intentional or not, slips tend to evoke a feeling of being out of control. Allowing yourself to stay in a slip will make it all the more difficult to move forward towards your goals. Take your control back.

3. A slip is not a cheat day. Picture this; you plan to allow yourself a cheat day on the Friday that your in-laws are visiting before the holidays, meaning the house won’t be clean enough and the kids will be more energetic than usual. In other words, you know that your stress level will be very high. Don’t give yourself an excuse to fail. Make a plan and stick to it. Give yourself a chance to succeed.

How do you recover from a slip?

Okay, so a slip happened. Don’t fear- there are a lot of strategies to help you get back to your goals. Here are a few:

Be kind to yourself.  A slip can cause negative self criticism, and this mindset doesn’t always inspire someone to return to abstinence. Replace this criticism with understanding and kindness. Self compassion can motivate you to stay on track with your goals.

Don’t rewind. Slipping off plan has a tendency to cause people to become even more strict with themselves in an attempt to “undo” any of the perceived damage they caused when sliding with their food plan. Except, there is nothing to undo or compensate for. There is only standing up and moving forward.

Seek support.  Reach out to your power circle, those who support you, and those will help to pick you back up. Find a therapist or support group of people who are experiencing the same struggles that you are. You can always lean on Beacon for support by checking out Molly’s youtube channel and subscribe to the Sunday Love Letter to get support, information, and motivation on your journey to create a loving relationship with food. 

At the end of the day, your relationship with food is just as imperfect as every other relationship in your life. When you plan to bounce back from mistakes and treat your missteps with compassion, you’re so much more likely to have long-term success and a loving relationship with food.

Photo by No Revisions on Unsplash