Knitting to Help With Eating Disorders

I recently went to visit a friend of mine who is struggling with an eating disorder and has sought help from Homewood Health Centre in Guelph. She has checked herself into a 13 week program that will help her towards overcoming her E.D.

While visiting this friend, she was telling me how most of the patients take up knitting during their time in the program. Apparently this is due to the several times during the day when they are sitting around, especially after-meal-supervision when they have to remain in the dining room for an hour after eating. Knitting helps to keep them entertained. They help each other to learn and then work on completing a project during the length of their stay. Needles and wool are readily available to them.

This got me thinking about how knitting is kind of like a therapy for these patients. I decided to Google it when I got home and sure enough, I found LOTS of articles. I am sharing a few of them with you that I really enjoyed and found interesting.

The first article is not E.D. specific, called Therapeutic Knitting, but it talks about how knitting is a meditative-state that promotes relaxation and may even help release more serotonin into our bodies, making us feel better! When our minds are busy with knitting, they are not thinking about the stresses and anxieties in our lives. For people with an eating disorder, I imagine knitting can help to refocus thoughts away from self-image, what they're eating/not eating, etc.

My favourite is when this article refers to knitting as a healthy addiction (don't I know it!) that can help take the place of other not-so-healthy addictions.

Knitting is using your hands to make something creative that has a final product at the end. It's a chance to be proud of yourself for what you've accomplished. It's overcoming the bumps along the road (dropped stitches suck!) and being proud of something when you're done. It's learning something new and building self-esteem as you achieve these new things. If you're knitting with others, it's a universal language and feeling like you're a part of a community.

I can see why knitting has been used in programs that help to combat E.D.s 
I'm happy to know that a hobby I love so much is helping others to help themselves. What a happy thought.

More articles specific to Knitting and Eating Disorders:

• An interesting medical study done with eating disorders and knitting: CLICK HERE!
• Knitting as a self-empowering activity: CLICK HERE!
• A blog from someone who learned to crochet during her treatment: CLICK HERE!
• A blog about Healthy Addictions: CLICK HERE!

Will knitting cure an eating disorder? No. That's a much bigger, longer, and more difficult journey.
Will knitting help with some of the anxieties that accompany eating disorders? Maybe! It's exciting to think it could!

To my friend who is struggling but is fighting (and any others out there): I love you. I believe in you. I know you're gonna kick this thing in the butt. Keep strong. Keep knitting. :)