Eating disorders affect individuals of all ages, races, body sizes, and gender identities. They are among the deadliest of all mental health conditions and research shows that 9% of the US population will struggle with an eating disorder at some point during their life. The good news is that with the right treatment strategy and adequate social support, recovery from an eating disorder is possible. Unfortunately, many people engage in a silent battle with their eating disorder, making the recovery process much more difficult. One of the first steps to recovery can be sharing your struggle with someone you feel safe with. Having someone in your support system to confide in during difficult times can help prevent your eating disorder from becoming a life sentence. You are worthy of love and deserve recovery.
Below you will find 20 inspirational quotes for eating disorder recovery that can help turn your worst days into some of your best days. The eating disorder treatment process is difficult and adding more tools to your tool belt to help with getting through tough times is important for taking real action towards recovery. Using these as part of your daily affirmations first thing in the morning or at the end of the day can be a powerful tool in helping to decrease body image distress, redefine your standards of beauty, and improve your self love.
Inspirational Quotes for Eating Disorder Recovery
“I wish I could tell every young girl with an eating disorder, or who has harmed herself in any way, that she’s worthy of life and that her life has meaning. You can overcome and get through anything”
-Demi Lovato
“You have to make peace with food. You have to learn, and program your brain to understand: your body needs food”
-Callie Bowld
“My worst days in recovery are better than the best days in relapse”
-Kate Le Page
“I’m not going to sacrifice my mental health to have the perfect body”
-Demi Lovato
“There is hope, even when your brain tells you there isn’t”
-John Green
“I am beginning to measure myself in strength, not pounds. Sometimes in smiles”
-Laurie Halse Anderson
“What a wonderful thought it is that some of the best days of our lives haven’t even happened yet”
-Anne Frank
“Recovery isn’t easy, at first. It takes time. It takes more work, sometimes, than you think you’re willing to do. But it is worth every hard day, every tear, every terrified moment”
-Marya Hornbacher
“There is no magic cure, no making it all go away forever. There are only small steps upward; an easier day, an unexpected laugh, a mirror that doesn’t matter anymore”
-Laurie Halse Anderson
“Your life is worth so much more than any body part you are so furiously fighting”
-Callie Bowld
“You are your own standard of beauty”
-Nayyirah Waheed
“In any moment, we have two options: to step forward into growth or to step back into safety”
-Abraham Maslow
“I heard my body is a topic of conversation, so I wanted to say, I’m proud of my body and you should be proud of yours too…I could give you a million reasons why you don’t need to cater to anyone or anything to succeed. Be you, and be relentlessly you. That’s the stuff of champions”
-Lady Gaga
“The moments where recovery feels the most painful are often the ones you are making the most progress, because it indicates you are actively challenging your demons. Keep on pushing forwards even when the eating disorder voice screams at you. Things tend to scream when dying”
-Amalie Lee
“The first principle of recovery is the empowerment of the survivor. She must be the author and arbiter of her own recovery. Others may offer advice, support, assistance, affection, and care, but not cure.”
-Judith Lewis Herman
“Why spend your whole life trying to be somebody you’re not? It’s so much more fun to be yourself”
-Lady Gaga
“Eating disorders are serious mental illnesses, not lifestyle choices”
-Demi Lovato
“All the world is full with suffering. It is also full with overcoming”
-Helen Keller
“Recovery is full of ups and downs. There is no such thing as a linear life. But you can always turn your setbacks into setups to come back stronger”
-Brittany Burgunder
“Sometimes the process of growth looks a lot like destruction and pain. But you’ll realize with time that you’re not breaking, you’re healing”
-Brittany Burgunder
Kelly Melanson, Registered Dietitian
