Self Soothing

One of the many things you learn to do with an eating disorder is find self soothing activities (other than eating) to participate in. Ideally, many of them would be active ones, but they don't have to be.

I went back to a couple of things that I loved to do as a child. After all, one of the goals is to soothe that lonely child inside, right? So, first, I bought some coloring books and a brand new box of crayons. There is still something magical about a brand new box of fresh, sharp Crayolas! I got a giant coloring book about fairies, which was very cool of course, but I also found this one, which I had to order immediately.... (I know, right? Ordering a coloring book, really!?!)

Worth it. Totally worth it. Coolest. Coloring book. Ever! (Check out that first link to it, the website shows several images from inside to give you an idea of how awesome this thing is.)

Okay, the second thing was jigsaw puzzles. I've done four now, and they work very well for me. If I'm feeling agitated or nervous, I can sit down and lose myself in the searching for a long time, then come back feeling happy and calm. There's something very satisfying about finding that exact piece and feeling them click together.

Here's my first puzzle in... well, probably 20 years! I'm a cat lady, you see, so the cats had to be first.

And maybe this one was counter-productive, but I couldn't resist it!

Then I "borrowed" this one from my sister's storage closet. Unfortunately it was missing a couple of pieces (and the leaves at the top drove me INSANE!), but it was so pretty.

And finally, today I just finished a new one: One Hundred Bunnies and a Carrot. Adorable!

So, that's what I do. Does anyone else have some other ideas to share?