When you recover from an eating disorder, dealing with the weighing scale can be very challenging: On the one hand, the scale can trigger relapses and on the other hand, knowing your weight can give you a feeling of control and security. However, the numbers on the scale might have far too much impact on your life. Although knowing your weight gives you a sense of control, this can also hinder your recovery; it keeps you trapped within your eating disorder and does you more harm than good.

The scale can’t measure your worth, kindness, success or popularity. And the scale can’t tell you how much you should eat and how many exercises you should do. The one thing it does for sure is to cut you off from the messages your body sends you such as hunger cues or fullness cues. Instead of being guided by your body’s message, the number on your scale dictates how hungry you can be today or how much food you are allowed to eat.

Most importantly, your weight is not an accurate indicator of your state of health. Instead, your health depends on a wide range of factors, such as your genetics, behaviour and environment. There are people of “normal weight” who are unhealthy and there are heavier people who are healthy, have a good relationship with their bodies, and eat intuitively. But there is no way to tell whether someone is healthy by simply looking at the number on the scale.

Of course, your eating disorder voice wants you to continue weighing, so that it doesn’t lose control over you. However, there is no reason to use the scale while you are recovering from an eating disorder and even after you have fully recovered.