Day 3

Today is my third day purge free

I know it doesn't sound like a lot

And millions of people around the world manage to go their whole lives without purging

But to me 

This is huge

I haven't gone a a whole day without purging in years

I shit you not

They say a million mile long journey starts with a single step

And often that first step is the most difficult

I knew that if I went ahead with this piercing 

Then purging was just out of the question

I looked after my nose ring very carefully 

And managed not to let it get infected 

I'm sure oral piercings are more likely to infect 

And I'm sure rinsing it in stomach acid and regurgitated food is not very good for it

So 

I've had to change my eating habits 

No binge food 

Which is a shame on one hand 

But a relief on the other 

My portions are smaller 

And to begin with

I am avoiding very filling foods like pasta and rice and potatoes

Hopefully i can introduce those foods at a later stage 

Today for example 

Is Mother's Day

So we are cooking at mums request

She opted for beef stir fry

So I will have a small portion of that 

I can't lie 

Over the last few days 

There have been times when I found myself heading to the bathroom

Out of pure habit

I've had to really be aware 

And physically stop myself from purging 

I miss the relief I get from purging 

The empty feeling 

I swear I feel full all day now

But I'm sure I'll get used to it

Anyway 

I'm loving my new piercing 

And loving people's reactions to it

I went to mass this morning with my Mum and my neighbour 

I got more than a couple of funny looks 

But that's ok

It's funny to me

Below are some close up photos 

So you can see it better 

In the first one the bar looks crooked 

But it's actually the way I'm holding my mouth 

Not the bar

What do you think???

Saturday

It's day one with my new piercing

I am carefully

Almost obsessively looking after it

I bought alcohol free mouth wash

To rinse my mouth twice a day

And also ear buds 

To clean it with salt and water

I am terrified of it getting infected 

So am being super duper careful

I've heard a couple of horror stories

About people who continued to purge after getting an oral piercing 

And went on to develop painful and unsightly infections

I am determined not to let that happen 

And haven't purged since Thursday

It's actually a really good motivator not to purge

So I have stopped bingeing 

And stopped eating anything that I usually purge

I am being careful and considered with my portions 

And stopping eating before I get uncomfortably full

Eating little and often 

And distracting myself after eating 

I'm glad I got the piercing done 

And am going to use it as a symbol

Of my stopping purging

I don't usually count my clean and sober time 

But having seen the benefits of counting my smoke free time 

Marking the first week

First month

First year 

I have started to count my clean time

Since Valentine's Day

It's good because the longer time you get 

The more you don't want to go back

So now I'm going count my purge free time 

Starting 3rd of March

The day before yesterday

Like a lot of things in my life 

Once I wrap my head around something 

I generally can do it 

I did it with cigarettes 

Drugs 

Alcohol

So why not purging?

It's just out of the question at the moment 

And that is a minor revelation

Reactions to my piercing have been varied 

My Mum is horrified

My nephew barely acknowledged it

I've had a couple of double takes from strangers this morning

I live in a small rural area

And there are not many tattoos or piercings to be seen generally

So yes 

I have the only pierced lip in the village 

Lorraine 

The girl who pierced me was great

When I got my nose pierced 

The girl who did was just a little bit unhinged 

She spoke at a rapid rate

And told my sister and I some pretty personal stuff 

How ever 

She did a good job 

And that's the main thing

Lorraine was very professional

Answered all my questions 

I watched her prepare her tools 

She was very careful

And it seemed like she was very used to doing this 

Well I would hope so

It is her job after all

My sister and I chatted to her for a few minutes 

She said that piercings follow trends 

Just like any other item of fashion

She told us that intimate piercings are popular at the moment 

That she had done two the previous day

I had to ask her what exactly gets pierced down there 

'The hood' she replied matter of factly

Ahem 

That is going just a little bit too far for me

I draw the line at a nipple 

Once you get one done though 

It kind of makes you want more 

I can see how that would be the same with tattoos too

I would love to get my tongue done 

And my belly button 

And a few in my ear

I've wanted to get some piercings done ever since I was a teenager

But 

Life intervened 

And I never got around to it

So now 

At the grand ol' age of 34

I am reliving my lost youth

Better late than never I guess

And the pain 

I was pretty much prepared for the pain 

Having had my nose done last year 

I figured my lip would be much more painful and bloody 

I sat on my hands so I wouldn't be able to pull her hands off me

Like I did last time 

I can't lie 

It was bloody sore 

And I did bleed 

And I did swell up

It looked liked I had been punched in the face 

I was actually shaking when it was over 

She asked me if I wanted to lie down for a few minutes

But I said I was ok

All in all 

I really enjoyed getting it done 

And grateful that my sister was with me 

It's exciting and fun to play around with my appearance 

Experimenting I guess

Again 

It's doing things that most people do in their teens and early twenties  

But 

I'm enjoying it 

So why bloody not!

