Search

Weekly Update #8: Only the Beginning

Michelle Franklin
Mar 5, 2018
5 min read

After seven days of complete dedication to eating disorder awareness, National Eating Disorder Awareness Week has officially come to a close. But there is an important message that needs to be spoken. The week has come to a close, but the momentum, motivation, strength, courage, knowledge, perseverance, power, possibility, and recovery that began this week have the power to continue, and not only to continue, to grow, to spread, to take charge in the fight for a world without eating disorders. This past week was only the beginning. Only the beginning of a movement for incredibly powerful change.

I hope that my posts throughout the week were both informative and helpful on a variety of levels. Informative to those who hope to learn more about the mysteries of the eating disorder and gain the knowledge to create their own change. Informative to supporters of those who are struggling so that they can have a better view into how to help in the recovery process. Helpful to those who are struggling, so they can know that they are not alone and that although this fight is incredibly difficult, there is hope for a life in recovery. And overall, I hope these posts helped to enhance National Eating Disorder Awareness Week and made a difference in the “Let’s Get Real” Campaign for a world free of eating disorders.

Thank you to everyone who showed their support this week, in whatever way that may have been. Any form of support is extremely powerful and significant in this fight for freedom, and I couldn’t be more grateful for each and every one of you for standing behind me and supporting me every step of the way in my own recovery journey and in my beginning journey as a recovery advocate and leader in the fight for freedom.

I want to acknowledge some of the efforts that I encountered last week. First off, I want to acknowledge all of you for following my blog and reading my posts, supporting me in my recovery and my hopes to share my story and my recovery power to others. It truly means the world to me to have you all as such pro-recovery resources for me, especially on days that are difficult to continue the fight for health and recovery. You are all the best!

I was pleased to see a variety of large-scale efforts throughout the week. At UCONN, the ActiveMinds Organization raised eating disorder awareness by setting up a table in the Student Union every day, presenting essential facts and reasons to participate in the awareness week. This made me especially happy to see my community standing up for those with eating disorders and participating in an awareness week that means so incredibly much to me. With colleges being a very vulnerable place for the development of eating disorders, it is critical to spread this type of awareness and support.

On an even broader scale, the store Aerie, a body-positive, body-real clothing store who is partnered with NEDA, showed their support for National Eating Disorder Awareness Week in a variety of ways. My sister and I made a trip to the mall this weekend, a nice break from the vigorous studying that has been leading up to Spring break, and we decided to stop in Aerie as we frequently do, and NEDA week lit up the room. Shirts that boasted the quote “Strong Beautiful Me”, a representation of their Strong, Beautiful Me campaign to raise awareness of eating disorders and spread body positivity. All of the proceeds raised in selling these shirts and 5% of all sales in Aerie were donated to NEDA. Additionally, each customer was asked if they would like to round their purchase up to support NEDA, and my sister and I both made sure to show our support. Aerie does an amazing job in not only showing their support during NEDA week, but also in leading the initiative year-round to changing the image of the media, to promoting healthy bodies over skinny bodies, to spreading body-positivity, and to helping in the fight for a world without eating disorders. There need to be more stores like Aerie that promote recovery, not eating disorders.

One effort, in particular, lit up the night. Literally. As my sister and I were driving home from the mall, we made the typical trip through Hartford, and as we approached the tunnel, we both couldn’t believe our eyes. The building directly above the tunnel was lit up in blue and green lights, illuminating the night with hope, inspiration, and awareness for the fight for a world in recovery. Being a pretty symbolic end to the week, I took this as a sign that there is hope, there is hope for my recovery, there is hope for everyone’s recovery, there is hope for an end to stigmas, there is hope for a world without eating disorders.

And this hope will not stop just because the week has ended. This hope has only just begun and will continue to grow and strengthen and expand. I will make sure of it. Why stop the momentum and awareness and knowledge and hope and strength and courage that came from this week just because the week is over? I plan on using this momentum to fuel not only the fight for freedom from a world of eating disorder, but my own fight for recovery. Because getting rid of my eating disorder is the first step in making my contribution to a world without eating disorders. This is only the beginning of our fight for freedom. Let’s Get Real in continuing this fight. Let’s Get Real in never stopping our fight.

So with this being only the beginning, I will use the momentum, strength, courage, perseverance, and motivation that I gained over the course of last week and use this as my foundation for my personal recovery and for an even more successful week this week. I need to prove to myself and to my treatment team that I CAN do this, that I have the power to turn this around and devote my full efforts to recovery, that I have the power to take my life back. This is my week. And I must begin, no matter how uncomfortable and difficult it may be.

And in order to begin, I have built a foundation of goals to set me up for success in recovery:

Step less to step more in recovery. This is essential. Listen to ALL guidelines regarding activity levels set and agreed to upon with my treatment team.
Fuel, fuel, fuel. Reach my full meal plan each day, and as stated above, follow ALL guidelines set by team.
Tell ED “No”. Whenever an eating disorder thought pops into my head, consciously tell the eating disorder “No” to start taking my life back and having a voice over the eating disorder. In combating the eating disorder at every chance I get, I will build up the strength and confidence I need for full recovery.
Journal every night. Write out the thoughts, concerns, stressors, worries, etc. that characterized the day. Write out absolutely anything that comes to mind. Get the thoughts out on paper, free them from my head.
Devote an act of kindness to someone every day. Helping others and being selfless helps me in my recovery. I hope to engage in selflessness to both help others and save myself.
Talk out how I am feeling and what I am thinking with my supports, especially when I am struggling. This will help them help me by allowing them inside my struggles and in being completely honest with my progress and challenges that I am facing.
Begin. This is the week to prove I CAN do this. I am more powerful than my eating disorder. I cannot let the past stand in my way. I must use the momentum of this past week to fuel my efforts in recovery.