I don’t mind at all. This has been a hard lesson for me to learn, and I think it’s something everyone struggles with to some degree, at some point. Emotions make us vulnerable... What we have to let go of is the idea that that’s a bad thing.

 Tori Amos (via liquid-diamonds-flowing)

Tori Amos (via goldenthreadsdontbreakeasily)

That being said, if you have some full blown FACTS, like scientifically proven facts ( espressodoll is good about this ), I’ll be more than happy to listen and take your unsolicited advice.

I would just like to say that I have a ton of thoughts on Minnie Maud but in short, I do NOT support it. I am not saying that you can’t recover while following the guidelines but Gwyneth holds the belief that MM is the ONLY way to have a full recovery. As someone that followed MM guidelines a couple years ago and ended up in the hospital due to refeeding syndrome/edema, I would NEVER recommend it to others. I know that she says to increase gradually but the reality is that you cannot pin a specific number on your health and your recovery.  Another thing that frustrates me about Gwyneth is that she recommends hitting “minimums” each day, and she recommends reaching a specific BMI. Like YES, let’s encourage people with eating disorders to rigidly count calories and obsess about their BMI (which is proven to be bullshit). That will be really effective.  It is true that you may NEED those amounts to gain weight but it also may be true that you don’t. For example, if you need to gain weight (as determined by a professional) and you aren’t doing so on 2,500cal, you need to increase. It really is as simple as that.  This is something that you will need to discuss with your specialized dietitian.  On a final note, my treatment program (Monte Nido) really emphasized the importance of normal eating and food flexibility. Our meals were ALL the same size and they stayed the same regardless of whether we needed to gain/maintain weight. The differences in our snack sizes varies to meet our individual nutrition needs but for the most part, the focus was on learning what normal portions are. Additionally, the program does not use rigid amounts of calories to determine each meal/snack; it is true that all of the meals are in a range but the reality is that our bodies do not need precisely the same amount every single day. I would consider myself to be doing really well in recovery right now (physically and mentally) and I did not follow MM guidelines or even anything close. My focus was to restore weight (and eating enough to do so) and then seeing where my body wanted to settle. No minimums, maximums, restrictions, or benchmarks to hit. 

espressodoll is bang on point. The only thing I would add, which seems to be overlooked again and again and again, is the vitality of emotional and psychological recovery. ED’s are heavily focused on the physical aspects, yet it’s driven by the mental aspects. You cannot expect to recover and maintain a state of health if you only address the physical symptoms. It’s absolutely vital that you do nourish yourself adequately and restore your body, but equally so, you need to heal emotionally and mentally. There’s no single way to do this... It may require professional support from a counsellor, psychologist, psychiatrist or some other form of qualified therapist. Or you may find another path, through friends, family, music, art, writing, blogging. The key part is allowing yourself to express and feel what you really feel. Feeling is healing. Only then can you learn how to cope and express your emotions in a healthy way. It took me a very long time to realise this (I’m still learning), but this is vital not just to recover from an ED, but it’s vital to living a happy and healthy life. Feelings don’t just disappear, you have to let them out. And you know what? When you do, often it turns out they’re not as scary as they seemed trapped in the confines of your mind.