20+ Free Resources to Make Eating Disorder Recovery Easier
The path to eating disorder recovery can be (and often is) an uphill climb. But before we jump into these resources, I want to take a moment to say that Project HEAL has intentionally chosen to use the word “healing” rather than “recovery” because recovery implies a regaining of something that was lost.
Instead of aspiring to return to a former “normal,” we want to embrace the tools and growth that eating disorder healing offers to find a “new normal” or space of peace.
With that being said, healing in your own space is hard enough. Not to mention, external forces like social media, wellness culture, or unrealistic body image pressures don’t make it any easier.
As difficult as the recovery process is, you do not have to navigate it alone. There are many free resources available to help eating disorder recovery feel just a bit easier. We’ve compiled a list of our favorite resources below to help you on every step of your journey.
How We Chose Which Resources to Spotlight
We believe that eating disorder recovery and healing should be inclusive and accessible. With these criteria in mind, we are always looking for resources that anyone can leverage without stigma, anxiety, shame, or cost barriers attached.
All of the following resources are free to access—plus, you can mix and match based on what feels relevant to your own unique, specific needs. Of course, we also recommend consulting with a licensed clinical provider, but no matter where you’re at in the healing journey, these tools will offer encouragement, accountability, motivation, and practical assistance.
If you need help accessing a treatment center, please check out our treatment placement program or our insurance navigation program.
Meal Support Program
When you have a pattern of restrictive or compulsive eating, it’s hard to know what a healthy relationship with food means—let alone, how to cultivate one. This is where Project HEAL’s Meal Support Program comes in.
We partnered with the organization Clinician’s Incubator to host free group meal sessions in a virtual setting each week. These live drop-in sessions are facilitated by nutritional practitioners, and anyone (at multiple stages of recovery) is welcome to join this safe, low-pressure community initiative.
Treatment Placement Assistance
From outpatient and residential treatment centers to virtual or in-person coaching, there are many formats and levels of eating disorder treatment to choose from. Unfortunately, these modalities can often be financially prohibitive.
To combat this, Project HEAL offers Treatment Placement Assistance to connect you with a wide network of free or low-cost treatment options with organizations within our HEALer’s Circle.
This resource also makes it easier to avoid other intake barriers, such as insurance coverage (or lack thereof), weight discrimination, and citizenship status. If you need help with some of the tertiary costs associated with a treatment program—travel, accommodations, groceries, and similar expenses—we offer one-time Cash Assistance Grants, too.
Eating Disorder Helplines
The sheer thought of clinical treatment or therapy can feel overwhelming. If you’re not quite ready to take that leap, or already have and want further support, a free confidential helpline is an excellent place to start.
Whether you are in a crisis or you could use a compassionate voice to listen, these resources can be accessed just about any time from a computer or a mobile device.
Check out the following helplines, all run by credible eating disorder recovery organizations that we trust:
Anorexia Nervosa & Associated Disorders Helpline: 1-888-375-7767, Monday– Friday, 9am–9pm CST
National Alliance for Eating Disorders Helpline: 1-866-662-1235, Monday–Friday, 9am–7pm EST
Diabulimia Helpline: 425-985-3635, 24 hours, 365 days (for those with co-occurring diabetes and eating disorders)
Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: call or text 988, 24 hours, 365 days (Spanish speaking and hearing impaired services are also available)
Crisis Text Line: “HEALING” to 741-741, 24 hours, 365 days (Spanish speaking services are also available)
healing Mentorship
As important as it is to seek the guidance of a clinician who specializes in eating disorders, so many people who are healing benefit from connecting with a peer who walked their own path to healing. It can be difficult to find this within your immediate network of friends and family.
If this is you, the organization ANAD operates a free Recovery Mentor Program that will match you with someone who has been in active, committed healing for at least two years. Once you are accepted into this program, your mentor will video chat with you for an hour each week over a 6-month period.
Online Support Groups
Eating disorders often thrive in isolation, so it’s crucial to surround yourself with others who can relate to what you’re experiencing, offer words of encouragement, or even hold you accountable when necessary.
An online support group can make it easier to build those vital human connections, so you’ll feel less alone in the trenches of healing.
We have a list of free eating disorder support groups you can start with. In addition, The Eating Disorder Recovery Center facilitates a wide range of support networks for various needs, age brackets, or identities.
Here are just a few of the many groups to choose from:
healing Books
There’s no shortage of books that can support your eating disorder recovery and healing. Whether you want to learn how to create a more balanced relationship with movement or nutrition, or you want to explore the connection between body and trauma, here’s a list of books to clear space for on your shelves.
Intuitive Eating by Elyse Resch & Evelyn Tribole
Healing Your Hungry Heart by Joanna Poppink
Not All Black Girls Know How to Eat by Stephanie Covington Armstrong
The Body Is Not an Apology by Sonya Renee Taylor
Practices for Embodied Living by Hilary McBride
Trauma-Informed Approaches to Eating Disorders by Pam Virdi & Andrew Suebert
Making Peace with Your Plate by Robyn Cruze
Goodbye ED, Hello Me by Jenni Schaefer
Decolonizing Wellness by Dalia Kinsey
Gaining: The Truth About Life After Eating Disorders by Aimee Liu
As a bonus: Websites like Scribd or Everand will let you access most of these titles free of charge in ebook or audio format for 30 days.
Healing Podcasts
Listening to podcasts is a convenient way to get information that can help you maintain eating disorder recovery and healing, no matter where you are in your journey.
Tune into a podcast while you commute to work, clean your space, or run a few errands. You’ll feel motivated to prioritize self-care, even in the midst of a busy routine.
Numerous healing-centric podcasts exist—these are just a few of our favorites:
Food Psych with Christy Harrison
The Recovery Warrior Show with Jessica Flint
Body Justice with Allyson Ford
Brain Over Binge with Kathryn Hansen
My Black Body Podcast with Jessica Wilson & Rawiyah Tariq
Butterfly: Let’s Talk with The Butterfly Foundation
Make Eating Disorder Recovery a Little Bit Easier
Whether you just embarked on the path to healing, or you’ve been walking this road for several years, these resources will guide your steps and provide support. As hard as eating disorder recovery and healing can be, you’re not expected to chart the course alone—help is readily accessible in many different formats. All you have to do is decide what you need and then go get it.
