Yes, I could go on a semaglutide regimen and probably would lose a significant amount of weight. According to recent research, about half of that would be muscle loss. Both skeletal and cardiac muscle. This and similar drugs are being implicated for damage to heart, liver, kidneys, and pancreas. (Is everyone too young to remember what a disaster Fen/Phen was?) Therefore, these drugs should not be taken for an extended period of time, but as soon as you go off them the pounds return, likely bringing friends with them.
I could just shove my hand in the blender and flip the switch. It would be a healthier choice.
This is such an important conversation, and I deeply appreciate the nuance you bring to it. The reality that eating disorders aren’t just about food—but about control, self-worth, and nervous system regulation—resonates so much. As someone who’s unlearning years of disconnect from my body, I see how easy it is to slip into harmful narratives, even in healing spaces. The reminder that recovery isn’t about discipline but about trust—trusting our bodies, our needs, our emotions—hits home. Thank you for sharing this.
Thank you for sharing about your experience! I've gone through years of reconnecting to my body, and I suspect I still have many more. Some of us are more hard wired toward controlling behaviors than others, but diet culture glorifies discipline, control, perfectionism, "not enoughism." There is no room for mistakes or not following the program. I think when we've done this our whole lives, it's really had to let go of because we tend to see any setback as complete failure. I was certainly guilty of this. But it's why grace is so important in recovery and why "progress is not linear" is my favorite saying.
Thank you for this very helpful and timely reminder, Kristi. I was deep in the process of creating a 'healthy' family. It is only since I have started delivering The Body Project and fully understanding the culture we are immersed in that I have begun to grasp how unhelpful my deeply held beliefs were. I certainly don't blame myself; I was doing my best with what I knew, but I now know better.
I remember being concerned that our daughter's Psychologist, who was in a large body, possibly didn't know enough about health to give her accurate advice. I was scared about how our daughter could put on 'just' the right amount of weight. I now spend a lot of time encouraging young people to value themselves for reasons other than their appearance.
Thank you for sharing your experience with this. It's a wonderful thing you are doing through your writing at the Virtual Hug and your work with The Body Project.
Most of us have deep roots in diet culture through no fault of our own. I can look back now and see just how much damage my diet culture beliefs did over the decades of my life, and I definitely passed down a lot of that until, like you, I knew better.
And, of course, that's the most important part: We know better now. And also we can't unknow it. Even if I were to slip back into old habits, it would be with the full awareness of the consequences.
I still feel eating disorder treatment providers don't go far enough in explaining the whys necessary for recovery. I'm one of those people who need to know the why. Explain to me why we're not focusing on the why at this stage in recovery. Explain to me how we decided on this target range. They were taking the right steps, but without that education, it felt counter to what I would have expected.
I definitely agree with your comments about the why. I am speaking to some medical students tomorrow and it was one of the things I was going to talk to them about. Knowing their own beliefs and being able to set a helpful context for parents, carers and suffers.
I cared for a child with an ED for over five years. It was serious. They nearly died. They were in hospital for more than 6 months at one point. I came across some good practitioners and some incredibly inept ones, despite being "experts." As parents, we read everything and dug through everything available. By the third or fourth year, we were exhausted. "Getting help" isn't easy. Who supports you as you eat every single meal and snack with your child, every day for 5 years? The answer is no one. Certainly not where I lived, anyway. We were on our own. I am pleased to say my child survived and is now healthy—but I know a few who didn't😢 It's devastating and complex.
You're right, "getting help" isn't easy. I remember wishing there was some kind of nutrition support/relief service that could step in occasionally and assist in meal prep and meal support.
It's so so hard when you're in those trenches. I'm glad your child finally got through it. I know once you've gone through it as a caregiver, that vigilance never fully goes away.
Yes, I could go on a semaglutide regimen and probably would lose a significant amount of weight. According to recent research, about half of that would be muscle loss. Both skeletal and cardiac muscle. This and similar drugs are being implicated for damage to heart, liver, kidneys, and pancreas. (Is everyone too young to remember what a disaster Fen/Phen was?) Therefore, these drugs should not be taken for an extended period of time, but as soon as you go off them the pounds return, likely bringing friends with them.
