Managing Burnout in Eating Disorder Recovery
Learn how to navigate recovery burnout with self-compassion, reflection, and the right support.
Recovery from an eating disorder is hard work. It’s constant, often invisible, and can feel exhausting. People may not realize the effort you put into maintaining consistent eating patterns and challenging intrusive thoughts daily. So, what happens when you start feeling burnt out and question how to keep going in recovery?
A question I hear often from clients is, “How can I continue recovering when I feel so burnt out?” This question can feel scary to ask, sometimes stirring up feelings of fear or shame. But nearly every client I work with has felt this way at some point. It’s a reminder of our complexity as humans—we can simultaneously want recovery and still feel unmotivated or tired from it. Keep reading to explore how to sit with recovery burnout and find ways to continue moving forward.
Recognize & Validate Your Burnout
First, let’s take a moment to recognize and validate the burnout you’re experiencing. Recovery is incredibly challenging. It requires facing food—your biggest trigger—several times a day. Eating disorder recovery demands commitment, focus, and consistency in ways that differ from other forms of recovery. Unlike abstinence-based models, where a person can avoid their trigger, recovery from an eating disorder involves actively engaging with food.
Sometimes, recovery looks like fighting just to maintain your progress rather than making new strides. It’s perfectly okay to spend time holding steady in your recovery without always pushing forward. Burnout is a natural part of this process. You’re allowed to feel tired. You’re allowed to feel like recovery is overwhelming at times. Accepting that burnout is a normal part of recovery can be a powerful first step.
Practice Self-compassion
Once you’ve given yourself permission to feel treatment fatigue, you can stop beating yourself up. Express compassion for the incredible hard work you’ve put in and how draining that can feel. If a friend told you they were feeling burnt out in their recovery, you’d likely offer them understanding, encouragement, and kindness instead of judgment. Can you try extending that same compassion to yourself? Remind yourself that it’s okay to feel tired—it’s okay to rest.
Reflect On Your Journey
Burnout is also an opportunity to reflect on your recovery process. Are there changes you could make to support yourself better? Can you identify factors contributing to the burnout? Maybe it’s time to reset your goals, try new tools, or talk with your treatment team about adjusting your approach. Remember, recovery isn’t linear, and your journey may need to shift over time to meet your needs. Making just a few small changes can drastically alter where you end up in the long term.
Take a moment to revisit your core values and your reasons for choosing recovery. Reflecting on what matters most to you can help rekindle motivation and guide your next steps.
Lean on Your Support System
Recovery is hard to navigate alone. During times of burnout, reach out to your support system—your treatment team, family, friends, or others who understand your journey. Let them know how you’re feeling. If you have specific needs, share those. And if you’re unsure where to begin, simply ask a safe person to sit in the suck of burnout with you. If you find yourself feeling isolated, burnout can also be a prompt to start building a support network. Consider joining a support group or sharing with a trusted friend or mentor. Eating disorders thrive in isolation, so reach out to others.
An Action Plan for Recovery Burnout
By combining these steps, you have a reliable response guide to help you sit with burnout:
Acknowledge your burnout.
Validate your hard work and exhaustion with compassion.
Reflect on what’s working and what might need to change.
Lean on support to help you through.
Unfortunately, there isn’t a magical cure for burnout. Yet these tools may just help you recognize it’s normal and allow you to ride the wave of burnout with compassion.
If you are struggling with your relationship with food and body image, reaching out for support is one of the most empowering things you can do. McArtney nutrition offers specialized support for those navigating eating disorder recovery or living with chronic illnesses Reach out for a discovery call to chat about finding food peace and body acceptance!
Disclaimer: the information provided in this blog is for educational and informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.