The Power of Support Groups in Recovery

Last night at10:30pm I published a casual survey online for people who have a difficult relationship with food and their bodies. (Click here to take it)! It is now 6:02am and I already have 17 responses. Honestly, its kind of a pain-in-the-butt kind of a survey, because it has several open ended questions. I think the fact that 17 people have completed the survey (which is anonymous) in less than 12 hours after it was posted, shows that eating disorders are soooo common and that we are NOT alone in this fight.

However, I think when people are in the midst of a disorder, they do feel very alone, ashamed and isolated. After  glancing at some of the data, it is obvious to me that participants are in need of a better support group out there. Personally, I never went to a support group because I didn't know where to find any at age 18. If there was a group I could easily access, would I have gone? I'm not sure.

I did participate in a female empowerment group that focused on Body Love when I was in college. I found the group to be powerful, positive and surprisingly helpful. The survey seems to highlight what is good and bad about support groups. Here's what I've gathered so far.

Why do support groups help?

1) You create a network of individuals who want you to achieve success

2) You get the chance to share your story in a judge-free environment

3) You can discover things about yourself by listening to other people's experiences

4) You have a safe place to admit you have a problem

5) You learn for a fact that you're truly not alone

6) Access to helpful resources you might not have discovered

What is the struggle with support groups?

1) They're not easy to access most of the time

2) Sometimes they do not work with your schedule

3)Women are too afraid to show up

4) It can be a negative and highly emotional experience 

5) If you don't have someone to go with, you may not go.

6) Not a lot of individualized attention.

7) Listening to stories may be triggering.

I'm thinking about starting some sort of support group. Does anyone have any experiences with this? I would love to hear your thoughts and ideas! 

xox

Meg