Alternative Bulimia Treatments
Heal Your Body, Mind and Spirit
More people are using alternative bulimia treatments to supplement traditional therapies than ever before. Techniques like yoga, meditation, and acupuncture can help you heal from the inside out and provide you with a lifetime practice that is healthful, heart-centered and connected to Source.
As a former bulimic, I have used alternative bulimia therapies on the road to lasting recovery. Used in conjunction with conventional medical and psychological counseling, these protocols are not just techniques for treating bulimia, but are also exceptionally powerful tools for leading a fulfilled life.
There are many bulimia treatment options available today. What they all have in common is to create a connection between the mind, body and spirit.
Here are a few alternative bulimia treatments that have helped me on my journey towards lasting recovery:
Acupuncture
Used in Asian cultures for centuries, this ancient method of balancing energy or “chi” in the body is renowned for helping patients recover health and find greater internal balance. Acupuncture is being integrated more and more in to allopathic protocols in most Western civilizations as medical practitioners recognize its deep power to heal.
One of the ways acupuncture works in treating eating disorders is in its ability to balance the hormone “leptin.” Leptin regulates the metabolism and plays a strong role in reproduction and menstruation. Studies in Germany have shown that people with eating disorders have lower than average leptin levels. Chinese research has shown that by using acupuncture, leptin production is activated to reinstate balanced levels.
Acupuncture also helps with anxiety and depression, which is highly symptomatic of people with anorexia and bulimia.
Aromatherapy
As with all alternative bulimia treatments, aromatherapy deals with the triggers of the problem. Using essential oils that have been extracted from specific plants, bulimia aromatherapy is accomplished by rubbing these oils into the skin or inhaling or ingesting them as a treatment for pain, anxiety, and improved digestion. Because certain oils help to change our emotional connection to food, they can also be used to balance an emotional cravings as in the case of citrus oils like lemon, which help stimulate digestive juices.
Naturopathy
Naturopathic doctors treat eating disorders through their understanding of the properties of specific herbs. Herbs such as ashwagandha are used to promote general health and to remove stress; holy basil also helps with stress; milk thistle helps to strengthen liver function; and grape seed works to strengthen the heart and the blood vessels.
Because people with eating disorders suffer from vitamin and mineral deficiencies, a naturopathic doctor can proscribe natural sources for missing supplements, such as
Omega-3 fatty acids to improve the immune system and decrease inflammation, COQ10 to provide immune system and muscular support, and probiotics and L-glutamine for gastrointestinal health.
Word to the wise: it is always important to discuss these protocols with your health practitioner beforehand to make sure there will be no counter-indications if you are taking prescription medications.
Yoga
Yoga is a time-honored practice that helps to connect the body and mind through your breath. There are many types of yoga, and you can try out various classes to determine which style works best for you. But all of them concentrate on the same premise: helping you to find greater flexibility through moving your muscles, ligaments, and tendons. Through the gentle postures found in yoga, you are also giving your internal organs a healing massage while strengthening and detoxifying all of your internal systems including the digestive, respiratory, and immune.
Yoga helps you find a more profound connection to your body, soul, and mind through concentration. As you work through each yoga posture, or asana, you can reach mental and physical liberation, helping to free you from the chains of your eating disorder. The regular practice of yoga will help you achieve a state of peaceful connection with your body…possibly for the first time in many years.
Meditation
Using techniques that help create “mindful awareness,” meditation strengthens focus, which in turn helps strengthen your resolve to heal from your food addiction. Meditation helps to keeps you in the present, calms the mind, and helps to reinforce the loving intention you need for bulimia recovery. Meditation can take many forms, but whatever method you find I believe a regular practice of meditation will allow you to connect to your higher self. Connecting to Source will provide a great sense of relief from the stress of daily life.
Visualization
Whether you use vision boards or the other powerful techniques inherent in visioning processes, the processes of using your imagination to create a future worth living into will serve you immeasurably. By visualizing a positive life after your eating disorder, you help to reinforce these pictures and attract them into your reality. When I finally found my way to lasting recovery it was because of the power of my mind. I told myself I was a recovered bulimic and kept focusing on that future every day. Your life unfolds based upon what you choose to think about and expect to bring about.
Reinforcing Recovery
Using any of these alternatives for treating bulimia along with traditional healing therapies can help augment and reinforce recovery. Even if you just meditate everyday to keep yourself grounded, you are creating a positive internal energy that will support your healing process.
Share Your Recovery Story With Us!
Tell us about your experience with these alternative bulimia treatments along with the benefits you’re experiencing from them. Contact us to share your journey. The best and fastest way to heal is through communicating with others! We’re here and we look forward to hearing your story.
You can also download our eBook with incredible bulimia stories of healing from women who have overcome their eating disorders.