Call
SearchKey Takeaways
- Eating disorder relapse is common, but it doesn’t mean failure — recognizing early warning signs like increased body checking, meal skipping, or emotional changes can help you intervene before behaviors fully return.
- Building a strong support network and staying connected after treatment provides ongoing accountability and practical tools for managing triggers and life stressors.
- Creating a written relapse prevention plan with your treatment team gives you a concrete roadmap to follow during challenging moments, including warning signs to watch for and specific steps to take.
Recovery from an eating disorder is one of the most courageous journeys a person can take. It requires confronting deeply rooted patterns, challenging distorted thoughts, and learning to relate to food, your body, and yourself in entirely new ways. But even after completing treatment, the risk of relapse remains a real concern for many individuals in recovery.
The team at Selah House understands that preventing eating disorder relapse isn’t about achieving perfection. It’s about building awareness, developing healthy coping skills, and creating a sustainable recovery plan that supports you through life’s inevitable challenges.
Understanding Eating Disorder Relapse
Relapse occurs when someone returns to eating disorder behaviors after a period of recovery. This might include restricting food intake, binge eating, purging, excessive exercise, or re-engaging with harmful thoughts about weight and body image. According to the National Eating Disorders Association, relapse rates for eating disorders can be significant — particularly during the first year following treatment.
A setback doesn’t have to mean defeat. It may simply indicate that certain triggers, stressors, or underlying issues need additional attention and support.
Recognizing Early Warning Signs
One of the most important aspects of eating disorder relapse prevention is learning to identify warning signs before behaviors fully return.Â
Early warning signs may include:Â
- Weighing yourself more frequently
- Skipping meals or snacks that were part of your meal plan
- Increasing exercise beyond what your treatment team recommended
- Isolating from friends and family
You might notice yourself becoming more critical of your body, comparing yourself to others more often, or feeling preoccupied with food, weight, or appearance. Emotional changes like increased anxiety, depression, perfectionism, or feelings of being overwhelmed may also signal potential relapse.Â
Research published in the International Journal of Eating Disorders indicates that emotional dysregulation often plays a significant role in relapse, highlighting the importance of addressing these feelings early in treatment.
Creating a Relapse Prevention Plan
Relapse prevention isn’t about expecting failure — it’s about building a clear, practical plan for what to do when life gets hard. Working with your treatment team to create a written relapse prevention plan gives you a reliable guide you can return to during stressful or high-risk moments.
A strong plan typically outlines your personal warning signs, the steps to take if symptoms resurface, coping strategies that help you stay grounded, and the people you can reach out to for support. It may also include situations that increase risk — and a clear plan for when additional care or a return to treatment may be needed.
Below are several strategies that can strengthen your relapse prevention plan and support long-term recovery.
Building a Strong Support Network
Recovery isn’t meant to be a solitary journey. Having people you can turn to during difficult moments provides both accountability and encouragement when you need it most. Your support network might include family members, close friends, support groups, an alumni program, a therapist or counselor, a dietitian, and your treatment team.
Many individuals find that peer support groups offer a unique understanding that comes from shared experience. Connecting with others who truly understand the challenges of eating disorder recovery can provide validation and practical strategies you might not find elsewhere.
Continuing Therapy After Treatment
Completing an intensive treatment program is a major accomplishment, but it’s rarely the end of therapeutic work. Stepping down to an outpatient program or participating in aftercare provides ongoing support as you live out the challenges of daily life in recovery.
Cognitive behavioral therapy and dialectical behavior therapy are evidence-based approaches used in many eating disorder treatment programs that help you identify and change thought patterns, develop healthy coping skills, and manage difficult emotions. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, these therapeutic approaches have shown significant effectiveness in preventing relapse when continued after initial treatment.
Developing Healthy Coping Strategies
Eating disorders often serve as coping mechanisms for managing stress, anxiety, trauma, or other difficult emotions. Learning healthier ways to cope begins during treatment and remains essential for long-term recovery and eating disorder relapse prevention.
