“God had made Hajj as a connection to his Paradise”.
Imam Ali
Dear Readers,
Eating disorders attack the mind, the body and the spirit.
The longer someone struggles with an eating disorder, the more embedded the disease becomes in the psyche of the person. It becomes their identity, and the idea of giving up the eating disorder can feel like turning your back on your best friend. Those with eating disorders need to realize one thing – that recovery is always option. Eating Disorders are not lifetime sentences, full recovery is possible.
We should make the necessary changes to defeat the demon of Eating Disorder, and what better time to make such changes than present, during these blessed 10 days of Hajj, you never know it may change your life forever. We must internalise these changes and make a firm commitment to recovery, Inshallah. Always remember that the power is in your hands, only you and you alone can defeat this demon of Eating Disorder.
Take these Small Steps towards Recovery
Please Seek Help!
It’s important first and foremost that you seek some professional support. You are not alone. Remember you are not suffering in silence. There are millions of people world-wide who are suffering from this dreadful illness and many worst ailments. Help is out there, all you have to do is reach for it. Through connections and efforts, you can break the chain of vicious cycle of Eating Disorder that leads to depression and anxiety. New treatments are continually emerging when it comes to treating eating disorders. Over the last few decades, new forms of treatment have been discovered that help those suffering work on reducing their symptoms without having to reflect on their meaning. These treatments include Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Interpersonal Therapy (IPT), and Thought Field Therapy (TFT).
These methods can help someone with an eating disorder move away from unhealthy behaviors before having to face the demons that cause the behaviors. Once the person regains a clear mind, they are better able to tackle the root causes of their illness.
Excuse Me Demon of Eating Disorder! You do not control the world, Allah does. Leave me Alone!
Control has been attributed as a key motivator behind eating disorders. Eating disorders can provide a sense of control and escape, allowing sufferers to temporarily forget depression, anxiety, stress, anger, and guilt. Ironically, the ability for one to exert control over food, accompanies their loss of control in relation to food. It is important to remind ourselves that we don’t control all the variables in the world. God does. He is the Wise, the All-Knowing. Sometimes our limited human faculties are not able to comprehend His wisdom behind what happens to us and to others, but knowing that He is in control and that as human beings we submit to His Will, enriches our humanity and enhances our obedience towards him. It is suggested that Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) can potentially assist a person’s need for control and help adjust maladaptive ways of thinking and behaving.
Begin the Day on a Positive Note
Get up early. Get up thanking God that He has given you another day. Alhamdu lillahil lazi ahyana bada ma amatana, wa ilaihin Nushoor (Praise be to Allah Who gave us life after death and unto Him will be the return). Invest in an audio tape driven alarm clock so you can get up to the melody of the Quran. Develop your to do list for the day if you didn’t do it the night before. Begin with the name of Allah, with Whose name nothing in the heavens or the earth can hurt you. He is the Highest and the Greatest. (Bismillahillazi la yazurru maa ismihi shaiun fil arze wa la fis samae, wahuwal Alee ul Azeem). The Prophet used to say this after every Fajr and Maghrib prayers.
Leave the demands of ED behind you five times a day
Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) said:” Prayer is beneficial to both affliction that have occurred and have not yet occurred. O servants of Allah, hold fast onto my prayer.”
Prayer is a crucial element of the system of faith. If you have the ability to pray, then do so as much as you can, the benefits you will reap are beyond fathomable in the worldly sense. Allah has mad prayer the means to manifest the qualities He has ordained for His servants. Thus, it has been said ‘prayer is the weapon of the believer’. Ahmed Hulusi– The Essence of Prayer
Use the five daily prayers as a means to become more connected with Allah and less attached to the demon of Eating Disorder. Start distancing yourself from the demands of Eating Disorder as soon as you hear Adhan, the call to prayer. When you perform Wudu, keep repeating Shahada, the declaration of faith, as water drops slip down your face, hands, arms, and hair. When you stand ready to pray, mentally prepare yourself to leave your ED and all of its worries and stresses behind you.
Of course, your ED will try to distract you during prayer. But whenever this happens, go back and remember Allah. The more you return, the more Allah will reward you for it.
With Eating Disorder we have a dead and a very disordered brain (sorry but that’s a reality) . “….A servant may only be PROTECTED from Satan with the Dhikr of Allah” (Ahmed Hulusi The Essence of Prayer)
Dhikr replaces the negative thoughts of body image, eating, self-loathing and hatred in our mind. It increases brain capacity in the direction of the meaning of the word that is repeated. How beautiful, when a thought ‘I am despicable, fat, ugly human being’ is replaced by something that is beautiful and serene.
