Hung Over or Exhausted or Frightened?

       The week after New Years can be tough.  Fantasies around
New Years may be more powerful than Christmas wishes.  New Years
is often a time of hope for the end of eating disorder symptoms.
You hope for the beginning of a new and true love. You hope that
at last, you can be your real self, be recognized as the quality
person you are and welcome peace and opportunity in your life.

       When all those wishes don't come true as the New Year opens
the disappointment can be intense.  That disappointment can bring on
a state of depression where you have low energy and just want to cry
alone with your best friend - bulimia.

Please, hold out.  You might be hung over from too much
of everything over the holiday.  You might be exhausted from
activity and tension.  You might be frightened because of the sudden
transition from holiday to quiet regular life.  Maybe you are
experiencing all three.

       Give yourself a chance to adapt to the shift your mind,
heart, body and emotions need to make after the holidays.

       A big tip that always needs reminding, that all of us
tend to forget:

Don't get too hungry.
Don't get too thirsty.
Don't get too tired.

Hunger, dehydration and fatigue will play havoc with
your emotions, your ability to think and your ability to
perceive realistically.

       Give yourself a few days of eating three healthy
meals a day, drinking 6 - 8 glasses of water a day and
getting eight hours of sleep at night. 

       You will be happily surprised at how much better
life looks. 

       This is not a cure for bulimia.  But it is a way
to catch hold of some health so you can take the steps
necessary for solid recovery.  And wouldn't that be a nice
way to start the New Year?

Joanna Poppink, MFT, psychotherapist eating disorder specialist, Los Angeles, CA
bulimia, anorexia, compulsive overeating recovery, www.poppink.com