Why Should I Add Yoga to My Recovery?
I hear it all the time. Clients ask WHY their treatment team is suggesting yoga for their recovery followed by all of the reasons they don’t think yoga is for them. And I acknowledge that yoga isn’t for everybody, but the many benefits make it worth at least giving it a try and keeping an open mind to the experience.
I’d like to address some of the objections and questions that come up when talking about adding yoga as part of your eating disorder recovery journey.
1st objection to adding yoga to eating disorder treatment: It’s too slow!
You aren’t alone in thinking that. There are many kinds of yoga and it may be that the classes you have gone to aren’t the right classes for you. But I also would challenge you to be curious about why the slowness bothers you. Oftentimes, the slowness and quiet force you to sit with your thoughts and uncomfortable feelings. When we are moving fast and/or going hard in a workout, yes, we need to be aware enough of our body to not get hurt, but it intensity of it allows us to avoid what we are actually feeling. Yoga doesn’t offer many distractions.
2nd objection to adding yoga to eating disorder treatment: I’m not good at it!
Yoga isn’t something you can actually be good at or bad at. It’s a practice. Our body is always changing, so it’s always going to look different. Is that voice telling you that you aren’t good at it connected to comparisons or perfectionism? Whichever one is your jam, try to let go of judgment about what your practice looks like compared to others in the room, people on Instagram, or even a past self that did yoga before being in recovery. Instead, I challenge you to stay here on the mat with the self that you are today. Nobody cares if you can’t touch your toes or twist into a pretzel. Success is when you are practicing in a way that honors where your body is today. Check all of those perfectionist thoughts and comparisons at the door before getting on your mat.
3rd objection to adding yoga to eating disorder treatment: It’s not much of a workout!
No, probably not. To that, I would ask you why are you going to yoga. Chances are if your treatment team is recommending it, it is not because they are wanting you to do this as a workout. Again, there are all kinds of classes, some of which you may work up more of a sweat than others. But rather than looking at it as a workout, could you reframe the experience? It’s a chance to breathe. A chance to be present. A chance to connect with the self. Maybe even a moving meditation. With that in mind, does that change your perspective?
4th objection to adding yoga to eating disorder treatment:!It’s triggering!
There is no doubt that yoga can bring up a lot of feelings, be that from the experience itself or from the language being used in the class. I’ve actually already written on this topic...check out this post for ways to make yoga a little less triggering.
5th objection to adding yoga to eating disorder treatment: But why?
For so many reasons! Some I’ve already addressed, but here are a couple more that I think are so important.
Yoga helps you reconnect with your body in a way that other forms of movement may not. Oftentimes, as part of the eating disorder, we create a disconnect between our world and experiencing our body. It’s uncomfortable to feel our body like that. But when we connect our breath and movement, we are giving ourselves permission to feel our body again, even if just for a moment.
Also, there are times in yoga that we will sit in a position that isn’t particularly comfortable for several breaths. When this happens, we have two opportunities to help our brain start to rewire itself.
One, you can choose to come out of that shape into something that suits your body more since all of our bodies are different. This can mean shifting, pulling back a bit, or coming out of it together. You are learning to hear your body’s cues, honor them, and show yourself that you have the power to make choices to serve your body in a positive way.
Or two, you can lean into the uncomfortable. Breathe through it. Learn to sit with uncomfortable feelings. When else do you need to sit with uncomfortable feelings? An answer I often get is after finishing a meal, that feeling of being full can be very uncomfortable. Or even having uncomfortable emotions. So, if during yoga, you learn to breathe through something that isn’t exactly an easy shape for your body, but is just uncomfortable and not causing pain, you are practicing a skill that can translate to allowing you to breathe through that feeling after a meal or those emotions we have in the past tried and avoid.
It can help us release emotions that we may not even know we are carrying around. Part of that being disconnected from our body, also means we have taught ourselves to also not feel our emotions. They are so connected, the body and our emotions (see THE BODY KEEPS SCORE for more about this!) So without even talking about what is going on, movement through yoga can begin to release some of those emotions, or at the very least bring them to the surface so that you can work with them in therapy.
Adding yoga to your eating disorder treatment can be really difficult and scary.
But it’s the parts of yoga that are hard that actually can help move us forward in recovery. I dare you to give it a try! What reasons do you give for not wanting to try yoga? Or if you do enjoy the practice, what about it is helpful for your recovery? Sound familiar? If your treatment team has suggested yoga as a supplement to what you are already doing, I offer a yoga group specifically for those working on recovery from an eating disorder. For more information, check out the group therapy page. If you would like more information on that or individual counseling, schedule a free 20 min consult here.
As a HAES therapist, this is my jam! I offer therapy for all things eating disorders, body image, and perfectionism. I am able to work with anyone through online therapy in Missouri and online therapy in Wisconsin. Or, I’m happy to see you in my St. Louis-based counseling practice. When you’re ready to begin therapy in St. Louis-based counseling practice, follow these steps:
Contact Embodied Self Counseling for a 20-minute consultation
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Other Counseling Services
Counseling for Anorexia and Atypical Anorexia
Binge Eating Disorder Treatment
Therapy for Compulsive Exercise and Athletes
Embodied Self Counseling is located in Maplewood, MO. We work with clients struggling with eating disorders, body image, anxiety, gender identity, and life transitions in Maplewood and surrounding communities in the greater St. Louis area.