Lisa Schab - Bulimia Workbook for Teens. Activities to Help You Stop Bingeing and Purging

Dear Reader,

Welcome to recovery. By opening this book, you are opening yourself up to a happier and more peaceful life. You dont have to be completely convinced of this, and you dont have to be completely ready to change. As long as you are willing to consider the ideas you read about here, you are on the path to freedom.

Bulimia is a difficult opponent to face. It is sly, sneaky, and strong. But as you learn new ways to think and act, youll find that you are even smarter and stronger. And as you are ready, you will begin to win the battles you fight, and eventually you will win a better lifeone without bulimia.

This book is designed to help you become aware of and begin to change the false core beliefs that cause you to use bingeing and purging as coping skills. Right now, those behaviors might be all you have. But reading and completing the activities in this book will teach you healthier ways to cope, and you will begin to trust those ways. This trust will give you the confidence you need to recover and heal.

Each activity is introduced by an Affirmation. This is a positive statement about yourself and your abilities. It is likely to be in direct opposition to what you believe now. Typical bulimic thoughts are negative and foster self-hatred. Positive affirmations give you the power of truth and self-confidence, tools you can use to heal.

These six sections follow each affirmation:

Think

This section lets you consider how the affirmation applies to your own life. You will discover the thoughts and behaviors that keep you in a relationship with bulimia, and youll practice creating new thoughts that will help you get out when you are ready.

Speak

Saying your thoughts and feelings out loud both relieves anxiety and helps you hear who you are. Sharing or discussing them with another person helps you understand yourself better and learn new information. Speaking positive affirmations and goals helps bring them to life and is a first step in making them real.

Imagine

Research has shown that your brain cant tell the difference between whats actually happening now and a memory or fantasy that you visualize. Picturing change gives you a chance to get comfortable with it, practice it, and actually shift the brain patterns that are keeping you stuck. Visualization (paired with relaxation) lets you learn to feel comfortable with behaviors that might normally raise your anxiety. These exercises are meant to be done slowly and peacefully. Take as much time as you need to relax before, during, and after them.

Act

This section will give you the chance to bring your thoughts of change into reality. The suggested actions might mean trying real shifts in your behaviors or taking actions that are symbolic in nature. Either of these steps will help you move forward and become more comfortable in releasing bulimia.

Create

Using art materials to express your thoughts, feelings, dreams, and desires will help you release those that are holding you back and bring into reality those that will help you heal. This is not art class; you cannot do these activities incorrectly. The focus is not on creating a beautiful work of art, but on doing what feels right and good to you and on being peaceful as you work.

Transcend

The word transcend means to rise above, to triumph over, and to overcome. These activities will help you think and act from a bigger perspective. Working with nature, music, writing, love, compassion, prayer, gratitude, or just the bigger picture, you will connect to your inner wisdom and rise above bulimia.

Writing in a journal is a big part of these activities and of your recovery process. Your journal will be the place you record the thoughts, feelings, ideas, and observations that are a reflection of your inner selfthe most valuable part of you. Your journal will help you to face and manage thoughts and feelings, and in doing so, learn how to live without using bulimic behaviors. Be prepared to find a true friend in your journal.

As you go through this book, be patient and gentle with yourself. Take your time. You cant rush recovery any more than you can force a bud to open sooner than it is ready. This book is one tool in your journey to peace. There will be other books, people, and experiences that help you as well. Be open to healing and you will find it.

My very best to you,

Lisa M. Schab, LCSW