“The notion that life could be any different - that it could be better - becomes inconceivable. You forget how good it was to be normal. Worst of all, you come to believe that you prefer it this way.”

“Basically, when it comes to women, both aging and eating are somehow shameful.”

“The fear of an unknown never resolves, because the unknown expands infinitely outward, leaving you to cling pitifully to any small shelter of the known: a cracker has twelve calories; the skin, whe...”

“I didn't realize there was a ranking." I said. "Sadie frowned. "What do you mean?" "A ranking," I said. "You know, what's crazier than what." "Oh, sure there is," Sadie said. She sat back in her ch...”

“I am forever engaged in a silent battle in my head over whether or not to lift the fork to my mouth, and when I talk myself into doing so, I taste only shame. I have an eating disorder.”

“Oftentimes, especially during my recovery, I didnt need to think about everything I was doing wrong; instead, I needed to focus more on what I was doing rightand then do more of the right stuff. I ...”

“Ironically, this physically weak feeling signifies that Im actually getting stronger. I know from my past that I will ultimately feel strong if I just sit with the feeling and experience it.”

“In the past, my brain could only compute perfection or failurenothing in between. So words like competent, acceptable, satisfactory, and good enough fell into the failure category. Even above avera...”

“I have gained wisdom from leaning into my pain, in not allowing the hounds of hell to snap at my heels anymore. Now I turn around, call them by name, and let them know I am prepared to fight.”

“One of the hardest things was learningthat I wasworth recovery.”

“You deserve this. Even when you feel like you dont. You do. You deserve to have a healthy, loving, grace-filled relationship with yourself. You deserve to stop hurting in secret and in shame. You d...”