With all that said 

I was wondering about you 

What piercings do you have ?

How painful did you find it?

Are there any other ones you'd like to get?

Inquiring minds want to know....

New piercing

I've had a tough couple of days

Yesterday I felt extremely angry

Which is unusual for me

I had a go at everyone

And was provoking my family to have a fight with me

Then I got really emotional and teary

My Mum and my sister were really concerned and thought something had happened 

But there we nothing wrong

At least nothing I could identify

I just felt so out of control

It was really scary

Especially not being able to attribute it to anything

But this morning

It all became clear

I got my period 

Yes 

I was having PMP

Pre menstrual psychosis 

My Mum and sister said that I was being really irrational yesterday

Paranoid even 

It was horrible 

But 

Today I was super excited 

As today was the day that I got my new piercing 

My sister and I travelled to the studio

Which is about half an hour from my house 

I was a little bit nervous 

Anticipating the pain

I figured it would be more painful than my nose

So I was trying to prepare myself 

There was a new piercer in the shop

Her name was Lorraine 

And she was lovely 

Very professional

But with a lovely way about her 

We chatted about my options 

And decided on a vertical bar through my lip

Lorraine prepared her tools 

And I sat on my hands 

So I wouldn't yank her hands away if it got too painful

Thankfully 

It was all over very quickly 

But yes 

It was bloody sore 

I bled quite a bit too

And my lip swelled up nicely 

I looked in the mirror

And I have to admit 

It was a bit of a shock 

I wasn't expecting it to be so visible 

I thought the bar would be smaller 

But I do like 

My Mum and Dad are going to have a fit when they see it!

As I write this 

We are in the car on the way back

I keep checking my piercing 

Dabbing the blood away

I'll have to look after it carefully

And purging is out of the question altogether 

Anyway 

Enough with the words 

Here are the photos....

Wednesday - My favourite day of the week!

And why is that I hear you ask

Well

Wednesday is horse riding day

The day I look forward to all week long

My Dad is visiting for a couple of days 

And he wanted to see the equine centre

So he drove today

And my Mam and sister brought the dogs out

On the way 

We stopped at an ATM

So I could take out some money 

But no matter what amount I asked for

It kept saying 'Insifficient funds'

I immediately began to panic

My first thought was that my disability payment had been stopped for some reason

The social welfare office wasn't far away

But I decided to ring them instead

As I didn't want to be late for horse riding

I got through to a very helpful lady

Who informed me that there had been trouble with the banks 

And that the money should be in by tomorrow 

I was relieved that that's all it was

The last thing I need is for my disability to be cut 

So

We continued on 

And my Dad lent me the €15 for the lesson 

We arrived at 11 30am

Just in time 

I was on Star again

My bestie 

And today I was all on my own 

No one leading me 

Just me and Star

I loved it!

There was another horse in front of us 

And I think Star may have just been following him

But he did what I asked him to do

We trotted a lot

And generally had such great fun

The woman who does it with us said that I am flying it 

Which is nice to hear

I go feel very comfortable on the horse 

I'm not scared

I'm not afraid of falling 

And I can't wait until I start to canter 

And maybe do some little jumps

I can see how it helps with confidence 

As I already feel more comfortable on Star

And I hope he is at ease with me riding him

There are a few people around when we are riding 

And they are lovely 

I'm quiet 

It's obvious my confidence is low 

But I do my best to join in the chat 

It doesn't come naturally to me 

I'm sure it will get easier 

And I won't feel so crippled with anxiety

As ever 

The session was over far too quickly 

I paid 

And we headed off

We stopped off at the pet store on the way back

And picked up some doggy supplies 

Food and chewys 

Then hit the road for home

I'm always really tired after the horse riding 

But it's a nice tiredness

And my ass kills 

But again 

It's a nice pain

A pain where you know you've worked hard 

This really has the potential to be a life changer for me 

It's only my third week

And already I feel massive benefits 

It's better than any pill or potion

Now 

If I could just convince my Mam to get a horse.....

