Eating Disorders & Personality Disorders

Wednesday's video was up on Twitter and Facebook, but I neglected to get it up here before today. My apologies. :)

Take Care of YOU First & Foremost

I have a few things to share with you. And I thought I'd start with this: 55 Gentle Ways to Take Care of Yourself

There are a lot of people out there who could use a friendly reminder of what's important, what's not, and how to make life just a little easier... By being good to YOU. It's a great post by a fellow blogger.

More great links (I discovered this week) to come. :)

Triggers & Pro-Ana

Here is this week's video. It's not up to my usual standards as I was incredibly pressed for time and had to patch in clips from much older videos (from when  my camera gave me a fake "lisp" and did not always have a "professional" backdrop behind me), but it does cover some important things.

Active Change

Active Change!

Denial & That Push Forward

This week's topic is: Denial & That Push Forward. Finally YouTube has granted me the ability to post videos longer than 15 minutes, so you get a bit more without me having to edit myself after I'm done talking to fit it all into a 10 minute window! :)

Recovery As a Process

Listen. Learn. Live.

Friends & Triggers

An important lesson.

Dessert!

I was asked recently to do a video on the topic of dessert. I think it's a really worthwhile and often overlooked topic, so I was happy to oblige. I will get to all other questions and suggestions as soon as I can. I have a list. :)

Hope everyone is having a wonderful start to 2011. Take a minute to consider "Dessert!"

Taking Your Own Advice

A little advice... on taking your own advice. :)

Meals, Appetite, and a Few Suggestions

Allison asks,

“I recently fell into a relapse, and am trying with all my strength to pull myself out of the tailspin. I have begun eating again, but I can't help but feel the overwhelming feeling of failure every time I take a bite. I think about how ashamed I feel to be the size I am all day. I know that logically, the failure is in me NOT eating, rather than the other way around, but my disordered thinking won't let me be logical. How do I turn things around into being proud of myself for not restricting?”


I usually say “fake it ‘til you make it.” If you know that logically the right thing to do is eat and be proud of yourself, try to just do it without letting your mind make you do other things. If you begin to get down on yourself for eating, remind yourself that you are accomplishing SO much and that the more you eat, the better you will feel mentally and physically. Initially, the annoying things your head tells you are there, but the more you keep up with a routine of eating, the better you will be able to cope with that eating disorder voice.

You could start a rewards system for yourself to help associate feelings of pride with the right actions. For example, if you eat a meal, tell yourself you will get 15 minutes of downtime and pick something to do that you find enjoyable, fun, or relaxing. Or go bigger – if you eat 3 meals a day, reward yourself with something. If you do it for a week or more, allow yourself a gift. The rewards can be anything you want them to be – an hour surfing the internet instead of doing work, a new pair of shoes, etc. But if you set yourself to succeed and be kind to yourself after you’ve done so, you’ll be training your brain to understand what’s really worth it.

I’d also suggest my cell phone trick – if you haven’t heard me talk about it before, check it out here. You could use a message like, “Keep going – recovery is worth it” or something similar instead of what I suggest in that post. It might do the job nicely for some encouragement you don’t have to think about giving yourself.

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Ally asks,

“I am in recovery, and have been for a year. I am doing pretty well as far as not restricting. However, when I get stressed, I tend to lose my appetite. I know now to eat when I feel hungry, but what if I don't get hungry? I have also learned to not eat if I'm not hungry, so I can prevent binges. I don't ever intentionally not eat meals nowadays, but sometimes just realizing I haven't eaten that day can push me to think ‘Just a little more.’ and triggers me. How do I deal with loss of appetite?”