What is more beautiful in the words of Ahmed Hulusi “Dhikr enables reaching a state of certainty (Yakeen)”, certainty reality meaning that only realty is Allah and not the Demon of Eating Disorder.
Reciting tasbeeh, tahmeed, tahleel and takbeer abundantly to defeat the voice of Eating Disorder that constantly belittles us and controls us.
Avoid Media Overexposure, Fashion Tabloids: Switch to Books
Don’t spend too much time checking out the latest fashions on television or internet and catching up with celeb gossips. Spend more time reading good books and journals. Cut down media time to reduce your stress and anxiety.
Take an Oath to Love yourself and to Make Positive Changes in Your Life
Heal Yourself By Honey
Honey can be the new antibiotic for the 21st century! Thousands of studies and experiments proved this. The Holy Qur’an, however, proved it 14 centuries back.
Honey cures the following diseases:
Anxiety and lack of sleep can be treated by drinking a glass of water that has a spoon of honey dissolved in it (honey drink). Scientists found that drinking water with honey has a very calming impact on people.
One spoon of honey everyday can protect you from a deadly heart attack. This has been proven by new studies made on honey where scientists noticed that honey helps to regulate the work of the heart.
Honey has a wonderful energy in regulating and reducing the symptoms of anxiety, polyneuritis, and other disorders that can be found in the body, in addition to its calming effects.
Work on your Impulsivity
If you feel compelled to binge or purge and feel you cannot control it, begin by trying to delay the binge or purge for 10 minutes by listening to music, calling a friend, or writing in your journal. If you cannot control your impulsivity, you will have a lifetime of regret ahead of you.
One of the complaint made by recovering anorexics and bulimics is about the size of their stomachs and The Dreaded Bloat. Are you ready to address solutions to the Dreaded Bloat?
“You can’t reach for anything new if your hands are still full of yesterday’s junk.”
Stay Busy
If someone suffering from ED stays idle, while isolating himself from the world, then there is a greater chance of one being more depressed as it is said that “An idle mind is the devil’s workshop.”. Starting a new hobby can act as solution for your ED anxiety by making you busy. Hobbies bird watching, knitting, reciting the Qur’an, learning, reading books, painting, and writing are all productive hobbies.
Start a ‘Recovery Journal’
Fill it with positive and affirming thoughts. Take excerpts from Quran, Hadith. Use Rumi’s Mathnawi, Ghazali’s work. Write about why you want to recover, how your eating disorder has impacted your life, and anything else that will help to keep you motivated to recover. It’s totally up to you to choose what you write in your journal. Write a plan in your journal for how to manage feelings that trigger the binge and purge cycle. For example: “If I’m feeling angry, I will leave the room.” “If I’m feeling fearful, I will write in my journal what I’m afraid of.” If I’m feeling guilt or shame, I will talk with a friend.”If you do make this plan, you’ll start smiling more with increased awareness. If you don’t do this plan, you’ll stay stuck in your negative feelings and keep bingeing. It’s totally up to you to choose what you write in your journal.
Talk to Other People Who are Recovering/Recovered
Mutual support can be motivating, and seeing someone else make progress or enjoying life might help to keep you inspired, too. Support groups can be a really great way of seeking support from people going through similar things. . Stay away from people who are emotionally abusive to you. If they even walk in the room, leave as soon as you can. Spending time with positive people is the way to grow your self-esteem and begin to heal. Negative people will just drag you down and leave you wondering if they’re right when they say, “You will never be all right.”
Spend Time Around Supportive People
Try to find people who are comfortable with their bodies and don’t spend all their time talking about dieting and food. These might be people who have qualities that you admire and want to develop within yourself.
Read Recovery-Oriented Books
These can help inspire and keep you motivated.
Don’t Forget that Suffering Purifies our Humanness
When we go through difficult times, when we have a financial loss, when we lose a loved one, when we struck by bad times, it brings out the real humanness in us, and we begin to ask the very questions that are most fundamental to us, “Why are we here?”, “What is the purpose of life”, “why me”, “What happened to all my plans and dreams, etc. We learn the frailty of our humanness. The Prophet of Islam, Muhammad (peace be upon him) said, “Look at the ones who are less fortunate then you, not at the ones are more fortunate then you.”
Efforts not Results Count in the Eyes of Allah
Our success depends on our sincere efforts to the best of our abilities. Unlike our disorder that demands results and is never satisfied, It is the mercy of Allah that He does not demand results, Alhamdu lillah. He is happy if He finds us making our best sincere effort. Thank you Allah! Just do what you can do and leave rest to Allah.
Recovery is always an option, as long as you believe that you deserve it.
