A Journey Through Eating Disorders Support & Recovery

I remember the very first Alliance walk I attended. It was a chilly Sunday morning at the Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, and the wind was so strong that it blew away the decorative balloon arch. I arrived early, within the first 20 or so people to pull up, and I took a shaky breath before getting out of my…

Having hope while in recovery can feel easy on some days and much harder on others; sometimes tangible and ripe, other times, elusive. But overall, hope seems easier to sense and channel during “normal” times. However, the last year has not been normal. If there has been one certain thing, it is that uncertainty has flooded every sphere of life:…

The year 2020 has been filled with countless challenges, obstacles, and opportunities for inner growth. Let’s be real, I don’t think any of us ever thought we would be living through a global pandemic! This past year has been hard. No doubt about it. I have learned a lot about myself and those around me. What helped me stay afloat…

It was the perfect Christmas – I began the season at a party with my dear friends, took advantage of my puppy’s first Christmas by dressing him in all the festive outfits, had the perfectly accessorized outfit for every occasion, received my dream shoes, and finished the holiday season by jetting off to NYC just in time to see the…

Long before therapy, dietitian, and group appointments, my parents took me to countless doctors appointments because of my disability. I was born with optic nerve hypoplasia, a medical condition resulting in low vision. My eye disease can cause various degrees of blindness and also can come with a variety of co-existing conditions. I was very aware from a young age…

A quote by N.R. Walker says, “Whenever you find yourself doubting how far you can go, just remember how far you have come. Remember everything you have faced, all the battles you have won, and all the fears you have overcome.” There was once a time that I couldn’t fully comprehend much less appreciate what it meant to celebrate progression,…

I want to first thank my beautiful community at The Alliance for asking me to take the time to write about my experience as an LGBTQIA person in eating disorder recovery. I am so proud of all of the lifesaving work that you do and I know in my heart that if I would have had access to your services,…

For the past five years, I called New York City home, a home I worked hard to build for myself. Around 2017, I finally felt the hard work of recovery paying off. Heck, I even felt completely recovered from a fifteen-year battle with my eating disorder. I had done the heavy emotional labor in therapy, I had been to treatment,…

“Tell the story of the mountain you climbed. Your words could become a page in someone else’s survival guide”- Morgan Harper Nichols Oh, how desperately I needed someone else’s words to guide me during my family’s darkest days. When my sister was first diagnosed with an eating disorder, all we had was each other. We didn’t tell anyone outside of…

“Feed them and they will come.” This is the mantra of many churches and religious organizations. Growing up, a church service was not complete without the fellowship after the worship service that included coffee, tea, lemonade for the kids, and an assortment of cookies. I never questioned the relationship between snacks and fellowship, but on weeks when, for one reason…