Anxiety and Eating Disorders: How to Navigate Healing With Both
Living with an eating disorder is already a deeply challenging experience—but when anxiety is part of the picture too, the path to healing can feel even more overwhelming. Anxiety and eating disorders are often closely intertwined, creating a cycle where one fuels the other.
Understanding this connection is key to breaking that cycle and creating space for true healing.
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The Link Between Anxiety and Eating Disorders
Many people with eating disorders also experience anxiety disorders, such as generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), social anxiety, panic disorder, or obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). In fact, studies suggest that up to 65% of individuals with eating disorders also meet the criteria for at least one anxiety disorder.
This isn’t a coincidence. Both conditions often stem from similar root causes: a need for control, low self-worth, perfectionism, and past trauma. Disordered eating behaviors—like restricting, bingeing, or purging—can sometimes feel like a way to manage anxious thoughts, offering a temporary sense of control or relief. But over time, these behaviors actually amplify anxiety and deepen emotional distress.
Common Ways Anxiety and Eating Disorders Interact
- Perfectionism: The relentless drive to meet unrealistic standards—about body image, performance, or self-worth—fuels both anxiety and disordered eating.
- Rituals and Rigid Rules: Anxiety often thrives on routine and certainty. Many eating disorders involve rigid food rules or rituals that mirror OCD-like thinking.
- Fear of Judgment: Social anxiety can intensify fears around eating in public, gaining weight, or being perceived as “failing” at recovery.
- Avoidance: Both conditions can lead to avoidance of food, people, situations, or emotions, which can reinforce isolation and maintain the disorder.
Healing With Both: Where to Begin
Healing from both anxiety and an eating disorder is possible, but it requires a compassionate, integrative approach. Here are some important steps:
1. Seek Professional Support
Recovery is not something you need to face alone. A multidisciplinary team—including a therapist, dietitian, and physician—is often the most effective approach. Look for providers who specialize in both eating disorders and anxiety. We’re here to help! Learn more about our team.
Evidence-based therapies like Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), and Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) are commonly used to address the underlying anxiety as well as eating behaviors.
2. Learn to Tolerate Discomfort
Avoidance might feel safe in the moment, but healing requires facing uncomfortable emotions. Developing coping skills—like grounding techniques, mindfulness, and breathwork—can help you move through anxiety without relying on disordered behaviors.
3. Challenge All-or-Nothing Thinking
Many people with anxiety and eating disorders struggle with black-and-white thinking: “If I eat this, I’ve failed” or “If I feel anxious, I’m not recovering.” Learning to embrace flexibility and self-compassion is essential. Progress isn’t linear, and setbacks don’t define your worth.
4. Create a Safe Routine
Rigid control can be harmful, while a predictable structure can help reduce anxiety and support recovery. Regular meals, sleep schedules, and time for rest and movement create safety and help regulate the nervous system.
5. Practice Self-Compassion
Anxiety and eating disorders both thrive on harsh self-criticism. Replace that inner critic with a kinder, more supportive voice. Ask yourself: What would I say to a friend in this situation? Then try offering the same grace to yourself.
You Deserve Peace—In Your Mind and Body
Healing from anxiety and an eating disorder can feel daunting, but with the right support, recovery is within reach. It’s okay to take things one day at a time. Progress might feel slow, but every step matters—even the hard ones.
Your body is not the enemy. Your anxiety is not your identity. You are not broken—you are human. And you are worthy of healing, nourishment, and peace.
