Turning the pages on a Continuous Appetite

Turning the pages on a Continuous Appetite

Have you ever found yourself eating and eating and eating and, even though you know that you won’t be happy with

this choice later, you’re unable to stop? This is the disordered path that Sophie Skover walked for years.  Eleven years ago, Sophie had bulimia nervosa (BN) and repeatedly found herself living in this destructive eating pattern.  To inspire herself not to give up she vowed: “If I ever get out this dark bulimic eating prison I will write a book that will help others do the same.”
The good news is that Sophie has healed, and has honoured her self-commitment in releasing her first book: The Continuous Appetite, Understanding Your Cravings, Ending Your Overeating!

Sophie shares her inspiring story and insights in this interview:

Describe briefly what BN is – its signs and symptoms. Who is vulnerable?

Bulimia Nervosa is an eating disorder where a person chooses to binge eat and consume immense amounts of food in a short time filled with panic.  He or she then chooses to purge or forcefully throw up to free his or herself of the food consumed, the guilt accompanied with the action and most importantly to attempt to get rid the inner subconscious self-hatred.

How and when did you develop BN? When did you realize you had an illness? 

I now say I am 100 per cent healed from bulimia because I believe that when you really deal with the inner gunk (the virus) that is causing the inner imbalance, you begin to release and diminish the symptoms of binging and purging.  With that being said, I developed bulimic habits in College when I was trying to balance academics, athletics, a social life, and the demands of being perfect.  I realized I had an imbalance when I really began to see that I could not get through basic life situations.  In an ordinary situation I’d feel a panic, and go from 0-100 in one second flat and all I could think about was food.  Then, I would binge.  Then I’d be overcome with guilt, shame and hate, so I threw up.  Once, ordinary life became so daunting to live, I realized I had a problem.

Describe the thoughts of a person with bulimia? What are the worst aspects?

Here are some insights:

1. I can’t eat one slice of that cake because, if I do, I’ll eat all of the slices. 
2. I won’t eat all day and then by dinner, I always end up binging and then I have to throw it up.
3. Why do I have to struggle with food? I wish I could eat anything I wanted like the other skinny girls. 
4. It’s ok, just eat it—I give you permission to be bad.
5. I don’t care anymore; I’m eating it all and then I can secretly get it out of me.  
6. Well, I’ve blown my diet. I might as well eat everything I want now.
7. I’m fat; no one likes me.
8.  I ate too much; now I need to throw up.
9.  I wish I were addicted to drugs rather than food, because then I could just quit my addiction once and for all.
10.  Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night and eat.
11.  My cravings are so strong that I panic and end up binging and purging.
12.  When I’m by myself, I get fast food and pig out in my car, get rid of the evidence and don’t tell anyone.

 Strategies for recovery from bulimia:

1. Believe that YOU CAN HEAL.
2. Look at the disorder as an inner imbalance and an opportunity to find deeper answers within.
3. Recognizing your Body, Emotions, Mind and Spirit may be out of balance.
4. Learn to recognize your emotions and practise a technique for processing them.
5. Understanding how to control your mind so that it works for you rather than against you.
6. Connecting every day to whatever it is you believe in spiritually.
7. Getting plenty of sleep as you’re working towards your healing journey.
8. Drinking enough water for your body.
9. Journal.  Journal.  Journal.
10. Thinking about what you want over what you DO NOT want!
11. Reading The Continuous Appetite to find new techniques to help overcome this disorder.

BN is often described as the ‘invisible’ eating disorder.  Describe.
When using a pencil, we know its greatest feature; the eraser.  No marking is permanent and all mistakes can be erased. People use pencils because they know they can wipe away their errors. A binger chooses food to quiet the emotions, but then is overwhelmed by guilt, shame, self-hatred or the fear of gaining weight, so they purge to erase the consequences. This is usually a secret relationship that one tends to depend on, they believe it is their only way to get balance in their life.  But this is just yet another lie that bulimia tells them.

Why is it important to seek help?
You can heal.  I always believed deep down that I would one day be free from this dis-order.  I hyphenate that word, because to me it shows me that the inner parts of me were simply out of balance and not in order.  This imbalance however, was causing me to be in great bulimic pain.  Once I learned how to get my body, emotions, mind and spirit functioning optimally, my dis-order continued to lose power.  It is so important to reach out to people who can help you see what may be right in front of you, but sometimes you may be too close to the forest to recognize the trees.  A professional can help you change your perspective, which can have the result of healing your inner imbalances.

Why are recovery stories important?
If you have healed, I feel it is imperative to share your story because it can be the light in someone else’s darkness.  I read many books along my journey that said: “Believe me, if I can do it, so can you.”  That was very inspiring to me, so I encourage you to believe you can heal, find the answers that your inner world is trying to communicate to you, actually practise the new techniques you learn, and then promise to share your story!

* Sophie is an author, holistic life coach, and inspirational speaker, who help others experience harmony in their lives. She became passionate about this “life changing” path after  healing from bulimia.  In 2006, Sophie established LSS Harmony Life Coaching, to help people who are struggling with life to find freedom.  She also developed a program, The Continuous Appetite ™, and wrote a book with the same name to help people discover the meaning underneath their cravings and learn techniques that help to overcome emotional overeating.