What’s The Most Important Part of Eating Disorder Recovery?
Most women who come to eating disorder therapy share a similar story: they’re hardworking, determined, and used to pushing themselves far beyond what most people can see. I don’t think I’ve ever met harder-working women than the ones sitting across from me in recovery. They do all of the things. They read the books, listen to the podcasts, follow the advice, and look for the exact list of steps they can check off to “finally get better.”
If eating disorder recovery worked like a checklist, most of them would already be healed.
The real challenge isn’t effort. It’s feeling.
Many women with eating disorders would prefer if they could get through the entire recovery process without having to feel a single thing. Honestly, that makes perfect sense. Eating disorders are not random behaviors; they serve a function. Often, that function is numbing, disconnecting, or helping someone cope with emotions that feel overwhelming.
If you’ve ever said, “I don’t want to feel this, it’s too much,” you’re not alone.
In this blog, I want to share what I believe is the single most important part of eating disorder recovery, especially for emotionally sensitive women who feel deeply. I want to explain why this piece is often the hardest and the most life-changing part of the process.
A Common Theme in Eating Disorder Recovery: Emotional Sensitivity
Most women struggling with an eating disorder have something in common: they feel emotions more intensely than the people around them.
This emotional sensitivity is not a flaw. It’s actually an incredible part of who you are.
When feelings come in loud, fast, and overwhelming, they can feel like “too much.” When you haven’t had support in learning how to sit with those emotions, they can feel unbearable. An eating disorder can step in and temporarily soften or numb what feels painful, scary, or chaotic.
That’s why eating disorders often feel protective at first because they numb the intense emotions.
However, this comes at a cost.
So What’s the Most Important Part of Eating Disorder Recovery?
Reconnecting with your emotions and learning to tolerate them isn’t about doing it all at once or getting swept up in something dramatic. It’s slowly learning to understand that your emotions aren’t dangerous, that they carry information, and that they help you recognize your needs. Eating disorder recovery asks you to feel again, even when part of you would rather not, and this is the piece no book, podcast, or checklist can fully prepare you for. It isn’t about working harder. For high-achieving women who are used to pushing through everything, this often becomes the hardest and most meaningful part of the work.
Why This Part Is So Hard But Worth It
Feeling emotions again can bring up fear, and many women worry, “What if it’s too much? What if I can’t handle it? What if I never stop crying?” These fears are completely normal. Letting yourself feel again is hard, and it takes support. As an eating disorder therapist, what I see again and again is that when women learn to sit with their emotions instead of fighting them, they learn that they can survive them and even learn to appreciate them. They learn that no feeling is permanent. Over time, the very emotions they were afraid to feel often become the ones that bring the most clarity and freedom. The eating disorder starts to lose its power when you no longer need it to protect you from your own inner world. That is the moment when real recovery begins.
What This Looks Like in Eating Disorder Therapy
At Maple Canyon Therapy, together, we help you connect to your emotions again. You learn to tolerate them and listen to what they are trying to say to you. The work we do together is focused on helping you make sense of past experiences that were too painful or overwhelming at the time. These moments often leave behind negative beliefs about yourself, beliefs like “I’m not good enough.” I will help you challenge those beliefs and heal from them.
Online Eating Disorder Therapy in Utah
I offer online therapy in Utah, which means you can begin eating disorder recovery from the comfort and privacy of your home without worrying about driving, schedules, or finding an office nearby.
I work with women across the entire state, including St. George, Cedar City, Salt Lake City, Provo, Logan, Park City, Heber City, and every smaller town in between. Whether you’re in a busy city or a rural area, you deserve access to specialized support that fits your life. Online therapy allows us to do this work in a way that feels flexible, compassionate, and safe, no matter where you live in Utah.
How to get started with eating disorder therapy in Utah
1. Schedule a free 15-minute consultation.
You can share what’s going on, ask questions, and get a sense of whether we’re a good fit.
2. Meet online from home.
If it feels right, we’ll schedule your first session. You just log in from a comfortable and private space, and we begin.
3. Start healing
Together, we’ll work through the painful experiences and beliefs behind the eating disorder so you can feel better.
About the Author
Ashlee Hunt, LCSW, is the owner of Maple Canyon Therapy, a Utah-based private practice specializing in eating disorder therapy, body image therapy, binge eating disorder treatment, and anxiety therapy for adult women. Ashlee earned her Master’s degree in Social Work from Utah State University and has more than a decade of experience working with eating disorders across outpatient, intensive outpatient, residential, and inpatient levels of care.
In addition to her clinical work, Ashlee has served as an adjunct professor in the Utah State University Department of Social Work, where she taught foundational practice courses to future social workers. Her teaching experience adds depth to her clinical expertise and reflects her commitment to advancing ethical, trauma-informed, and evidence-based practice in the field.