Binge eating disorder (BED) is suspected of being one of the most common types of eating disorders in the United States, and every day, new people make a commitment to treatment by entering residential eating disorder programs. Eating disorder recovery is all about learning how to be good to the body and mind to encourage healing. Self-care is a big part of that process. Take a look at some of the important aspects of self-care during binge eating disorder recovery.
Understanding Individual Self-Care Needs & Necessities
Not every form of binge eating treatment program is going to be the same experience for every individual because every person who comes in for treatment will have needs that are different from the next client. The same thing applies where self-care is concerned. One of the first things that professional treatment providers will do is assess incoming clients to find out what levels of self-care should be implemented into their eating disorder recovery plan.
Clients may be asked to make a list of things that they consider helpful where self-care is concerned, such as journaling, listening to music, or even something simple like getting sunlight. Every effort is made to make sure that each person has a full list of things they can do to take better care of themselves physically and emotionally to help them through treatment.
Implementing Self-Care Plans Into Daily Routines
Once firm self-care needs are established during binge eating disorder treatment, those self-care plans will become a routine part of therapy and recovery for the individual. For residential eating disorder programs, one of the primary focuses is to create a reliable routine that the client can follow, and self-care is a huge component of the individual’s schedule. People who have BED, as well as other types of eating disorders, do not usually have the most predictable schedules. In fact, erratic behavior, compulsiveness, and even unpredictability are all common personality traits among eating disorder patients.
It is not uncommon for those who enter treatment to have such a negative self-image that they have omitted multiple levels of self-care from their typical day-to-day routine. For example, someone with BED may not be used to getting enough exercise or taking time out to meditate to eliminate stress. As simple as it sounds to include self-care as part of a regimen during a binge eating treatment program, it can take some adjusting and encouragement to help people remember what it is like to have a schedule that’s rewarding for their mind and their body.
Encouraging Self-Care Beyond Treatment
It is easy enough to make sure that people with BED follow a good regimen of self-care during treatment. However, once people leave inpatient or even day treatment programs, what they learn in treatment can be easily disregarded. Therefore, one aspect of self-care during eating disorder recovery is actually helping clients learn how to make self-care a necessary part of life for the long-term. By teaching people the importance of self-care and new methods for incorporating self-care into their routine can do a lot to encourage them to continue with what they’ve learned beyond treatment.
Self-care is a core component in eating disorder treatment. At Monte Nido, we focus almost as much on self-care as we do other forms of therapy. Our treatment facilities are known as a leading example of what treatment for an eating disorder should look like. Reach out to us for more information about our programs.