First – congrats on being in recovery for a year now. I think a lot of people tend to lose their appetites when they are stressed, myself included. Can you schedule time for your meals? I know it seems a bit like back-tracking to earlier in the recovery process, but it might help, especially if you’re stressed right now. That reminder to eat will help you to eat at times you know you should, whether you’re hungry or not. Set your cell phone to alarm at 8, noon, and 6 or whatever times work for you for meals – it can be like your “dinner bell” and remind you that you need to eat, even if you don’t feel hungry. Sometimes you have to go through the motions even if your heart isn’t in it, because unfortunately, if you don’t go through those motions, you might end up back in eating disorder land, even if it wasn’t your intention.


You don’t have to remember to set your alarms each day – do it now and set it to remind you daily. Then you can just focus on what you need to do and rest assured that, hungry or not, your phone will tell you when it’s time to eat.

As far as that triggering feeling when you do unintentionally skip a meal, you can try the tips from my response to the first question. Anything you can do to reinforce the positive stuff is always a step in the right direction.

You might find these old videos of mine helpful - they deal with the question: "Is it ever okay to overeat or skip meals in response to disturbing feelings? Normal eaters may reach for a candy bar when having a bad day, but they know eating is not a magical remedy for the downside of life. What distinguishes them from those with eating problems is that it is not a part of their everyday eating pattern. They dont beat themselves up, eat in secret, feel shame afterwards or swear to eat differently tomorrow. Their self-concept, self-esteem and general attitude have nothing to do with their behavior around food. Your (the viewers) work is to trust that youll gradually move towards eating more normally, and only rarely, eat or refuse food when youre upset (with absolutely no remorse!). The truth is it takes a lot of practice to sever the connection between feelings and feeding."

Is It Okay? Food & Feelings PART ONE
Is It Okay? Food & Feelings PART TWO

For those of you out there who are trying to figure out what being hungry really means and what good eating practices are, these videos of mine might help:

How to Eat When Hungry & Stop When Full PART ONE
How to Eat When Hungry & Stop When Full PART TWO


Like with the first question, if you can reward yourself in some small way for eating your meals, it will help you push through those times of lack of appetite. You have to push on through – especially when stress levels are high.

My Responses to YOUR Answers to My Why Video

I know it's been video land lately on my blog, which is funny, because my first love and main staple is writing. I guess it's easier for me to just post videos on days that I am busy (which seems to be every day lately!) because I already have a commitment to make them anyway.

I posted a video not too long ago, in which I asked you why you felt that you couldn't achieve the same recovery I have. It's something I hear so often and I was trying to challenge that. I received so many responses, as comments on YouTube, as emails, as messages, and as comments on here - so I began making a video to address your answers to my question. It turned out to be two videos, and now seems like when all is said and done it will be three videos. :) Three parts, that is.

So, here are Part One and Part Two of My Responses to Your Answers to My Why Video. Part Three will be on its way by the end of the week.

PART ONE:


PART TWO:

Bulimia Feelings & Situations

My Wednesday video is up. This week is all about Bulimia. My specific topic: Bulimia Nervosa triggers being hungry, feeling low, fat feelings, situations, all or nothing thinking, food feeling like a constant threat, guilt/shame. A lot to cover in 10 minutes! Did my best! :)

As usual, click to watch on YouTube as embedding has been disabled. :)

Question # 21: When You Feel You've Exhausted the Topic

An anonymous reader recently wrote:


"Hi Arielle :) I'd really appreciate if you could give some advice on what to do when you feel you exhausted the subject of your ED with a friend, or family, in my case my boyfriend, yet you still feel like you do need to talk about it sometimes."



I'd start off by asking yourself a few simple questions.

Why do you feel you've exhausted the subject? Is it because of a reaction you get? Or is it because of a reaction you're afraid you'd get? Don't let fear get in the way of your needs.

Also: Do you feel misunderstood? Do you feel like you're not being heard? Is it putting a strain on the relationship or are you just afraid it will?

Make sure you assess your particular situation. It's very important.

Talking about your eating disorder is not something you can give yourself a limit for. You can't say, "I will only talk about it 3 times this week and if I've reached my max and need/want to talk about it again, I won't." It doesn't work that way.

