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Good News For Eating Disorders Recovery!
Relationships Replace Eating Disorders
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Volume XXXVIV
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 Welcome to this month's Good News!
Me performing my famous turtle-in-the-road rescue at Disney!
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has flown by - I so enjoyed my second annual visit to the International
Association of Eating Disorders Professionals (IAEDP) conference
earlier this month and I met so many incredible folks, rescued a turtle
on Disney property, and finally got to see the famous Disney Castle up
close! You might notice that our team is growing ... we have been working hard preparing to apply for MentorCONNECT's not-for-profit status, and I am so excited to welcome our new leadership team members to our recovery family! I
want to especially encourage all of you to attend the Eating Disorders
Coalition's Lobby Day on April 26-27 next month - I will be there and
would love for you to join me as we work together to create a legacy of
hope and support for others who suffer! Warmly and with HOPE,
Shannon
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Join Shannon in Washington, D.C. for Lobby Day on April 26-27, 2010
Think
only paid lobbyists can influence policy makers? Think again! As a
constituent
with an important message to share - you too can influence federal
policy.
Join the Eating Disorders Coalition for our April Lobby Day on Capitol
Hill in Washington DC where your voice will make a difference.
This is one of the most
important events all year. Shannon will be there. Will you?
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Are you in strong recovery from an eating disorder and want to help others?
 Calling all Mentors!! If
you have been in strong recovery for at least 12 consecutive months and
want to mentor someone who is still struggling to recover, we invite
you to apply to serve as a caring volunteer mentor. Apply HERE Relationships Replace Eating Disorders. Your voice - and your help - makes all the difference to those who still suffer.
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April 14: the MentorCONNECT Teleconference Series Presents:
June Alexander
"Why the Best Get-Well Tool of All is LOVE" It is NEVER too late to recover from your eating disorder!
This courageous statement comes from June Alexander,
a grandmother who emerged triumphantly from a 44-year battle with
anorexia and bulimia at age 55. Today, she is an author, speaker,
mentor, and all-around advocate for recovery at any age. June knows
from first-hand experience how important it is to have the support of
family and friends during the recovery journey. In this teleconference,
June will share how she separated herself from the voice of her
disorder, what specifically helped her to achieve lasting recovery, how
to identify others who are willing and able to support you, and why
recovery is always WORTH all the hard work it takes. This exciting event is FREE and open to the public. To RSVP, simply send us an email with "RSVP for June"in the subject line to mc@key-to-life.com
To view the event flyer click HEREClick HERE to listen to past podcasts
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Your donation can provide a mentor to someone who needs help and hope!
 I really feel like I'm starting to grow. I think that the biggest
role in my growth has been sharing so openly with my mentor and through
the blogs. I'm finally able to get thoughts out of my head and not feel
so overwhelmed and bogged down by them. I am starting to be able to
recognize my needs. I'm also starting to recognize/ distinguish between
the Ed voice and my voice, what Ed wants and what I want. This stuff has
been so important for me. I know that I wouldn't be where I'm at
without all the support on this site! Thank you so much for being
here!!! It's saving my life! -Leslie Ann Click HERE to donate in support of MentorCONNECT's mission :
If you wish to donate in the name of someone you know who has been
personally affected, please indicate that on your donation and we will
send them a beautiful certificate.
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Mark Your Calendar for these exciting events in our 2010 Series!
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| Great articles by our wonderful Good News columnists & more....
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Shannon's Column: Beating Ana
My new not-so-imaginary friend
(as reprinted from Shannon's "Beating Ana" Gurze blog on 3/9/2010)
A week or so ago, I was woken up one morning by a thought. "It
takes just as much energy to believe in the best outcome as to expect
the worst." I shrugged it off. It came right back. As
of today, this morning, I would have to say that this thought has been
dogging my every footstep for a good solid week and a half. I
guess that means I have a new not-so-imaginary friend. Every time I
am tempted to put my energy into disbelieving future potential good in
favor of past remembered disappointment, the thought pops up again. After
ten straight days of observation, I can accurately report that my new
buddy has more energy than the Energizer Bunny, more enthusiasm than my
three year-old nephew with his new toolkit, and more stamina than my
friend the marathon-finisher. It outlasts my pessimism, my moodiness,
and the black clouds Houston's weather keeps presenting outside my
window. It simply will not go away. Thank goodness.
Thinking back now, I can say this is not the first time I have
counted a thought as amongst my closest confidantes and biggest
supporters. In my book Beating Ana, I
share three of my long-time best thought-buddies.....for the full article click HERE
For archived columns click HERE
To learn more about Shannon, click HERE |
Jeanette's Column: Milestones in Recovery
by Jeanette H.
I was blessed with the opportunity to be an intern at Thom Rutledge's
Beyond Eating Disorder recovery retreat in March. The weekend was so
powerful and moving because there was so much work that was done by the
participants and serious fighting back against ED. There were people
there at all stages of the recovery journey - some just starting and
some who have been working recovery for years. I have been in solid
recovery for years and yet I was able to take away so many applicable
tools to use in all aspects of my life. It really got me thinking about
all the milestones I have accomplished in recovery.
So many times I would tell myself I am not in recovery because I was
not "there" because I still had struggles. I was always thinking that
in order to be in recovery I could not have any ED thoughts and that it
was not going to be a struggle. I also had this idea that I had to do
recovery perfectly. However, there is no such thing as a perfect
recovery. There is also no such thing as a final destination in
recovery. I am a work in progress and as long as I am willing to
continue to work on myself, I am always moving towards an improved
Jeanette......for full article click HERETo learn more about Jeanette click HERE
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 Q&A with Shannon & Thom
...where YOU share your questions and we do our best to answer!
