Aurélie, blogger at ANEB, recently connected with Kailin to hear more about her journey to self-love and her experience with social media.
Stay connected via her instagram page or youtube channel : healwithkailin
Aurélie : Can you tell me about yourself and how you found your way to recovery?
KAILIN : Growing up, I always had issues with self-love and feeling comfortable in my body. Advertisements and commercials made me think that in order to be valued, especially as a woman, I had to become a smaller version of myself. As a girl who hit puberty pretty early and was growing awkwardly inside my body, I felt that there was something inherently wrong with me. I started moving from one diet to another, which led me to several different eating disorders over the course of ten years.
I had a huge reality check when I went to the doctor because I had lost my period and learned there was a chance I couldn’t have children if I kept going like this. The next day, I started recovering all on my own.
A : What made you decide to share this journey on social media?
K : Ironically, I started my Instagram as a fitness account. When I received the news from the doctor, I realized I was, in a way, part of the problem. Soon after, I decided to change my content drastically – I wanted to help people understand that it’s okay to take up space. Needless to say, a couple years later, my Instagram page has changed completely.
A : What is the change that you would like to see in the current social media culture?
K : My main concern is how curated content is, how everything is presented in a very aesthetic way. All the beauty filters, colour boosting and smoothing that people use to be seen as “presentable” is very problematic. It’s the same as seeing the same body over and over – it makes it easy to believe that there is something inherently wrong with us when we don’t have this exact same shape. Hopefully, over time, there will be more and more accounts supporting body positivity to help people realize that the beauty of each body is in its individuality, not in being a carbon copy of the next.
A : How has recovery impacted your life and what would you suggest for someone who is scared to begin?
K : Recovery was one of the hardest things I have done. I was stepping out of something that I had maintained for so long and that I was comfortable in, even though it caused me so much harm. My biggest tip is to have some kind of support team – friends, family or, from a more privileged standpoint, a treatment team or a coach. It’s also important to know that even if your loved ones won’t always understand, they can still support you in other ways. The support that you need doesn’t always have to come from a place of understanding. It can come from a place of caring, from a place of love, or whatever it may be.
I’m now living in a world where I’m in charge. I can grab a coffee with a friend, go out for dinner, be spontaneous and live in the moment. I truly didn’t realize how much I was missing out on until I recovered. In my mind, the sooner you recover, the more you actually end up living. That’s the reason I do what I do: for others to be able to feel this freedom and hopefully to inspire a couple of people to seek out recovery, because it’s the best thing I’ve ever done.
THANK YOU!
If you have any questions about eating disorders or insecurities concerning your mental health, don’t hesitate to contact our team. Here’s how : anebquebec.com/en/services
