Eating Disorders Awareness Week (ED-AWE)

On this bitterly cold morning, when it felt impossible to get out of bed early, I found myself thinking about Eating Disorders Awareness Week (EDAW). Founded 39 years ago by the National Association of Eating Disorders, EDAW has become an important time for raising awareness about eating disorders. Across the country, individuals and organizations host various trainings and activities to shine a light on these often misunderstood, potentially deadly, yet highly treatable conditions. Then it struck me—over the 20 years I’ve had The Hull Institute, I’ve never done anything for EDAW. And I couldn’t help but think that maybe I should.

While I’m not a fan of “shoulding” on ourselves, I’ve decided to take action. Here’s what I’m doing:

1. The Hull Institute is supporting the BODY AND SOUL Afternoon of Nourishment and Body Peace put on by THE SUMMIT FM radio station serving Akron (91.3), Youngstown (90.7) and Athens (90.1), OH (Thesummit.fm).
2. I am writing this blog as I ponder the concept of AWE.

EDAW = Eating Disorders Awareness week. Add an E and you have ED-AWE

Awe is a profound sense of admiration, wonder, and respect, often sparked by something big, grand, and powerful. When we experience awe, it is often triggered by natural phenomena, exceptional human achievements, or moments of deep spiritual significance. Awe captures the essence of being deeply moved by the grandeur, beauty, or mystery of something beyond ourselves.

Here is what I am in awe of today:

• How blue the sky can be, the backdrop to the white snow.
• How insidious that ED voice can be and how fast an ED can take hold of someone and turn their lives and the lives of their loved one’s upside down.
• How many people stay uninformed about EDs, refuse to learn, and say harmful things.
• How many people want to walk beside people on their recovery journey.
• How many people fully recover from an ED and go on to live healthy and fulfilling lives.
• How many people we at The Hull Institute have served, helped, walked beside over the past 20 years and how I still look forward, every day, to carrying out our mission and expanding how we can serve more people, from more diverse backgrounds, better.
• How vast this earth is, how strong our hearts are, and how we are daily given the opportunity to rise up and do the next right hard thing.

Experiencing Awe and Pain – Holding Both

Now, what about experiencing awe when things are crummy, when life is hard, and when we are so uncertain about what is next in our lives? We can find awe in these situations as well!

I am often in awe at how much pain one person can endure, even when it feels so unfair to me and I have my own pain as a result.  The awe in difficult times comes when we notice our ability to:

• Radically accept when things are hard, and they don’t go our way.
• Actually feel the pain in all its intensity “I am in awe at how much pain I am feeling. I didn’t know I could feel so much hurt”
• WOW! That physical pain is really something!
• Notice when we have glimpses of joy, or at least, neutrality.
• How quickly a BBT (Bad Body Thought) can creep in- and, when we use skills, how quickly we can surf the urge to have a behavior and NOT have one.
• Life feels so uncertain right now, I am in awe of how really, really, hard it is to live in the moment and have faith or a belief that this too shall pass; I can’t control it.

It is so hard to see the goodness in things when life is really hard.  Yet, I strongly believe we can train our brains and minds to practice the pause and see the opportunities for growth and understanding that lie behind each challenge we face.

Awe: Being Open to The Beauty

Can we train ourselves to feel awe in the little things? How do we make everyday moments worth celebrating? We don’t need to judge—or let others judge—what deserves our awe or joy. Some days, all we have are “small” victories, and it’s perfectly okay to embrace them in all their glory.

A good friend and I text each other every day 3 things we are grateful for, that we are in awe of.  At first, I wrote that I am grateful for my family, my friends, my job, my car.  Now I write about the smallest of things that bring me joy, for example, seeing the first tiny spider of the season climbing up my office wall, signaling spring is around the corner.  I do my best to see life with a wider lens that allows me to see the goodness and opportunity in everything.  I practice daily living in gratitude and awe.  It’s quite wonderful!

Some awesome examples you may find helpful:

1. I am hungry and I ATE!
2. I tried a new food today and got through it!
3. I am free of ED behaviors in this moment!
4. I committed to reducing my social media time and I did it!
5. I notice joy in my body and my heart when I dance to my favorite songs, create my own art (just for me), walk in nature, when I help others
6. I learned this new thing about myself today… (fill in the blank)

We all hear the term AWESOME!  Does it mean Awe-Inspiring?  You may decide to use the word more often, in different contexts.  Let your mind wander and be open!

In celebration of EDAW-E, I challenge you to write about, then share with others this concept of AWE, then begin practicing it and see where it takes you!

Thanks for reading.  You are awe-inspiring,

By Ann Hull Kuster, LISW-S, MBA