Choosing Recovery, Even When It Doesn’t Feel "Good" or "Right"

 One of the hardest truths about eating disorder recovery is that it doesn’t always feel like healing. Sometimes, doing the “right thing” for your recovery—eating the meal, resting instead of exercising, sitting with fullness—feels uncomfortable, even wrong. That doesn't mean you're failing. It means you're healing in a nervous system that’s still learning safety.

When you’ve lived in a body that feels unsafe, disconnected, or untrustworthy, recovery will stir things up. You might feel panic when listening to hunger, guilt after nourishment, or shame when resting. Somatic therapy helps us understand that these reactions are not evidence you’re doing it wrong—they’re protective patterns your body learned to survive.

The goal isn't to make those feelings disappear overnight. It's to build your capacity to stay with them—gently, gradually, and without judgment. Somatic tools like grounding, body scans, and breathwork support this process. They teach your nervous system: It’s okay to feel this. I can stay.

Here are a few reminders for the hard days:

• You can feel uncomfortable and still be making the right choice.

• Recovery isn’t about comfort—it’s about freedom.

• Your body doesn’t need to feel safe right away for you to be on the right path.

• Growth can feel messy. That doesn’t make it wrong.

You don’t have to love recovery every day. You just have to keep choosing it, one moment at a time. That is more than enough.