On Thursdays and Fridays, I facilitate recovery groups for individuals in recovery from eating disorders or disordered eating who also identify as recovered (or recovering) from substance abuse or addiction. These are two of my favorite hours of the whole week. I’m always so impressed with the vulnerability and courage that I see on display when my groups meet and vow to support themselves and each other. I facilitate a pretty open-ended meeting. Sometimes I’ll sign on with a theme in mind, but…

In the past couple weeks, I’ve gotten lots of messages from people who also came down with Covid over the winter holidays. Many people were in the same boat as me—quarantining unexpectedly, instead of seeing family and friends as planned—and it was really nice to have some camaraderie and support. I’ve also been struck by some of the feelings that dealing with Covid has evoked. For example, I was surprised by the number of messages I got expressing shame or feelings of failure…

It’s now been a week since Quarantine Christmas, and I’m about to wrap up my isolation here at home. I would love to be able to say that I’m somehow enriched as a result of the experience, but I wasn’t really aiming to make the best of it. I just got through it. Thankfully, time moved quickly in the strange, blurry week between Christmas and NYE. No sooner was I reflecting on the shift in my spirits that took place on Christmas than…