Your Guide To Navigating the Holidays While in Recovery
Navigating the Holidays While in Recovery: A Compassionate Guide By Paige Mandel MS, RD, CDN Adapted from Balance Webinar “Holiday & Recovery: Your Guide to Navigating the Holidays and Recovery” hosted by VP of Admissions & Clinical Services Danielle Levitine, MS BC-DMT LCAT CED-CAT and Dietitian Quinn Haisley, MS, RD. Recorded Webinar & discussion linked here Why Are The Holidays Difficult to Navigate While in Recovery? The holidays typically mean being around an abundance of food and potential food triggers Diet and food talk increase during the holiday season Challenging interactions with family Heightened stress can increase the urge to rely on unhelpful behaviors The Before: How to Prepare Identify your needs Set your goal Ex: I will complete my meal plan today List out potential trigger points What resources do you have to navigate these potential triggers? Create, review and communication your plan with your team of providers Reach out to someone at the event who you can share your holiday recovery plan with Set your mentality Be compassionate with yourself Give yourself permission to enjoy the moment Set expectations that feel good Set boundaries with your family members ahead of time Examples: Please don’t make comments on other people’s appearance during this holiday I am really looking forward to getting together for the holidays! To make it as enjoyable as possible for me I’d rather we don’t talk about weight or food Allow yourself to say no Focus on gratitude Prepare for things that are going to be out of your control such as food choices and preparation style Action steps Prepare your self-soothing toolbox Wear comfortable clothing Schedule your meals and snacks Do your favorite self-care activities Gather inspiration of why recovery is worth it to you to have handy Plan fun activities before and holiday events to help keep a positive focus and balance i.e. ice skating, baking cookies with family, massages Set reminders on your phone to check in with yourself throughout the day Make sure your recovery plan is accessible and ready to go During the Event: Follow your meal plan Aim to eat regular meals and snacks throughout the entire day If you can, pack snacks if you know you will be away from home for a long period of time. However, don’t use this to replace fear foods with safe foods Enjoy variety! Approach food with curiosity Look for your early warning signs that can lead to unhelpful behaviors such as spike in feeling body dissatisfaction Avoid making body judgements Set boundaries or walk away from any conversation regarding body talk If you have strong urges Reach out to your support person who you feel safe and comfortable talking to, someone in your corner Utilize your tool box Have a supportive exit strategy in case you feel overwhelmed After the event: Defining your exit strategy What to prepare for Can you be alone after the event? Do you want someone to be with you? Do you have adequate support? What positive activities can be supportive? Volunteer Schedule session with team Journal Self-care
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