Every week, I try to feature a woman’s story of recovery from anorexia, bulimia, emotional eating or any other kind of disordered eating (BTW, if you’re interested in sharing yours, email me at mtartakovsky@gmail.com). Recently, I’ve started asking about everyone’s favorite resources, including books and websites. So today I wanted to compile a list of all these resources in hopes that you might find them informative and inspiring.

Books and other resources have the power to move us,  shake long-held beliefs and change our perspective. When we read about the realities of healthy eating, the diet industry, the world of airbrushing, we start to open our eyes to the constant barrage of myths we’re fed every day. When we read about someone else’s story of struggle and recovery, we start to see that getting better is possible. When we read about the various tools and tips for overcoming an eating disorder and improving our body image, we start to take action.

Personally, I love reading something that feels as though the author is writing my story, as though she knows very well what I’m going through. I love writing that challenges me and, at the end, I’ve learned something important and I feel better.

Below, you’ll find a list of recommended resources on everything from anorexia and bulimia to body image and healthy eating from the women who’ve been there and found them valuable. I also added a few of my favorites to the mix.

Books

• Life Inside the Thin Cage by Constance Rhodes

• When Godly People do Ungodly Things by Beth Moore

• Intuitive Eating by Evelyn Tribole & Elyser Resch

• Geneen Roth’s books

• The Relaxation & Stress Reduction Workbook: A New Harbinger Self Help Publication by Martha Davis Ph.D

• The Food and Feelings Workbook: A Full Course Meal on Emotional Health by Karen R. Koenig

• Overcoming Bulimia Workbook by Randi McCabe Ph.D, Traci McFarlane Ph.D, Marion Olmsted Ph.D

• Overcoming Your Eating Disorders: A Cognitive Behavioral Therapy by Robin F. Apple, W. Stewart Agras

• The Language of Letting Go by Melody Beattie

• The Parents Guide to Eating Disorders by Marcia Herrin, Ed.D., Nancy Matsumoto

• Crave: Why You Binge Eat and How to Stop by Cynthia M. Bulik, Ph.D

• Eating in the Light of the Moon by Anita A. Johnston, Ph.D

• 50 Ways to Soothe Yourself Without Food by Susan Albers, PsyD

• Eat What You Love, Love What You Eat by Michelle May, MD

• It’s Not About the Food: A Woman’s Guide to Making Peace with Food and Our Bodies by Esther Kane

• Gaining: The Truth About Life After Eating Disorders by Aimee Lu

• 100 Questions & Answers About Anorexia by Sari Fine Shepphird, Ph.D

• Sensing the Self by Sheila M. Reindl

• Mind over Mood by Christine Padesky

• Christianne Northrop’s books: Women’s Bodies, Women’s Wisdom and Mother Daughter Wisdom, in particular.

• A Very Hungry Girl by Jessica Weiner

• Wasted by Marya Hornbacher (This is more for family members and not as much for people with eating disorders, because parts of it can be very triggering)

• The Road Less Traveled by Scott Peck

• Life Without Ed by Jenni Schaefer

• Eating in the Light of the Moon by Anita Johnston

• Women Who Run With the Wolves by Clarissa Pinkola Estés

• Any book by Susan Kennedy, aka SARK

• The Mindful Path to Self-Compassion by Christopher Germer

• The Primal Blueprint by Mark Sisson

• A Woman’s Book of Strength by Karen Andes

• Love Your Body, Love Your Life by Sarah Maria

• Goodbye Ana by Kate Le Page

• Health At Every Size: The Surprising Truth About Your Weight by Linda Bacon, PhD

• Real Gorgeous by Kaz Cooke

• Change Your Mind, Change Your Body: Feeling Good About Your Body and Self After 40 by Ann Kearney-Cooke, Ph.D & Florence Isaacs

• The Body Myth: Adult Women and the Pressure to be Perfect by Margo Maine, Ph.D & Joe Kelly

• Beating Ana: How to Outsmart Your Eating Disorder and Take Your Life Back by Shannon Cutts

• You’d Be So Pretty If… by Dara Chadwick

• Appetites: Why Women Want by Caroline Knapp

• Full Lives: A Woman’s Guide to Freedom from Obsession with Food and Weight by Lindsey Hall

Websites

• Healthy, Life, Balance

• Hazelden (A publisher of books on addiction, treatment, recovery)

• Gurze Books (Includes publications on eating disorders)

• Freedom From Eating Disorders (Recovery bookmarks, journaling pages, articles, song lyrics, poems, etc.)

• Something Fishy (News, articles, recovery tips, etc.)

• National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA)

• National Institute of Mental Health, Eating Disorders

• Science Daily, Eating Disorder News

• Psychology Today

• Psych Central

• Topix, Body Image News

• MDLinx (Includes research on eating disorders, body image, etc.)

• Eating Disorder Referral Center

• Body Image: Loving Yourself Inside and Out

• Health At Every Size

• MentorConnect (A wonderful organization that pairs women who’re trying to recover from eating disorders with a mentor who’s strong in recovery)

• The blogs on my Blogroll are all fantastic

Have you read the above books? What did you think? What books and websites would you add to this list?

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From Psych Central's website:
PsychCentral (February 5, 2010)

Michelle May M.D. (February 9, 2010)

Michelle May M.D. (February 11, 2010)

From Psych Central's website:
5 More Lessons I’ve Learned Since Becoming a Body Image Blogger | Weightless (February 17, 2010)

    Last reviewed: 5 Feb 2010