If you feel you are holding something in, it will put even more of a strain on your relationship and on yourself.

Remember that having an eating disorder is like many other things. If someone comes home every day and says, "I had a bad day," because they dislike their job, they are saying the same things regularly and you wouldn't tell them to be quiet.

It's true that it can be hard for people to listen to things about eating disorders (or your eating disorder in particular) on a constant basis. Just be aware of how often you talk about it and how they might feel. Also be aware if you are repeating yourself a lot. Where do you hope to get with bringing up the eating disorder?

You know as well as anyone else that listening to someone complain on a regular basis is not fun. So ask yourself if your eating disorder talks are productive or therapeutic or helpful. If they are just complaints, they aren't helping you or the person listening to you.

Also remember that your partner or friend is not your therapist. Some things are better discussed in therapy. There is a difference between requesting support or acknowledging something, and having a mentally draining conversation frequently. It's really hard for some people to listen to certain things that therapists are more accustomed to hearing. Not everyone is equipped to be able to deal with everything. If you're not in therapy, consider it. Could be you need that outlet to get your thoughts out and right now only have a special person in your life to discuss these things with and it's becoming too much.

That said, needing to talk about the eating disorder is normal and silence will not get your far in recovery. If you hesitate to speak up when you need to because of another person, you may need to evaluate your relationship with the person. If they are not willing to listen or will not try to understand why you need to keep talking about the eating disorder from time to time, the problem may be the relationship.

Anyone recovering from an illness or addiction needs support, and if you are not getting support in the right quantities or in the right ways, you need to be honest with yourself.

For some people, keeping a journal is enough to make them feel better. For others, talking about struggles and thoughts are necessary. If you are constantly wishing you could talk about something, but don't, your relationship is not healthy...and neither is your recovery.

Any successful relationship needs good communication. And any successful relationship needs support flowing both ways. Do you have these things?

It may be that the person with whom you are in a relationship is not able to give you the support you need. This happens. Some people can not give us what we wish they would give us. It is not necessarily the fault of the person and there is not necessarily anything you can do to change the relationship dynamic. Sometimes it's just about acceptance, which can be very hard. Always put yourself in the other person's shoes and try to understand what they are hearing from you and how it might make them feel. BUT don't do this at the cost of your own well-being. PLEASE remember that compromise is a solution, NOT completely giving up your desire to talk about something. If you keep quiet for someone else's sake because you feel or they feel that you have exhausted the subject, you are really cheating yourself.

Be aware.
Be thoughtful.
Be willing to compromise.
But do not be silent.
Your recovery will suffer.

Question # 18: Exercise During Recovery

I was asked this question via an email this week:

"How did you deal with exercise during recovery? Do you exercise now?"

During recovery, there were points when I over-exercised. I wanted recovery, but I was so scared of the weight gain that it entailed for me, that I overcompensated when I was having hard times. I was never one of those girls who stayed at the gym for hours on end, but I did run farther and more often than I should have when I wasn't eating enough to warrant such activity, let alone a sedentary lifestyle.

Eventually, as I got farther in recovery, I began to understand that for me - if I was going to stay healthy - there was a fine line between exercise and overexercise. That's just how I was. I knew that if I started working out or running, I could (and probably would) go overboard. So I gave myself days on which I was "allowed" to exercise... and made sure that my food intake was comparable to the exercise at hand. For a while, I stopped exercising all together. Maybe that's shocking to a lot of you, but it's true.

Fact of the matter was I needed to gain weight. And when I was finally eating three meals a day and a snack or two, exercise was only proving counterproductive. I was still at a weight where every pound I'd gain from eating properly would only be taken away again by exercise. So I told myself I'd get to a healthier weight and THEN I'd start exercising again.

