Every day we are asked to make commitments – to our jobs, to our friends and family, even to strangers. We are expected to focus our attention on following through with these commitments, which involves giving our time, energy, and thoughts to people and things outside of ourselves. We get caught up in doing, striving, “hustling”, as Brene Brown puts it. And as we’re caught up in that hustle we forget about someone really important – ourselves.
People who are in recovery are not immune to making commitments to others. They make commitments to their treatment team, to loved ones, to the process itself. But at the heart of it, the recovery journey is all about making a commitment to yourself – to choosing to spend your time and energy on thoughts and activities that enhance your wellbeing.
You commit to yourself when you are authentically you in your interactions with other people. When you are assertive, and voice your needs and wants. When you choose what people are good for you, and those you need to set boundaries with, or even let go of.
You commit to yourself when you become an active participant in your life (and in your recovery), rather than a passive observer. You recognize that you can’t control everything that happens, and also that you get to decide how you approach tough situations, how you want to handle difficult emotions, and how you want to behave in the face of the eating disorder voice.
You commit to yourself when you spend time thinking about your goals, your dreams, and your aspirations. When you allow moments of joy, and of hope to visit, and you don’t shoo them away. When you see an opportunity for growth, and challenge, and you take it. When you don’t shy away from fear, but lean into it and do the thing anyway.
You commit to yourself every time you take a step forward in your recovery. When the eating disorder is loud, and you want to engage in a behavior, or shape-check, or isolate, and you think about your next best step. You commit to yourself by choosing recovery each moment of the day, even when you don’t want to. You commit to yourself when you spend your time, energy, and thoughts on yourself, knowing that this is what you need to do.
So take a moment and think about how you have been choosing to commit to yourself, and what might be missing from that commitment. Get specific, write it out, and make a plan as to how you can bring it into action. Let go of the hustle, and make a renewed commitment to yourself!