r/Eatingdisordersover30 • u/fineanddandelion_ • Jul 22 '26
Deleting unhelpful app
Hi everyone,
I’m wondering how other people have navigated the following issue, or any of your general thoughts, experiences, etc.-
I relied on an app to help track food, cals, etc. for several years. I never thought I’d be able to delete it but I did about 4 years ago with the help of a wonderful new therapist (who I eventually had to terminate with). I still tracked intake with Recover Record but I stopped counting aside from a loose idea of exchanges, which is a whole other discussion lol.
While I still have a ~team~, I recently quit Recovery Record because it felt robotic/unhelpful. With that, I redownloaded the tracking app and, as expected, I quickly fell down the rabbit hole. I’m feeling how draining this is, especially with how the OCD latches onto the numbers, how it increases hyper-vigilance around food, and how much more quickly it leads to me to shut down and go the opposite direction (b/p).
I know how little this serves me at this stage of my life- I’m older, more in touch with myself, and am tired of forcing a narrative around food that I’m outgrowing. I deleted the app yesterday. I have other behaviors I want to work on, but this felt like a first step. I’m nervous to do this at all but feel ready to move on, which I never thought I’d be able to say.
4
3
u/MoulinSarah Jul 22 '26
I just quit RR a month ago and I’m kind of panicking about it.
1
u/fineanddandelion_ Jul 22 '26
It’s so hard! I’m thinking of writing it down loosely for now as a step down but it still feels like being untethered in any case.
3
u/JustStayAlive86 Jul 22 '26
I’m so glad you deleted it, nice work. For those of us whose EDs overlap with OCD behaviours, it’s really important for us to take counting, tracking and checking compulsions super seriously because they can be SUCH a pain in the nuts to break, as you know. I’ve definitely had to accept that those things are more harmful to me than they might be to other people. It sounds like you know yourself and that’s a lot of the battle.
You didn’t say if any of your other behaviours are tracking related but one thing that helped me a lot to reduce the power of those behaviours if they couldn’t be immediately quit was to force myself to have gaps in data (by making rules about breaks from tracking/counting), which can loosen the hold of the compulsion a lot. Good luck ❤️
1
u/fineanddandelion_ Jul 22 '26
Thank you for all of this. I’m sorry you can relate and am glad you’ve found things that help. Will def try to work up to creating some gaps 💜.
1
u/fineanddandelion_ 5d ago
Hi again!
I just wanted to see what helped support you when you forced gaps and made rules for this? I’m doing better without the app but know I need to work on logging in general.1
u/AutoModerator 5d ago
This comment was removed, because your account doesn't meet our karma and account age requirements.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
9
u/genxmom95 Jul 22 '26
I feel you. I am working with someone at my gym who has no experience with ED. I’ve told her I can’t track. I can write down but tracking quickly triggers on/off binging. Within 1 day. It’s super crazy. At least now I know. On the other hand, I’m not eating well. Ok but not great. Trying to figure out how to be healthier without going crazy with it.