Delivering another week of change your life TV, OWN’s ‘Addicted to Food’ begins this week with Tennie McCarty, Founder of Shades of Hope, telling us that “people are not guilty for having an addiction. It’s a disease… and those that have it did not cause it but with a little help and healing, they can cure it.”

As we move into the treatment, we begin to see the therapy process and what it takes to actually get through it.  On Day 4, the patients start with a group therapy that would be hard for many people.  At the beginning of the session, Tennie tells us, “The Importance of group is get them in that room and get them to start telling the truth. They are going to do their healing together.”  Today, it’s taking a look at their bodies and their truth.

The task:  Go into a closet. Put a paper bag on your head.  Take your clothes off and look at your body in the mirror.  This task is about dealing with your body image and really looking at your body.  For most, their image is distorted or plagued by worry from what others may see. Then, we go back into group to talk about it.

From this task, most reveal that they don’t love themselves….they are miserable and feel worthless and a lot of shame is echoed around the room. Then, Tennie reminds them, “Anger at yourself if what’s killing you.”  Tennie tells Elizabeth that with her Bulimia, when a blood vessel bursts, that it will kill you.  “You can literally bleed to death before they can get you to the hospital.  It’s a disease and a killer and left untreated, it will take your life.”  This task literally shines a little light on them and what the disease and addiction are doing to their lives.

During this episode, we are introduced to some of the personal stories through therapy, the individual rehab assignments and the major effects of detoxing off of unhealthy and processed food.  Tennie tells us that “the detox is the hardest part.  If you can get through that, you can get through anything…It takes us a long time to get sick and a long time to get well.”  The Shades Program seems to be guided and powered through a lot of spiritual energy and caring hearts…all coming from a place of hope and love. 

On Day 5, the staff begins handing out assignments to the patients to work on throughout the week.  These assignments, not meant to be easy, as ways to help get the patients in touch with their emotions in a major way.  For Robby, he wears a sign that says, “I can only share my feelings,” and gloves that limit the use and feeling in his hands.  Camille gets a blind fold almost 24×7 so she’ll have to ask for help and Amy gets the toughest assignment, no talking, to help her get connected with her feelings.  All assignments are designed to address key issues…and to make them feel.  While the patients don’t always agree with the assignments, it’s clear that they are carefully and thoughtfully assigned based on each personality.

Finally, we are reminded by looking in on one of their group sessions that there are walls are up around us…in our own lives and in the lives of those around us and the impacts they have on who we are can be powerful.  These people are strong for showing their lives and their hearts…all for the promise of the chance to heal themselves.  We are all watching…and waiting for next week’s therapy sessions and episode.

This week’s tennisims

•  “We cannot wait until we get a perfect size to start lovin ourselves.” ” – Tennie McCarty
•  “You didn’t cause this disease, you didn’t ask for it but there is hope for you…” – Tennie McCarty
• “You have a disease.  It is treatable. You do these few simple things every single day and you too can recover.” – Tennie McCarty
• “This is for you to see what your eating disorder has done to you and the depths that it’s taken you.” – Tennie McCarty 

 Here are a few tennisims or thoughts from @tenniehope during tonight’s after the show chat on Oprah.com/OWN that I wanted to add to the post…enjoy!

•  “One of the things I was taught to do in 1968 was to do pray and ​meditation, and to journal. I do it every morning”
• I’ve tried it all, but if you don’t stand for something you’ll fall for anything
• “I recommend every bite you put in your mouth. Get real honest with the food” 

• “The best way to detox is to go through the withdrawal and look at your trigger foods and STOP eating them…”
• “You detox by getting on a ​detoxifying food plan. Get off sugar. Get off white flour, high carbs…sometimes caffeine makes a person want to eat MORE, so it’s all subjective.  – Each person is different, so try cutting out sodas, sugar or bread and see if you have trouble. see how you feel and your body will tell you”
• “Your whole thinking has to change. Food journals really help because you don’t know what we are eating. Just write down what you eat and drink for the first week, and then share it after the first week with a trusted person. get honest about food – you will see what you are doing.” 

Tennie on Addiction

• “Most addicts switch ​addiction​s, but I believe this is a spiritual problem, so enlist a power greater than yourself” 
• “Addicts find a way to get their substance regardless of what is going on around them.”  
• “A good guideline on addiction is: can you take it or leave it.  Can you take one cookie and walk away? Or do you have to have it?”

• “How do you know you are in recovery? It is a meal at a time. It is a heart beat at a time. You have to stay within guidelines”
• “Enlist in the aid of a power greater than yourself and find others who will help you get there.”
• “But don’t ever ever ever give up. Hope is there. You can recover. Anyone can recover. Just keep seeking answers because you are not in this by yourself.”