Starving In Search of Me: A Coming-of-Age Story of Overcoming An Eating Disorder and Finding Self-Acceptance (Eating Disorder Recovery and Gay Rights)
214
Starving In Search of Me: A Coming-of-Age Story of Overcoming An Eating Disorder and Finding Self-Acceptance (Eating Disorder Recovery and Gay Rights)
214Paperback
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Overview
"…for anyone who has ever struggled with food or themselves." ─Lindsey Smith, award-winning author of Food Guilt No More
#1 Bestseller in Lesbian Studies
This book is a confessional self-help guide from an outspoken advocate for gay rights and women’s health issues. It explores the complex emotional truth of what it’s like when food, weight, and body image take priority over every other human impulse or action.
Anorexia and bulimia health crisis. Many young women and girls struggle with the body image issues that engender eating disorders by developing elaborate rituals around food, binging, and purging; and hiding it all while trying to maintain a face of normalcy to the world.
Story of a woman battling for self-esteem. Now relate to the coming-of-age story of a young woman confronting some of life’s major issues while living, for a time, in two closets: one to hide her eating disorder and one to hide her sexuality and very identity. Activist author Marissa LaRocca's revelatory tale of her struggle with her secrets is an intimate account of courage and the search for truth and meaning. It will have you rooting for Marissa as she unravels the emotional layers of her own battle with food, body image, and sexuality.
Inside learn about:
- "Life issues" that are being masked by "food issues" or another addiction
- Disempowering compulsive behaviors
- Healing your relationship with food
- Escaping the victim role
- Connecting with your life’s purpose
- Improving your body image and self-esteem
- Eliminating the need to be perfect
If you have read Life Without Ed or 8 Keys to Recovery from an Eating Disorder, you will want to read Starving in Search of Me.
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781633537125 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Mango Media |
| Publication date: | 02/13/2018 |
| Pages: | 214 |
| Product dimensions: | 6.70(w) x 9.50(h) x 0.90(d) |
| Age Range: | 12 - 18 Years |
About the Author
Read an Excerpt
The way I see it, when you’re a child, the world is big and that’s okay because it’s far away. When you’re all grown up, the world is smaller and more manageable because you’ve carved your shape into it, so you need only to live in that shape. But when you’re stuck in that awkward space between childhood and adulthood, it’s like being a fly in a windstorm, trying to navigate a limitless sky while gusts of wind blow at you from every direction. I was still trying to get my shit together, far too curious to commit to anything, let alone an identity. I was simply hungry for so many things I could not yet define.
Table of Contents
Foreword 7
About Kate 12
Introduction 13
Part 1 What's Eating The Wallflower 19
Chapter 1 Why Are You So Quiet? 20
Early Struggles with Social Anxiety and Fitting In 20
The Pressures of Puberty 24
My Parents' Influence 29
Branching Out as an Individual 31
Hallelujah, I'm a Lesbian 34
My Sister's Encounter with Self-Harm 38
Chapter 2 My Quarter-Life Crisis 41
Overwhelmed by the limitless World 41
Beginning to Play with My food 43
College, the Existential Quest 45
Second Guessing Gay 49
My Big Eat Discreet Breakdown 55
Chapter 3 My Secret Battle With Food 59
A Day in the Life of an Eating Disorder 59
My First Time in Therapy 68
Misinterpreting Eastern Philosophy 69
The Transience of Apple Pie 73
Chapter 4 The Road to Recovery 75
Someone to Share the Eight With 75
The Ugly Face of Bulimia 82
Finding Freedom in Letting Go 91
Part 2 10 Life Tips To Heal You From Self-Harm 98
Chapter 5 Reflect On The Root Causes Of Your Behavior 105
20 Reasons I Starved Myself 107
Chapter 6 Stop Playing The Victim 116
Chapter 7 Make Time To Make Peace With Your Body 122
Chapter 8 Speak Up And Ask For What You Need 140
Chapter 9 Trust Your Intuition 146
Chapter 10 Make Choices That Make You Happy 151
Chapter 11 Spend Your Energy Wisely 157
Stop Trying to Please Everyone 158
Choose Friends and Romantic Partners Who Accept You for You 160
Limit Exposure to Environments and Personalities that Drain You 163
Align Your Everyday Work with Your Personality 164
Exercise Just Enough But Not Too Much 166
Chapter 12 Organize Your Living Space To Promote Wellbeing 168
Chapter 13 Eat Mindfully, But Not Neurotically 176
Chapter 14 Check In With Yourself As You Evolve 193
Chapter 15 Final Words 201
Additional Resources 206
Acknowledgments 221
About the Author 224
What People are Saying About This
" Starving In Search of Me is a true companion piece for anyone who has ever struggled with food or themselves. Marissa dives deep into the emotional layers we all struggle with and offers readers a compassionate voice and the opportunity to simply be themselves."
-Lindsey Smith, award-winning author of Food Guilt No More
"An intimate and engrossing memoir/narrative meets an empowering self-help guide for sufferers of anorexia and bulimia."
-Joshua Rosenthal, Founder and Director of the Institute for Integrative Nutrition.
Interviews
In the 5+ years I’ve been employed by the Institute for Integrative Nutrition, a college that uses social media to reach, educate, and support students and followers worldwide, I have become an expert. My job includes promoting IIN college programs through: writing marketing copy; developing websites; creating surveys and analyzing results to evolve programs; streamlining processes, and increasing customer awareness and satisfaction. I am the Course Administrator for the Launch Your Dream Book program, teaching students to self-publish and promote books in health and wellness. I am also the Course Administrator for the Advanced Business and Marketing program, which includes developing cutting edge tools and resources for building a business online such as: specific online marketing, social media, networking, referral marketing, copywriting, website development, public speaking, workshops, publicity, etc. I am now utilizing these tools to promote Starving in Search of Me. Speaking: I have conducted writing workshops for adolescents at various high schools, libraries, and Barnes and Noble locations through NY’s Huntington Youth Bureau. I’ve conducted emotional eating workshops for women at various yoga centers, cafes, and special event locations. Once my book is published, I will schedule workshops specifically for Starving in Search of Me. I also co-taught a summer writing workshop for adolescents at SUNY Purchase College. And at Integrative Nutrition College, I’ve presented more than 150 webinars on various topics in health, wellness, publishing, business, and marketing. Additionally, I am pitching myself to SUNY Purchase College, Sarah Lawrence College, The Center (NYC Community Center for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community), The New York Open Center, Bluestockings Bookshop, and NEDA (The National Eating Disorders Association).