If you give it some serious thought, people who are underweight really shouldn't be exercising. Maybe some light weight lifting to build muscle or keep active, but nothing like running or intensive cardio. No biking or treadmills. It's not safe. It's not healthy. And it will make you lose weight.

Did I get antsy wanting to exercise? Sure. But you have to ask yourself what you want more - to recover or to exercise. Recovery always held more weight (no pun intended).

Once I was at a healthy weight and was stable (not losing, then getting back to that weight multiple times), I incorporated exercise again. I gave myself limits. Why? Because I know my limits. And I knew what was needed. A person who's just at the threshold of a healthy weight and is still slender doesn't need to be doing hours of weight-loss exercise.

I only let myself run a mile if I wanted to run. That's it. I only let myself exercise for half an hour. That's it.

It worked for me. I was able to eat properly, maintain a healthy weight, and not allow exercise to get out of control (or cause weight loss). It was just enough that it kept me active, made me feel good, and was the perfect amount coupled with my food intake.

To get to the last part of the question - yes, these days I do exercise. I just do so in moderation. Everyone talks about moderation being key, but it really is where exercise is concerned. I'm a Caseworker - I sit at a desk a lot of the day. And when I'm home, I sit at a computer for a few hours too. It's good for me to exercise. I like to run, but pretty much only do it in nice enough weather. Right now, for example, it's snowy and bitter cold here, and I don't have a treadmill...so I am not running. When spring starts to come around, I'll probably go back to running, but I only run 3 days a week at MOST and I only run 1-2 miles. It's enough. To many who exercise frequently, obsessively, or are extremely into fitness, that may seem like so little. But nevertheless, it's a perfectly adequate amount of running. It's enough for me, for my lifestyle, and for my weight.

When I'm inside, I lift small weights and do a variety of arm exercises. Just to raise the heart rate a bit and keep my muscles active. I do some leg exercises too (not with weights). Again, it's all in moderation. I'll do crunches sometimes - but not hundreds. I'll work out after work, but not for longer than 30 minutes. It's simply not necessary for me. I'm doing enough.

I'm at a perfectly healthy weight - no longer at just the "threshold of healthy" as I was a few years earlier. No ifs, ands, or buts about it - I have breasts, no poking rib bones, and my clothing sizes have gone up more than once since my recovery first began. I've been at my current weight for years now and it's happy and healthy for me. I may fluctuate between a pound or two in either direction, but my weight is natural - it's where my body wants to be when I'm eating healthfully and taking care of myself.

Don't be scared. Let go of the fear a little more each day.

A Letter to E

This is a real letter - to a real friend of mine. But it could very easily be a letter to any of you, if some details were changed. She's struggling. And I'm struggling to find the right words to push her in the right direction.

Dearest E,

You are hurting. You are numb. I can feel it in your words. But your spark is not gone, because I can feel that too. Am I worried? Yes. I've said it to you countless times already. Am I hopeful? Yes. Always. Why? Because I know you can do this. I know you can beat this thing that for some reason has seen fit to grab hold of you again.

I know you're stronger than your eating disorder. I know you are a fighter. Hell, everyone who knows you knows that. Are you forgetting?

I can't let you forget. I can't let you throw away all the progress you've made. You deserve better and recovery is the only "better" there is. Trust me. Please trust me. I know a huge part of you wants to just throw in the towel and let the glamorous version of your eating disorder take over. But you are not a quitter. And that glamorous version may scream "You'll be thin!" and spout pleasing numbers at your numbed mind, but it's all fluff. Fallacy.

I've seen what you can accomplish - on your own, with help, with support. The fact is, you can accomplish a lot and amaze people around you - not by your dwindling physique, but by your determination, your true beauty (curls, freckles, a really great smile, and yes - a body that's lovely whether you see it or not), your intelligence, your passion, your creativity, and your sense of fun.

You have a real sense of fun.

And guess what? It's going to go away. A part of you thinks you'll be happier if you continue down this path of letting the illness and obsession take over... but you're wrong. And I don't want you to find out the hard way. Not again.