AA

I'm just back from the local lunch time AA meeting

I'm actually really blessed where I live

Because it's a great base to get to a lot of different meetings

I love the lunch time ones

As waiting for the evening ones can make for a very long day

And the day time ones are a great way to kick off the day

I have to be honest though

More often than not

I am looking for excuses not to go

And don't really look forward to them 

But 

When I do go

I am reminded why I need meetings 

I never regret going to a meeting 

And always feel really good afterwards

My first meeting ever 

Was in a detox ward when I was 19

I can still remember the warm and fuzzy feeling I had after the meeting 

That was 15 years ago

And since then I've been in and out of meetings more often than I care to remember 

I seem to stick to the following pattern 

I go to meetings 

I'm really enthusiastic and motivated 

I go to many in a week

And feel really good 

Then I start to pull away

To isolate 

And soon I have talked myself out of going to meetings at all 

So I go through months or years of not going 

Then I find my way back 

And the whole cycle starts again 

They say if you don't get AA

Eventually it will get you 

I also go to NA

So really I gave my pick of meetings 

The last time I was going to meetings 

I depended on one person

If they were going to a meeting 

I would go

And if they weren't going 

I wouldn't either 

I've learned it's not healthy to depend solely on one person

It's better to have many people 

Friends 

A mixture of people 

And before 

I went to meetings for the wrong reasons 

I went to please others 

To get them off my back

Now 

I go because I want to go

Because I want to be clean and sober 

Because I want to be a better person m

And I want to stop hurting myself And others 

There is something very special about meetings 

Maybe it's the way people come together with a common goal 

Maybe it's the miracle that so many people have managed to stay clean and sober 

Maybe it's the energy of people wanting to recover 

Whatever it is 

It works 

And I need to stop fighting it

Stop digging my heels in 

And go with the process 

Easier said than done 

So yes 

I went to the lunch time meeting today

I didn't want to go

But my Mum offered to drive 

So I went 

The meeting is small but lovely 

I spoke last 

After the meeting 

A man came up to me 

And told me that I was doing great 

He told me to keep coming back 

And more will be revealed 

It was very nice of him

And he told me that before I know it

I will be helping others

I left the meeting on a high

High on life 

High on recovery 

Better than any drink or drug

What I took from today

Is that we need each other 

It's so important to connect with other people 

Especially those who are in the same position as we are

It's also important to have face to face connect 

Supporting each other through blogging is fantastic 

There is no doubt about that 

But we really need human contact too

We need to have a hug 

Have a chat over a cuppa 

And just be there for one another 

The world can be put to right over a cup of hot tea and a slice of cake 

Now 

The next time I don't want to go to a meeting 

I need to remember how good I am feeling right now 

And keep the momentum going 

I am feeling so grateful today 

Grateful to have AA in my life 

And to have friends within it

I'm grateful to be clean and sober

That my family are well

And in a good place 

I feel blessed to have this blog

And all of you my wonderful fellow bloggers

Life is good 

Life is sweet 

Let's live it to the best of our ability 

'Tell me why I don't like Mondays'

I can't quite believe how quickly the weeks are flying in

Monday seems to come around so very quickly

The days can be long 

But they don't be long adding up

As usual

I was in the doctors first thing this morning

Today

Topics included

The Oscars

Making films 

Horses and how my doctor is afraid of them 

Last week 

It being EDAW

I told my doctor that I would bring him in something to read 

The something being the piece I wrote for the ED convention back in 2013

So I gave him said piece 

And told him it was something to read on his coffee break

He seemed excited to read it 

I don't know why I haven't given it to him before now 

I guess that piece is precious to me 

And my doctor being an avid reader 

I was worried about what he would think of it and my writing 

I haven't let many people read it

I mean yes

I read it out at the convention

And I have it up in my blog 

But they are strangers 

Letting people I know read it is another matter 

But anyway 

He has it now 

I'll be interested to see what he makes of it

From a medical point of view 

And from a literary point of view 

He took it from me 

And placed it beside his computer

As I left 

It was all I could do not to reach across him and snatch it back

And run out of the room

But 

I think it might give him an insight in to the mind of a person with an ED

I mean of course he knows the medical side of things 

And I guess that's his job 

The head and mind stuff is up to the psych team 

Anyway 

He has it now 

It will be I interesting to see what he makes of it next week

After my weekly dose of doctor 

I headed up to the pharmacy 

Handed over my script 

Then decided to head over to the bank to see how little money I have for the week

I checked my balance 

Which was just enough to see me through the next few days 

Then began walking back to the pharmacy 

It was a bitterly cold morning 

With a sharp wind

I pulled my coat around me 

And took my gloves out of my pocket 

As I fought the wind 

And tried to put my gloves on 

I managed to drop one 

And it being a windy day

It took off down the street

I had no choice but to run after it

Every time I got close to it

It was whipped out of my grasp by the wind 

It was a wild goose chase

There I was sprinting down the street after my wayward glove

I got quite a few funny looks

Eventually 

I made a huge leap

Like an Olympic long jumper

And landed on the glove 

Feeling very pleased with myself that I had managed to catch it

In other news

I am getting my next piercing done on Friday 

My sister is going to come with me

And I am super excited!

