Thanks to the dedication and support of all of our readers and guest contributors, the Yoga for Eating Disorders Blog has been ranked #5 out of the top 20 blogs about eating disorders by FeedSpot!

Written by Maria Ortiz, LMHC, a former Division 1 gymnast, this blog focuses on gymnastics and eating disorders, but athletes of many appearance-driven sports will relate to what is shared. Maria hopes the information she provides will be helpful for athletes as well as for coaches, parents, and mental health professionals alike to gain insight into how a sport may breed an eating disorder.

As we all know, coping with shame is a deep, ongoing process, especially when it is tied to eating, body image, or past experiences. Guest contributor Jenn J. (she/they) shares why breaking the shame cycle often involves self-compassion, connection, and gentle unlearning, and offers several approaches that have helped them in their own healing journey.

For Lisa Faremouth Weber, developing daily rituals and routines helped her overcome decades of suffering from eating disorders. Read Lisa’s story of recovery and how she uses daily rituals to gain power, strength, and personal sovereignty in her life.

I remember my dietitian once telling me that there is more to life than rules about what you are and aren’t allowed to eat, that there are preferences if you give yourself permission to accept them. What the heck are food preferences, I thought. I only knew the world of strict, punishing food rules, thanks to the eating disorder. Here I share how I came to loosen my grip on food rules and began to explore what I actually, truly, deep down enjoy and dislike to eat—and in so doing, opened an unexpected pathway to self-acceptance.

Meet guest contributor Layla Caroni. At age 27, after 10 years of struggling with an eating disorder, Layla faced herself in the mirror and began what she calls the most significant journey of her life: her Hero’s journey to recovery. Read Layla’s inspiring story, which is also an invitation to view your own recovery journey as heroic.

Years ago, when dropping my daughters off at daycare, I encountered a most unexpected trigger that set off a spiral of old thoughts and food rules in my mind. Here I get honest about that moment of struggle and the aftermath of feeling ashamed and then finding a way to release the “old” stuff that came up for me at the school. I hope this blog is reminder that healing isn’t linear, and it’s OK if you are ebbing and flowing on your journey.

On a dark January evening, I found a yellow sticky note that I’d completely forgotten about in my coat pocket. On the front were three words: yoga, write, read. I needed this reminder to slow down and make space for these nourishing activities. Now I just had to believe I was deserving of taking the time to do them. Here I share some of the steps I took to build trust within myself that I was, in fact, deserving to make and take space for those people, places, and things that are important to me.

I recently came across a story from the early days of my recovery after a relapse that occurred later in my life, when my children were little. Revisiting this emotional scene reinforced a message I often share with my yoga therapy clients: recovery is relearning how to participate in life, and this includes sharing meals with the people who matter to us. I invite you to read how my children taught me to participate in life and have fun with food again.