It all seems like too much. I know. I know recovery seems too hard, too annoying, too overwhelming, too invasive. And I know that you're screaming inside, "That's not what I want! I want to be thinner! I want that number to keep going down!' But every time you give in to that screaming voice, you're losing a piece of yourself. And I don't just mean in pounds.

I don't want to see you go.

I'm willing to play hardball and tell you to cut the crap. I'm also willing to love you fiercely (and ferociously). And I'm also willing to listen to you vent and rage and cry and freak out. Any time. As long as you won't give in to that voice.

And one last thing: This whole thing totally sucks.

I know it sucks. And I know it's hell. But I'm here for you. And the time to move forward is now. You can do it.

No, you can do it.

NO, you CAN do it.

Okay?

I love you.


Love, Arielle


What do you think, guys? Can you give E some encouragement?

Question # 15: Perfectionism

I've finally resumed! The next question is from Veggie. She asks:

"What do you think about the role of the perfectionism in EDs? (Moreover, in anorexia?)
Have you got some tricks to be not overwhelmed from perfectionism? I've asked this because I'm a 'perfectionist' and I've got some problems to split the 'healthy perfectionism' - which is part of my character - from the 'anorexia perfectionism' - which plays a great part in the maintenance of my anorexia..."

GOOD question. I actually did a YouTube video called "Perfection & Imperfection" seven months ago. I'm going to put that video here, so if you don't want to read through the post, you can just watch me talk sternly at you in my smiley, perfectionism-is-crap, Arielle-ish way. But for Veggie's sake I've taken the liberty of writing out the majority of what I say in the video, since I know English isn't her first language and I understand how hard it can be to understand someone in a video when you'd prefer to just read their words at your own pace. I'm also aware that I have a fair number of other viewers who don't speak English as a first language, so I figured this way the words are below the video as well.



So many people, eating disordered or not, are just so engrossed with this topic of perfection and imperfection. And it can really become an obsession, whether it's body image related, beauty related, achievement related. You can even go as far as "grade" (referring to school) related. There are so many things to be obsessed about where flaws are concerned. And it's a really unfortunate thing that people are obsessed with this, because it takes away from living your life.

I was extremely obsessed with being perfect in a wide variety of categories. I had your typical perfectionist, anorexic mindset. That's a little stereotypical, but it is very true that eating disordered people tend to be perfectionists or at least have somewhat of an obsessive mindset.

Not only does everyone have imperfections, but everyone has problems, issues... If you feel that you're the only one, that's where you're going to run into that fear of being imperfect. You can learn to embrace your imperfections if you don't think of them as imperfections. "Imperfections" sounds like such an ugly word and sometimes just stereotypes or stigma around a word can really change our perception about it.

So how do you come to terms with not being perfect? Honestly, it can take a while. There are definitely still days when I don't like something about myself, the way I did something, or when I wonder what other people think... but I've come a long way from where I used to be and I'm so much happier because of it. Letting go of this "having to be perfect" attitude is going to really, really benefit you. But you have to stick with it, because this question--at the heart--is "how do I come to terms with not being perfect?" That's where any of my "tricks" would come in. The only way to "not be overwhelmed by perfectionism," as Veggie puts it, is to accept our imperfections and realize FULLY that no one is perfect. No one. And our imperfections don't have to be something NEGATIVE.

You have to remember that nobody's perfect, and I know that's such a typical, cliched statement, but it's so true. Nobody is perfect. Perfect does not exact. (Yep, you heard me.) And imperfections are so much more beautiful than perfection is. (Okay, now you're thinking I'm crazy... but it's true! I really believe this!) In order to come to terms with not being perfect, you have to really embrace the good qualities you have. You have to really learn to love all the good things about yourself. And once you've done that (which even THAT can take a while), then you have to start to embrace your flaws. (Sounds thrilling, doesn't it? But hear me out...)

