Eating Disorder Recovery through a Trauma-Informed Lens

In a society that can advocate willpower and “picking yourself up by your bootstraps,” eating disorder recovery has too often been reduced to a problem of cognition, one that can be trained out of the patient with hard work and habit-forming practices. 

While there is truth to this perception, many an eating disorder therapist has begun to see the importance of trauma informed care when it comes to eating disorder recovery. 

For many individuals, the development of an eating disorder can be deeply rooted in past traumatic experiences. Any approach to recovery must go beyond simply addressing eating behaviors. A trauma-informed lens applied to eating disorder treatment allows mental health practitioners to understand the underlying emotional wounds, attachment issues, and coping mechanisms that may contribute to disordered eating.

What Is an Eating Disorder?

As defined by the National Eating Disorders Association–the organization whose logo has become an empowering symbol for eating disorder recovery–eating disorders are “serious but treatable mental and physical illnesses that can affect people of all genders, ages, races, religions, ethnicities, sexual orientations, body shapes, and weights.” 

These illnesses include a variety of disordered eating conditions, such as:

• Anorexia nervosa–characterized by weight loss and distorted body image
• Binge eating disorder–recurrent episodes of binge eating, often alone and past the point of being full, coupled with feelings of guilt or shame
• Bulimia nervosa–a cycle of binge eating followed by compensatory behaviors such as vomiting or taking laxatives
• Avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder–severely limiting the volume or kinds of foods eaten, not out of body image concerns, but rather due to lack of interest, sensory issues, or fear of choking
• Pica–involves eating items that are not food, such as hair, dirt, or paint chips
• Orthorexia–an obsession with healthy or proper eating so strong that it can affect overall well being, including social interactions

Diagnosing any of these conditions is the domain of mental health treatment professionals, but if you are wondering “do I have an eating disorder?” there are some indicators to consider, such as:

• Preoccupation with food, weight, calories, or dieting
• Making excuses to avoid mealtimes or situations involving food
• Development of food rituals (chewing a certain number of times, rearranging food on a plate)
• Extreme mood swings
• Withdrawal from friendships and previously pleasurable activities
• Noticeable weight fluctuations
• Fainting and dizziness
• Menstrual irregularities
• Dental problems
• Impaired immune function, susceptibility to diseases

While not an exhaustive list, if you recognize any of these symptoms in yourself or a loved one, it may be time to consider eating disorder recovery counseling or some other form of treatment.

Understanding the Role of Attachment and Shame in Disordered Eating

Eating disorders are not only about food—they often stem from a deeper place of relational wounding and attachment trauma. Many individuals with disordered eating have histories of emotional neglect, invalidation, or inconsistent caregiving in early life. These experiences can result in attachment insecurities—where relationships feel unsafe, unpredictable, or conditional.

In response, individuals may develop coping mechanisms like food restriction, bingeing, or purging as a means of gaining control or avoiding overwhelming emotions. Eating behaviors can serve as a substitute for emotional regulation and safety when secure attachment is unavailable. Unfortunately, these survival strategies often reinforce shame, especially in a society that places heavy emphasis on body image and willpower.

A trauma-informed approach, such as that offered at ILC, helps individuals untangle this shame. Through compassionate therapeutic relationships, clients can safely explore how early relational dynamics may have shaped their behaviors, and begin forming new, healthier patterns of connection—with themselves and others.

The Importance of Trauma-Informed Care in Eating Disorder Recovery

The question of what that treatment should look like has many answers, but if you are seeking anorexia eating disorder recovery, or recovery for any other disordered eating condition, the importance of trauma-informed care cannot be overstated.

Elizabeth Woods, a therapist at the Integrative Life Center (ILC) in Nashville, TN, has learned throughout her career the necessity of looking at eating disorders through a trauma-informed lens: “I think a lot of traditional eating disorder recovery for clients looks like a laundry-list of do’s and don’t’s…I think it eliminates the possibility of clients actually getting to direct what’s important to them.” 

This self-direction, this element of personal choice throughout the recovery journey, is a key tenet of trauma-informed care. Rather than focusing on re-training a patient’s habits only, trauma-informed treatment acknowledges trauma in the person’s past that may be responsible for the eating disorder itself, creating a safe, empowering, and compassionate environment.

Again in the words of Woods:

“I see this common thread [in trauma victims] that it’s not safe to feel, it’s not safe to express how they feel. And so any amount that we can help support clients, in reconnecting with themselves, reconnecting with their physical bodies, I think helps people re-identify with who they are at their core. That is the treatment philosophy at ILC is really wanting people to understand, acknowledge, their self-worth, [and] the inherent dignity that they have as humans. Trauma in life can so easily make people forget or not believe. So I think our bodies are really crucial to being alive, being human, being connected to ourselves and other people.”

The compulsive behaviors that can arise out of trauma cannot be fully addressed without also processing the traumatic experience at their root.

Integrating the Body into Healing: Somatic and Holistic Practices

Disordered eating often leads to disconnection from the body. Whether through restriction, compulsive behaviors, or constant negative self-talk, individuals with eating disorders can come to experience their bodies as foreign, broken, or even dangerous. Trauma adds another layer, as it can lodge itself in the nervous system and manifest as chronic tension, dissociation, or hypervigilance.

That’s why at Integrative Life Center, somatic therapies are an essential part of eating disorder recovery. These body-based approaches help individuals gently reconnect with their physical selves in a way that feels safe and empowering.

Some somatic and holistic practices at ILC include:

• Trauma-informed yoga, which focuses on grounding, breathwork, and choice—helping clients build body awareness without pressure or performance.
• Equine therapy, where interaction with horses supports emotional regulation and relationship building through nonverbal communication.
• Expressive arts therapy, which encourages self-expression and creativity as a means of processing emotions that are difficult to verbalize.
• Mindfulness and meditation, offering tools to observe cravings, sensations, and thoughts without judgment.
  

By treating the body not as an enemy, but as a partner in healing, clients are given the opportunity to experience self-trust, agency, and resilience. Recovery becomes not just about symptom reduction, but about building a loving, empowered relationship with the body.

Lasting Eating Disorder Recovery in Nashville, TN

If you are looking for eating disorder treatment in Nashville, TN, consider the Integrative Life Center. Through our holistic approach, we foster genuine and sustainable healing in eating disorder recovery, ultimately nourishing the whole self – mind, body, and spirit. Our residential eating disorder program is not a mere series of cognitive retraining exercises, but rather an incorporation of the whole person into the healing process through a trauma-informed lens, with modalities ranging from anxiety treatment to equine therapy to mindfulness and meditation.

Consider the fact that the eating disorder recovery symbol is a combination of a heart and the outline of a woman’s body. This embodies our women’s residential eating disorder treatment program: safely addressing past trauma so that we can learn to truly love the bodies we are blessed with and experience lasting healing.

So if you or a loved one are experiencing the symptoms of an eating disorder, do not hesitate. Reach out to the Integrative Life Center today at (615) 891-2226 to start your journey to recovery.

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