I am think that getting my labret pierced is going to be much more painful than my nose 

But I am ready for it 

And anyway

The pain only lasts a second 

So I will pull up my big girl pants 

And suck it up

But I am really looking forward to getting it done

It's like buying a new item of clothing 

Something to make me feel good about myself 

My poor Mother is horrified at the prospect of another piercing 

She pleads with me not to get it done 

I tell her she will get used to it 

Just like my nose 

She said that she tolerates my nose ring at best 

Like a typical mother 

She says to me 

'You're going to ruin your beautiful face'

But I feel it will enhance my face 

And make for an interesting feature to my face 

Like a feature wall in a living room

Or something to that effect

I am becoming increasingly worried about my teeth 

As you know 

I had a lot of very labour intensive and expensive work done on my teeth last year 

And because my purging has increased again in recent months 

I fear my teeth may fall in to ruin

Just like my real teeth did

Every time I purge 

I promise myself that this will be the last time 

But it never is 

I continue to purge 

To put my body under huge stress

And my teeth being washed with stomach acid 

Every time I throw up

It's a worry

And a huge incentive to stop purging

But like any addiction

It's nigh on impossible to stop

I need to do it though 

Before it damn well kills me 

With all that said 

I was wondering about you 

If you have experienced bulimia

What helped you to stop purging?

How did you stop?

And how did you stay stopped?

Any tips or advice much appreciated....

Storm in a C cup and other stories.....

Remember back when I got my chest measured properly in a proper bra shop?

My first time ever to be correctly measured

And Remember I was told I was a 34 DD?

And I could barely believe it

Remember how I bought two very grown up proper bras?

And I was quite proud of my assets

Well

Said bras no longer fit me 

Which makes me sad

Why is it 

That when ever I lose weight

I lose if from the areas that need it most 

My boobs

My bum 

And always lose it from places that I don't want to

Like my face 

Id say I am now a 32 C 

Going by how the bras fit 

I've also been going through my wardrobe

And trying on clothes to see what fits 

And what doesn't

I have so many lovely items 

That are now way too big for me

And that is a damn shame 

As well as an incentive to gain a little 

My weight has stayed static for the last month 

I've neither lost nor gained 

And my BMI hovers around the same number 

But the truth is 

I can afford to gain a few kilos 

And still be pretty slim 

Weight loss just isn't important at the moment 

I rang my local piercing studio today

To inquire about getting my labret done 

The piercer is only there on a Friday 

So I'm going to go for it 

I think it's time 

Time for another piercing 

I love my nose ring 

I think it adds something interesting to my face 

My Mum hates it

And is pleading with me not to get another one 

But it's falling on deaf ears 

I just really want to get it done 

I also inquired about getting wings tattooed on my shoulder blades

The girl I spoke to estimated it would cost around €300

So I won't be getting that done any time soon

But 

It's something to think about 

And to look forward to

For me 

Recovery is finding healthy ways to meet the needs that drugs met

Relaxation

Confidence 

Self esteem 

Fun 

Escapism 

All the things that drugs provide 

For a while at least

So I guess my meetings 

Horse riding 

Writing 

And my dogs 

All fulfil these needs 

And even better than drugs and alcohol and my ED did

And of course 

The fun thing is

That I can find more and more activities to make me feel content and happy

I can try new things 

Learn new things 

Meet new people 

The possibilities are endless!

Recovery means freedom

Free from the chains that my ED and addiction held me in

It means feeling free to eat 

To enjoy it

And to keep it down 

Recovery means eating until I am full

Not over or under eating

It means allowing myself to eat a rich and varied diet 

And not feel guilty 

Recovery means allowing my body to find its own natural set point 

And not constantly trying to lose weight and be smaller 

Recovery means peace of mind 

Contentment 

Serenity

It means I am enough 

Just the way I am

Not looking for others approval 

It means knowing that I am a good person

And I am doing the best that I can

Recovery means really living life 

Laughing until you cry 

Late nights watching movies with my mum and sister 

It means eating food At the table 

And having a conversation 

Recovery means feeling the fear and doing it anyway 

And knowing that I will feel great afterwards 

It means being happy in my own company 

But being sociable when I want to 

It means helping others through my story and my writing 

It means passing on recovery to others 

And sharing what helps 

And what works 

Recovery means asking for help when we need it

Talking it out over a cuppa and a slice of cake

It means feeling good enough

And not lesser or better than anyone else 

It means finding things that you love 

Work 

Hobbies 

Pets 

Whatever that may be 

Recovery means choosing to live

With all that said 

I was wondering about you

What does recovery mean to you?

Are you in recovery?

Is it everything you thought it would be?

What are the best and worst parts about recovery

Answers on a postcard please.....