That's not to say that you shouldn't continually be trying to make yourself a better person; I think that's something that everyone sort of strives for in their lives. I mean, they know that they're not so great at something...or they know that they could change their attitudes about something... and they want to make themselves better... and that's very good and very commendable...AS LONG AS THE GOAL, ultimately, IS NOT PERFECTION.

Perfection is not achievable, so essentially, you're setting yourself up for failure from the get-go.

You need to let go of that whole perfection thing.

Perfection is a fallacy. Next, you must learn to accept your own imperfections as normal...because they are normal. And I'll tell you why. No matter how alone you might feel about a certain flaw or imperfection that you have, you're not alone. Just think how lonely having an eating disorder is. And think how alone you felt at certain points throughout your struggle...or even how alone you still do feel. But are you alone?

I mean, I made this video for a recovery collaboration that has over 600 subscribers and even more viewers. If you're reading this, you are among hundreds of visitors to my blog. And that's just a tiny microcosm of the world. There are A LOT of people with eating disorders out there. And even though at one time or another we might feel alone because we have one, we know we're not. You have to remind yourself: YOU'RE NOT ALONE.

Put the same strategy towards perfectionism. Use logic. Whatever your imperfection might be (today, tomorrow, 5 minutes from now), whether it's about a body part--being too big, too small, too this, too that--somebody else out there (and most likely, MANY, MANY other people) have that same imperfection.

And to be quite honest with you, who's to say it's an imperfection? I mean, especially if lots of people have it. And maybe, if by some major miracle, you are in fact the ONLY person who has that particular imperfection...isn't that more special? More unique? Think about it.

And I know all imperfections people worry over have nothing to do with the body. Maybe you wish you were smarter, prettier, tanner, taller, shorter...the list can go on and on. And chances are if you really sat there and thought about all the things you wanted to change about yourself, you might have a pretty long list. But again, remember: Everybody out there has SOMETHING they don't like about themselves. Everybody out there has an imperfection, or many.

You have to tell yourself to cut the crap sometimes. And just stand there in front of the mirror and say to yourself (sternly): "I'm not perfect...but I'm fine just the way I am."

From one (recovered) perfectionist--haha--to another, the role of perfectionism in eating disorders can be huge, but you can accept and grow, and soon your imperfections won't seem like a bad thing anymore.

Thank You & Stay Tuned!

I need to take a minute to say thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you, my readers for all your wonderful and appreciative comments. I have received a plethora of them in the last month (via comments and emails) and I haven't really responded. You are all so great and so, so kind.

I also want to tell you that I owe you a BUNCH of answers to questions. I just compiled the list of the rest of them (I believe I left off at # 14 a while back...). So Kia...Suzanna White...Veggie... Krystal... I didn't forget about you, dears! I am working on the responses this minute and will have them up on the blog in respective posts as soon as possible. You left me some really great questions in comments a little while back and they have been stashed away, waiting for me to get my butt in gear. :)

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. I know I am looking forward to it! For now, I will leave you with this:

What can I do this weekend to put a smile on my face?

Well, what are you waiting for? :)

Question # 14: Eating with Others

Question # 14 comes from an Anonymous Commenter. Anonymous writes:

"How can I stay with people when I've eaten? I feel so... dirty! It makes me anxious. It makes me cry..."

I can't tell you how many people I know or know OF who feel the exact same way. If nothing else, this question should serve to make you feel less alone.

Here's something to try. Examine the situation. Why does it make you feel so dirty? Is it because you are ashamed? Because you're being watched? Because you're uncomfortable? Because you want to get rid of what you've eaten? Because you wish you hadn't eaten it? Because you feel smothered when you're not alone? Because you dislike the way the food in your body makes you feel? WHAT IS IT?

Try to tap into the feeling. What is it that makes you feel so dirty? Once you can pinpoint why you feel the way you do, you can start to do something about. You can start to train yourself to think differently or feel differently.