Successful coping mechanisms might encompass:
- Mindfulness and meditation exercises
- Writing about emotions and thoughts
- Engaging in creative activities such as art or music
- Participating in physical activities that are enjoyable rather than obligatory,
- Reaching out for support during challenging times
What’s key is discovering what suits you and consistently applying these techniques in your continuous recovery journey. Research in the Journal of Eating Disorders shows that individuals who develop diverse coping strategies have better long-term outcomes in recovery.
Maintaining Structured Eating Patterns
One practical aspect of preventing eating disorder relapse involves maintaining consistent, balanced eating habits. Nutrition education is an important part of eating disorder treatment. If you find yourself struggling once you return home, your treatment team can connect you with a registered dietitian in your area who specializes in eating disorders. They can help you continue the work you started in treatment, which may include creating flexible guidelines that honor hunger cues while preventing the return of restriction or chaotic eating patterns.
Managing Stress + Life Transitions
Major life changes — even positive ones — can increase the risk of eating disorder relapse. Graduating from school, starting a new job, ending or beginning relationships, moving to a new place, or experiencing loss can all trigger old patterns.
Anticipating these transitions and preparing for them can help. This might mean temporarily increasing therapy sessions, proactively reaching out to your support network, or being extra mindful of early warning signs during stressful periods. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes that stress management is a critical component of mental health maintenance, particularly for individuals with a history of eating disorders.
Challenging Negative Thoughts + Practicing Self-Compassion
Distorted thinking patterns about food, weight, body image, and self-worth sustain eating disorders. Even in recovery, these thoughts may occasionally surface. Learning to recognize and challenge them is crucial for eating disorder relapse prevention.
When you notice negative thoughts arising, pause and ask yourself if there’s evidence for this thought, what you might tell a friend who had this same thought, and what a more balanced perspective might be. This cognitive restructuring takes practice, but it becomes easier over time.
Recovery will involve setbacks. Approaching yourself with kindness rather than harsh judgment makes a significant difference in long-term outcomes. Self-compassion means acknowledging that struggle is part of being human and treating yourself with the same care you’d offer a loved one. It’s also important to know when to reach out to a professional for additional help.Â
Faith-based Recovery at Selah House
At Selah House, healing is rooted in both clinical excellence and Christ-centered care. Our multidisciplinary team integrates evidence-based therapies with spiritual guidance, helping clients address the emotional, behavioral, and spiritual pain that sustains eating disorders.
Whether you’re entering treatment for the first time or seeking support to prevent eating disorder relapse, Selah House offers a safe, restorative environment where clients can pause, reflect, and heal the whole person. Our comprehensive aftercare planning and ongoing support services help ensure you have the tools and resources needed for lasting recovery.
As one grateful alum shared in their five-star review, “Selah House saved my life. The staff genuinely cared about my recovery and helped me build a foundation I never thought possible. I’m forever grateful for their compassion and expertise.”
Contact us today to learn how our compassionate, faith-based programs can help you build lasting recovery through grace, connection, and professional support.
FAQs About Eating Disorder Relapse
What is considered a relapse in eating disorder recovery?
A relapse occurs when someone returns to eating disorder behaviors after a period of recovery. This might include restricting food, binge eating, purging, excessive exercise, or re-engaging with harmful thoughts about weight and body image. Even a return to old thought patterns without behaviors can be an early sign that deserves attention.
How common is eating disorder relapse?
Relapse rates vary depending on the type of eating disorder and individual circumstances, but research shows that relapse is most common in the first year after treatment. Many people experience at least some return of symptoms during recovery. This doesn’t mean treatment failed — it simply means additional support is needed.
What should I do if I notice relapse warning signs?
If you notice warning signs, reach out to your treatment team or therapist immediately. Don’t wait until behaviors fully return. Review your relapse prevention plan, increase your support connections, be honest with those you trust about what you’re experiencing, and practice the coping skills you learned in treatment. Early intervention makes it easier to get back on track.
Can an eating disorder relapse be prevented completely?
While there’s no guarantee against relapse, you can significantly reduce your risk by continuing therapy after treatment, maintaining a strong support network, engaging with your alumni group, practicing healthy coping strategies, staying aware of your triggers and warning signs, and addressing life stressors proactively. Recovery is a process, and having a solid prevention plan helps you navigate challenges more effectively.
References
- National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA)
- International Journal of Eating Disorders
- National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
- Journal of Eating Disorders
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
