1
ENDURING EASTER
When you have an Eating Disorder or Emotional Eating Problems
by
SEED
Eating Disorder Support Services
www.seedeatingdisorders.org.uk
(01482) 718130
Marg Oaten MBE
Compiled with Service User Involvement
“Thank you to those people involved”
April 2019
Gemma Oaten’s Blog—click here
RR19
2
Where to start?
Easter and Anorexia
Whether it is, family meals, celebrations, religion, of chocolate chocolate every-
where for someone suffering with an eating disorder Easter can be as difficult a
time for them as
Christmas or any other holiday celebration.
The purpose of this document is to provide a survival strategy whilst enduring the Easter Holidays and
highlight important issues around Easter.
Let’s start with Lent
Lent is the religious period of abstinence and whilst people enthuse they have given up chocolate or
their favourite foods for no religious reason other than an excuse to lose weight—this can be a danger-
ous trigger for someone with an eating disorder. The subconscious ‘anorexic’ voice nagging in the
background that you may have not upheld previous standards. Practicing abstinence for Lent is a very
dangerous trigger for a sufferer as this may inevitably lead to prolonged periods of starvation way be-
yond Lent. If someone is already on the edge of having a low BMI or indeed on the edge of becoming
medically at risk this may render them poorly and in need of hospital supervision especially if they re-
strict on the fluids too. Never restrict your fluids at any point in time. Hydration is fundamental for
life!
Four Whole Days!
Easter is probably one of the longest festivities incorporating Good Friday, Saturday,
Easter Sunday, and Easter Monday. Let break this down!
Good Friday
Traditionally we eat fish on Good Friday, fried from the fish shop, fried from our favourite fish restau-
rant or pub. Busy lives and a rest from the kitchen all too often see the queues outside the fish shop
which were a regular sight in my childhood, but a nightmare to some with an eating disorder. Because
it is a Bank Holiday families often sit together or families gather as a tradition for fish on Good Friday. If
this is the case—it is not the end of the world to plan ahead and suggest you get some fish to grill for
yourself and have this with a salad or something you are comfortable with or within your ‘safe’ foods.
Don’t let one meal throw the spanner in the works and cause untold anxiety for the rest of the day. Is
it not possible to have your dinner for ‘tea’ in a quieter environment—family gathering is not a time to
‘test’ your resolve an eating disorder is complex and difficult to cope with—as you claw management
back over your illness, times like this will become easier in times to come.
3
Saturday
Not too much of a traditional day so make the most of it—check out
self sooth and do something nice for you on this day click here for
inspiration on distractions and self soothe.
Would it be the end of the world to have vegetables and no meat or
gravy and for grandma and grandad who don’t quite ‘get it’ a word in
their ear might help to ward off unhelp and sometimes embarrassing
comments— same goes for other family member or friends. But we
don’t live in a perfect world and we cannot control what other peo-
ple say—all we can do is hope they ‘get it’ next time! It is a thing that
granny nurtured the family even if she hasn't slaved over the oven
for the day. So the “come on you can manage that surely” or “aren't
you having some pudding lovely” echo's across the table just tell her
“yes of course”! Someone will always discreetly help you out. If later
in the day there is a cold buffet on offer then you are in control .
Don’t forget it is quite acceptable to take yourself off for a bit of quiet time but not before you help
with the washing up!
In conclusion some people are not lucky enough to have parents who understand or indeed who are
supportive—all too often when someone returns home for holidays it ends in carnage—Mum and Dad
bury their heads in the sand. Others don’t get why you just cant eat. Or there is a war on words about
the fact mum has spent hours in the kitchen for you to refuse to eat. Communicate communicate
communicate ….plan plan plan…….. I cant stress this enough!
As you see your ‘control’ slipping the anorexia will fight back even harder—get the balance right deep
breathes and try and keep calm. Not easy I know!
Chocolate!
Gosh chocolate is everywhere—and has been for months leading up to Easter. Whether it is the Easter
Raffle at work with the ‘humongous’ Easter Egg as the star prize we cant get away from Chocolate at
Easter—for kids it is what Easter is about! Unless times where hard and you got a hand painted boiled
egg! Television, adverts, coupons off at Aldi or half prize at Asda they are still ‘giving’ them away well
after Easter has finished and they are in the out of date dump baskets. From the moment you walk in
you are overwhelmed with the offers available. What if you succumb and this sends you the other way
into a binge the internal voice ’screaming at you’ what a failure you are and that you have let yourself
down. In truth if someone restricts the body will ’crave’ the high carb high sugar foods. One sufferer
shared she cried when faced with this and would pay for a delivery rather than have the supermarket
experience at Easter. Might be worth thinking about. It is about removing yourself from a stressful
situation, as times get better there will be plenty of time to face your fears when you are stronger in
body and in mind.
The pre-Easter build up is something that has to be accepted. How you deal with this is down to the
individual but from speaking to other—once there is an element of acceptance there is a recognition
that things do get easier. Good luck!
Seven Steps To a Solution click here If working out a way to your solution !
