TW: If you or someone you know is struggling with an eating disorder, please call the National Eating Disorder Helpline at (800) 931–2237.
As the New York Times helped me remember last week, “There Is Plenty of Food in the Country.” Experts believe that it is not a quantity problem we’re experiencing currently, but a distribution problem. With a near-total national lockdown and a looming economic recession on the horizon, the impulse to “stock up,” is a strong one. Scarcity mindset seems to be a secondary pandemic sweeping the globe — with no one believing that there will be enough money, enough food, or enough resources to see everyone through this pandemic.
“Getting help,” becomes even more difficult than it usually is during these widespread “stay at home” orders; when isolation, depression, and a lack of structure urge me to seek control through familiar food behaviors. Lacking the constant distractions that work brought, I am more in danger of falling back into old patterns to fill my days.
Virtual interactions make a difference, but they are far easier to avoid than an in-person therapy session or weekly support group where everyone is expecting my continued presence. Seeing someone’s face through a screen is never going to be the same as sharing space with them. It’s an easy time for anyone who struggles with…