I could just shove my hand in the blender and flip the switch. It would be a healthier choice.
This is such an important conversation, and I deeply appreciate the nuance you bring to it. The reality that eating disorders aren’t just about food—but about control, self-worth, and nervous system regulation—resonates so much. As someone who’s unlearning years of disconnect from my body, I see how easy it is to slip into harmful narratives, even in healing spaces. The reminder that recovery isn’t about discipline but about trust—trusting our bodies, our needs, our emotions—hits home. Thank you for sharing this.
Thank you for sharing about your experience! I've gone through years of reconnecting to my body, and I suspect I still have many more. Some of us are more hard wired toward controlling behaviors than others, but diet culture glorifies discipline, control, perfectionism, "not enoughism." There is no room for mistakes or not following the program. I think when we've done this our whole lives, it's really had to let go of because we tend to see any setback as complete failure. I was certainly guilty of this. But it's why grace is so important in recovery and why "progress is not linear" is my favorite saying.
Thank you for this very helpful and timely reminder, Kristi. I was deep in the process of creating a 'healthy' family. It is only since I have started delivering The Body Project and fully understanding the culture we are immersed in that I have begun to grasp how unhelpful my deeply held beliefs were. I certainly don't blame myself; I was doing my best with what I knew, but I now know better.
I remember being concerned that our daughter's Psychologist, who was in a large body, possibly didn't know enough about health to give her accurate advice. I was scared about how our daughter could put on 'just' the right amount of weight. I now spend a lot of time encouraging young people to value themselves for reasons other than their appearance.
Thank you for sharing your experience with this. It's a wonderful thing you are doing through your writing at the Virtual Hug and your work with The Body Project.
Most of us have deep roots in diet culture through no fault of our own. I can look back now and see just how much damage my diet culture beliefs did over the decades of my life, and I definitely passed down a lot of that until, like you, I knew better.
And, of course, that's the most important part: We know better now. And also we can't unknow it. Even if I were to slip back into old habits, it would be with the full awareness of the consequences.
I still feel eating disorder treatment providers don't go far enough in explaining the whys necessary for recovery. I'm one of those people who need to know the why. Explain to me why we're not focusing on the why at this stage in recovery. Explain to me how we decided on this target range. They were taking the right steps, but without that education, it felt counter to what I would have expected.
Thank you.
I definitely agree with your comments about the why. I am speaking to some medical students tomorrow and it was one of the things I was going to talk to them about. Knowing their own beliefs and being able to set a helpful context for parents, carers and suffers.
This is amazing work you're doing and hopefully combat some of the fat stigma in the medical community.
Thanks for this. My daughter developed an eating disorder in college and it was a definite education. (She's doing great now, thankfully!)
So glad to hear your daughter recovered. I can only imagine how much more challenging it is treating a child in college.
Such important information shared so clearly. Thank you (and thanks for the shout-out).
Thanks, Oona. It means a lot coming from you.
I cared for a child with an ED for over five years. It was serious. They nearly died. They were in hospital for more than 6 months at one point. I came across some good practitioners and some incredibly inept ones, despite being "experts." As parents, we read everything and dug through everything available. By the third or fourth year, we were exhausted. "Getting help" isn't easy. Who supports you as you eat every single meal and snack with your child, every day for 5 years? The answer is no one. Certainly not where I lived, anyway. We were on our own. I am pleased to say my child survived and is now healthy—but I know a few who didn't😢 It's devastating and complex.
You're right, "getting help" isn't easy. I remember wishing there was some kind of nutrition support/relief service that could step in occasionally and assist in meal prep and meal support.
It's so so hard when you're in those trenches. I'm glad your child finally got through it. I know once you've gone through it as a caregiver, that vigilance never fully goes away.
Hi! Remember to add this article to the eating disorders page on the Women's Health 365 Collective Directory and I'll promote it for you.
Thanks, Shelby! I was wondering if it was too late. 🙂
Never too late! Those Directory pages are a living document that are open all year to continue to add your articles and publication to.
This is a powerful installment!
❤️ Thank you, Darlene!