How You Can Help the Eating Disorder Community in Recovery
Small Actions, Big Impact: Ways to Support Healing, Awareness, and Change
Eating disorders are often misunderstood, stigmatized, and overlooked. But behind every statistic is a real person—someone who deserves compassion, access to care, and the opportunity to reclaim their life from the grips of a powerful illness.
Whether you're a friend, family member, provider, educator, or advocate, you have a role to play. Supporting the eating disorder recovery community doesn’t require being a clinician—it starts with awareness, empathy, and action.
Here’s how you can help foster healing, reduce harm, and build a more recovery-affirming world.
1. Use Compassionate, Non-Stigmatizing Language
Words matter. Many people with eating disorders experience deep shame and self-blame. Avoid language that reinforces stereotypes, moralizes food, or reduces a person to their illness.
Instead of:
“You don’t look like you have an eating disorder.”
“That’s so unhealthy.”
“Just eat something.”
Try:
“I care about how you’re feeling.”
“I’m here if you want to talk.”
“You deserve support, no matter what your body looks like.”
Focus on feelings, behaviors, and values, not appearance or control.
2. Educate Yourself and Others
Eating disorders are complex mental health conditions—not choices, phases, or vanity issues. The more we understand, the better we can support others.
Learn about:
The spectrum of eating disorders (including ARFID, binge eating, orthorexia, and atypical anorexia)
Co-occurring conditions like anxiety, OCD, and trauma
How eating disorders affect all genders, races, sizes, and ages
Why early intervention matters
Resources to start with:
FEAST – for families and caregivers
Sick Enough by Dr. Jennifer Gaudiani
Body Respect by Dr. Lindo Bacon and Dr. Lucy Aphramor
3. Create Safe, Body-Positive Environments
Eating disorders thrive in environments filled with judgment, comparison, and body talk. You can help change that by:
Avoiding comments about weight, shape, or appearance
Not praising weight loss or restrictive eating
Rejecting “diet talk” in social and professional spaces
Promoting size diversity and body neutrality
Encouraging intuitive eating and rest as forms of self-care
In homes, schools, gyms, and workplaces, you can help others feel accepted and supported—exactly as they are.
4. Support Access to Treatment
Many people with eating disorders face barriers to care, including cost, waitlists, and stigma. You can advocate for better access by:
Supporting clinics that offer sliding scale or pro bono services
Donating to eating disorder nonprofits and scholarship funds
Contacting legislators to support mental health and parity laws
Encouraging schools and employers to include eating disorder resources in wellness programs
If you’re a healthcare provider, educator, or coach, include eating disorder screening and referral tools in your practice.
5. Listen Without Trying to Fix
People in recovery often need presence more than solutions. Be a calm, supportive listener who doesn’t pressure or judge.
Try:
“I don’t have all the answers, but I’m here with you.”
“Thank you for trusting me with this.”
“How can I best support you right now?”
Validate their emotions, respect their boundaries, and avoid making assumptions.
6. Use Your Voice for Advocacy
Whether online or in person, your voice can help shift culture. Use it to:
Challenge weight stigma and fatphobia
Uplift recovery stories from diverse voices
Promote awareness during Eating Disorder Awareness Week (usually in February)
Share educational content on social media
Attend or host community events focused on mental health and body image
Even one honest, informed conversation can plant seeds of awareness in someone else.
7. Support Loved Ones in Recovery
If someone you care about is struggling with or recovering from an eating disorder:
Avoid discussing food, weight, or appearance
Offer meal support when appropriate
Respect their treatment plan and boundaries
Educate yourself on relapse warning signs and what not to say
Encourage connection, not perfection
Remember, you don’t have to be perfect to be helpful—you just have to be present, respectful, and committed to learning.
8. Be a Role Model for Self-Acceptance
Your relationship with your own body, food, and emotions influences those around you—especially children and teens. Role modeling self-kindness, flexibility, and imperfection creates an environment where others feel safe doing the same.
Try:
Speaking kindly about your own body
Eating with joy and without guilt
Resting without justification
Allowing yourself to feel and express emotions
When you give yourself grace, you give others permission to do the same.
Final Thought
Helping the eating disorder recovery community isn’t about doing everything. It’s about doing something—listening, learning, advocating, and being present. Every act of support, no matter how small, helps chip away at stigma, silence, and shame.
Recovery doesn’t happen in isolation. It happens in relationships, community, and culture. And each of us has the power to make those spaces a little more healing, inclusive, and hopeful.
