Disclaimer: The post discusses eating disorders that some might find triggering or unsettling. I am not a licensed medical or mental health professional and encourage others to seek professional care if needed. I acknowledge that the health experiences of others may vary and that this topic will not apply to all. Please review the full disclaimer at the bottom of this page for more detail. Reader discretion is advised.
1. “Eating disorders are for white girls.”
TRUTH: Eating disorders are not exclusive to one demographic as some might think. Anyone can develop an eating disorder or disordered eating habits. And unfortunately, there’s a misconception that eating disorders only happen among white women. While change is slowly taking place, tradition shows the lack of culturally competent and demographically identifiable providers in healthcare. As a result, this impacts affordable and/or insurance-acceptable access to care for those of us in marginalized groups seeking recovery care.
2. Eating is an earned privilege.
TRUTH: Diet culture tells us that eating is earned when we’ve done something to deserve it, which is usually productivity that promotes thinness. But we shouldn’t deprive our bodies of nutrition. Being human is enough of a right to access food, and we shouldn’t feel guilty for eating.
3. What you eat determines how good or bad of a person you are.
TRUTH: We’re taught that foods have a moral identity that is linked to us to claiming our own moral righteousness based on our food choices. This is the idea that if we eat “bad” foods, we must be bad people. And when examining the food choices of loved ones, friends, and even colleagues, many will shame one another for their choices, whether they were made for voluntary or involuntary reasons (i.e., ethical/religious, allergies, food intolerances). The idea that “my way is better than your way” only causes unnecessary division, which diet culture wants. The truth lies in a balanced diet, tending to the needs of YOUR body and health, and respecting the decisions of others who don’t eat the way you do. There’s no need to demonize food or each other.
4. Your weight and body type impact your self-worth.
TRUTH: The weight and shape of our bodies do not equate to our self-worth. Not everyone with more meat on their bones is unhealthy, and not every slender person is healthy. There’s a reason we all don’t look the same and shouldn’t try to be something we’re not. There’s more value in who you are than what you lack.
5. Recovery is unattainable.
TRUTH: Recovery is attainable but not linear. The recovery process requires a consistent rewiring of thoughts and beliefs that helped you survive in diet culture to facts that do not align with the culture. Mental and physical fatigue happens regularly as you navigate environments, friendships, relationships, and societies that unknowingly (or knowingly) promote and believe in diet culture practices. It can sometimes feel like too much to the point where you’d rather halt recovery. But it’s important to have compassion for yourself and not to be intimidated by the complexity of your journey. You can and will get better, but to get better, it takes commitment, sacrifice, and time.