I suggest keeping a food journal--but not of how much you've eaten. Try keeping a journal of what you eat, when you eat, and who you eat with--and the emotions you feel in relation to each scenario. If you notice patterns, you can start to work with them. You can start to change the reality of your situations. If you notice that you feel "dirtier" or more "anxious" with a certain person or with a certain crowd, you can delve deeper and examine why that is. What is it about that person or those people that makes you feel uncomfortable eating with them?

If you notice you feel "dirtier" or more "anxious" at certain times of the day, say at dinner with people opposed to at breakfast with people, you can start to delve deeper and figure out what this means, what this signifies, and how to work through it.

If you notice you feel "dirtier" or more "anxious" when eating certain foods, you can experiment and see what alleviates the situation.

In short, it's about way more than just eating. There is something mentally going on here that makes you feel "dirty" and "anxious," that makes you cry.

The second you think it's all because of food or all because of the act of eating, you are relinquishing some power over to your eating disorder. You are being fooled. Go within. Go deeper. If you need to ask yourself the sort of questions I asked above, then do it. And start now.

That's the first part. You can watch one of my older videos about this here. It's actually a response to a question opposite this (those who find it easier to eat with others), but I touch on a lot of the same things and explain my points in detail. It relates a lot.)

The second part is to come up with reasons to stay. List the reasons to stay with people once you've eaten. This is something you want to beat and to do so, you have to have a plan. You have to have valid reasons.

Reasons to stay:
-the people you're eating with care about you
-you are one step ahead of your eating disorder if you stay with them after eating
-you give yourself a chance to act "normal" and put other issues aside
-you miss out on conversation if you leave
-you isolate yourself the more you leave after a meal or in the middle of a meal
-the more you STAY, the more you will be able to fight that "dirty," "anxious" feeling

Try, try, try, and then try again. I know it sounds difficult, and I know it's much easier said than done, but don't discount it.

Eating Disorders & Drugs/Alcohol

Here's my Wednesday Video for the ED Recovery collaboration. The topic was:
"Eating Disorders & Drugs/Alcohol--experiences, advice, beyond self-harm, links with EDs, why maybe do it, co-morbidity, etc."

This is the first topic for Wednesday in our new 4 week program. This is about addictions in general. Just click to "watch on YouTube" and you'll be taken there. :)



Next week's topic is: "Recovery Road Blocks obstacles in the road, moving past safe, letting go," so stay tuned!

Show & Tell: "Recovery Way"

Here it is, the first work of art in my Calling All Art! Show & Tell and Giveaway. This piece is by Veggie and is called "Recovery Way."

[click for a larger view]

Veggie writes:

"Some parts of this drawing/collage are in English, others are in Italian (as I am Italian), so I’m translating the Italian ones...

C’è il senso sbagliato… = There’s the wrong way… (the words above 'anorexia')

… e c’è il senso vincente! = …and there’s the winning way! (the words below recovery)

Vita = Life

Problema = Problem

I am going to 'Recovery'… the road is long and hard, but it seems a wonderful place when you get it… Who’s going to join me in this way?"

Well done, Veggie! This collage drawing, "Recovery Way" is so thought provoking. It's strong and it has a clear message. It symbolizes the crossroads we all seem to reach at some point. Will we go the old way, the wrong way? Or will we choose to go the "winning" way, or the recovery way? It is the ultimate question. This piece of intelligent and challenging art asks the question we all ask ourselves at the start of recovery. Artwork that asks a question, that causes the audience to think, is so important. Thank you, Veggie for sharing your art with us. Look for it on the sidebar of my blog for the rest of the next month, and consider yourself entered in the Giveaway. :)

If you'd like to enter the Giveaway and have your art displayed here, just click here for the instructions. I will accept artwork until the end of November. I can't wait to see all of your art!