4
In conclusion to Easter and Anorexia…
“Ultimately, Easter is filled with guilt over not being "normal" and able to cope, shame from the inner voice when you try to be normal, fear over the knowledge that meals and chocolate are coming and that you'll be expected to take part - (and that if you don't you'll have to face your family and friends), and the constant in-ner struggle to not give in to the urges to binge or starve and to just stay the course”.
“I understand that part of recovery is embracing the things that you struggle with, "feel the fear and do it any-way!" but so much in such a short space of time can feel like too much”.
Easter and Bulimia or Binge Eating/Compulsive Eating
Having spoken to members in groups one of the biggest issues around Easter are the trigger foods and if a per-
son is not coping particularly well at that period of time or there are stressful situations to cope with one hot
cross bun can lead to 4 hot cross buns and so one.
Not to mention the chocolate. In a newspaper article this week it was saying that there is no such thing as the
sugar rush well sorry but scientifically for years it has been proven that the serotonin at the base of the brain is
heightened by high sugar high carb foods so my opinion stands.
When I asked a person can you tell me what happens in a binge mode and they relay that their problems disap-
pear and their worries fade into insignificance then it is hard to be believe this is not true.
Why else would people chose these type of foods to binge on if they didn't get that feeling. Sadly once the
heightened state has reduced then this is followed by the all time low—self loathe and guilt. Not to mention the
discomfort and sleepless nights. What happens to help them feel good about themselves—go back into a binge.
I was asked this week what is the difference between binge eating and bulimia. A person binge eating does not
make themselves sick. A person with bulimia will binge of huge amounts of food usually high sugar high carb
they will then rid themselves of that food through vomiting, laxative or over exercise. They will then often fast as
a way of controlling body weight and shape. It then often becomes addictive in it presentation with a very pre-
cise and ritual ways of bingeing (over indulgence) and purging (ridding themselves of the food)
Remember though a ‘binge’ is different for everyone. A binge can be a packet of biscuits for one person and a 3
hour binge cycle for another.
One of the things to reduce that binge is to surf the urge. Embrace the binge give it a number between 1 and 10
then distract returning to the binge and rescoring. The theory behind this method is that the binge will reduce
in severity.
Compulsive and Binge Eating Booklet click here Effects on the Body click here
What are you afraid of? Public speak-
ing; asserting yourself; making deci-
sions; being alone; intimacy; changing
jobs; interviews; going back to school;
ageing; ill health; driving; dating; end-
ing a relationship; losing a loved one;
becoming a parent; leaving home,
failure, believing in yourself.
5
If emotions are running high and you have lost control don’t view this is a
relapse it is a ‘wobble’ plain and simply. Draw the line be kind to yourself by
that I mean don’t beat yourself up—you will feel bad enough. Tomorrow is
another day and start again.
Food Diary
Often writing a food diary and recognising food and mood might just help to recognise when may
trigger a binge in the first place click here
Behavioural Thought Pattern Self Help Table might be helpful too click here
Thought Record Sheet and finally a click here
Getting Better Bit(e) by Bit(e) in the treatment of Binge Eating and Bulimia is a book that may be
a useful resource to have. The link is below…..
https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?
k=getting+better+bite+by+bite&crid=I1YRZO90R5FP&sprefix=getting+better+%2Caps%
2C157&ref=nb_sb_ss_i_1_15
Mindfulness is excellent book also the link is below …….
https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=mindfulness&crid=NE0VOWZ7VTK7&sprefix=mindfulness%2Caps%
2C167&ref=nb_sb_ss_i_1_11
SEED promise to be with you every step of the way
But the journey is YOURS at the end of the day
We can guide and support you down each path that you take
But it is you who decides every change that you make
We will stay by your side through thick and through thin
We will grab hold of your hand when you want to give in
We will hold tight at the bends and round detours
But the choice to keep going will always be YOURS!
6
Website Links
https://institute4healthyliving.com/2017/04/13/how-to-survive-the-easter-long-weekend-with-an-eating-disorder/
https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/blog/7-ways-practice-self-care-easter-weekend
https://www.mirror-mirror.org/holiday.htm https://www.eatingdisorderhope.com/information/body-image/christian-track-easter-hope-for-the-body
https://www.counselling-directory.org.uk/counsellor-articles/an-easter-survival-plan-for-eating-disorder-sufferers
https://eatprayliveblog.wordpress.com/2015/04/05/7-ways-to-make-sure-your-easter-isnt-ruined-by-your-eating-disorder/
https://www.wellnessdaily.com.au/health/easter-and-eating-disorders
www.seedeatingdisorders.org.uk
www.b-eat.co.uk
wwww.mindhey.co.uk
www.rapecrisis.co.uk
E Mails
Telephone Numbers:-
Helpline 01482 718130
Resource Room 01482 344084
Samaritans 08457 90 90 90
Sane Line (Self Harm) 0845 767 8000
Rape Crisis 01482 329990
Hull Royal Infirmary 01482 328541
Happy Easter from SEED