This month's questions include:
- Suggestions for when you forget your recovery goals
- What to do when ED wants back in
- Single biggest contributors to lasting recovery
- and much more!
To access the latest Q&A simply click HERE (all Q&A will be archived in the order received)
To submit your question click HERE. Each question will be answered in the order it was received.
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Andrea's Column: I Wish I Knew What To Say....
by Andrea Roe
(Editor's Note:
We are re-printing Andrea's previous excellent article to coincide with
the upcoming June Alexander teleconference on family-based treatment -
enjoy!)
All I want is for my little girl to get better and start living a
healthy life filled with happiness and laughter, not tears of sadness.
It breaks my heart that she thinks so little of herself.....
Several weeks ago, I met with a woman whose teenage daughter
currently battles an eating disorder. I was the first person she had
ever met that had recovered from an eating disorder and it was very
insightful for her to hear "the other side of the story" - since as a
parent, she experiences it differently than her daughter. She wanted to
know how to best support her but found that whatever she said always
seemed to be the "wrong" thing to say. Her daughter always ended up
getting mad at her.
It was interesting for me to hear what this woman had to say. I was
able to identify with the situation. I, too, was very angry at my
parents during my eating disorder struggles. Whenever they said
something or tried to reach out, I would push them even more away. They
never said the "right" thing and I slammed doors, yelled at them, and
just could not understand why they just didn't leave me alone.
The truth is, my parents really cared about me, loved me and wanted
me to be happy and healthy. They tried to reach out to me, tried to tell
me they are there for me when I needed them...but for someone who has
never had an eating disorder, they are not able to fully understand why
we do what we do and for that reason, always said the "wrong" things.
I cried a lot during my struggles and also during my recovery. I
cried almost every day. And the person that was there to comfort me for
the majority of the time was....for full article click HERE
To learn more about Andrea click HERE
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Lynn's Column: We're In This Together
by Lynn Gerhard
 As I suggested to my beloved mentee the other day that she needed to
be true to herself and her visions, to find her own honest voice and
share those visions, my heart was telling me, "listen!" I can't tell
you the number of times I've been mid-stream in helping a mentee
navigate through the current crisis only to realize that every tool I
was suggesting to her was a tool I needed to pick up again myself. That
is the beauty - the full circle - of the mentor/mentee relationship.
As an addictive person, I forget all too easily the very tools that
set me free in the first place. When my recovery seems to be
demonstrating in a fairly sane and stable life, I begin to think I'm OK,
I have graduated. Those are dangerous thoughts. There is no such
thing as graduating from recovery because if I think this way, when the
next life challenge hits me (and they will for all my life), I find
myself reacting in the old ways that don't work for me (or anyone else
in my life) rather than proactively seeking God's will in the
situation. There are only two options: continued growth or a slide
down that slippery slope into addictive tendencies. I prefer continued
growth, and mentoring is one of the ways I ensure that growth.....for full article click HERE To learn more about Lynn click HERE
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Thom's Column: What Self-Forgiveness Is
(a sneak-peek excerpt from Thom's new book "The Power of Self-Forgiveness"!)
A
common fear - and criticism of self-help psychology - is that
self-forgiveness is a snazzy, politically correct, socially acceptable
way of letting ourselves off the hook by avoiding accountability and
personal responsibility. This is absolutely not true. In fact, the more
powerful and accurate definition of forgiveness is quite the opposite;
self-forgiveness is the natural starting place for anyone who wants to
lead an ethical life as free from hypocrisy as is humanly possible.Think
of it this way: When I was a kid, my father owned a dry-cleaning store.
As an adolescent, I drove his delivery truck, picking up and delivering
dry cleaning all around the small town where I grew up. In essence, I
drove my Dad's truck around town, working to meet the needs of other
people, my dad's customers. Was my father selfish for taking excellent
care of that truck? Was he being selfish to make sure its tank was
full, that the oil was changed on schedule, and that the tires were
aligned....for full article click HEREFor more about Thom, click HERETo order "The Power of Self-Forgiveness" visit www.nutshellwisdom.com | |
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Until next time....remember that Relationships Replace Eating Disorders, and that this is the kind of Good News that lasts and lasts - and turns into RECOVERY!
Warmly and with HOPE,
Shannon, Marisol, Marisa, Janee, Jeanette, Andrea, Lynn, Cheryl, Thom & Mary
Everyone needs someone to believe in them...even when they are not believable.
-Shannon Cutts
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Good News for Eating Disorders Recovery and MentorCONNECT are sponsored in part by:
PREMIUM LEVEL SPONSORS:
Remuda Ranch Programs for Eating Disorders
 Tapestry: A Residential Treatment Center for Women with Eating Disorders
You Are Not Alone
PROFESSIONAL NETWORK SPONSORS:
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REPRINTS: You may reprint any of the content found in Good News in your own ezine or website. Simply send an email requesting permission by clicking HERE.
NOTE: Good News
is NOT meant to replace the supervision and care of a qualified medical
professional, and should never be construed as such. Shannon Cutts, the
MentorCONNECT Leadership Team and Key to Life
can NOT be held liable for any activities undertaken as a part or
result of receiving or participating in these online communities.
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