Mindful Colouring

“This book was initially Sharon’s idea. She approached me because she was interested in creating a colouring book for people recovering from an eating disorder. As a person who had recovered from an eating disorder herself, and as an artist, she wanted to “give back” and help others find their way to wellness. I thought it was an excellent idea. For my part, I had always wanted to put a book together of recovery stories. As a therapist, I often tell the people I work with stories of others who’ve come before them; stories that I hope will inspire them when they are scared or disappointed in themselves; stories of people who have made it through similarly difficult times and have continued on to recover from their eating disorder. As a book intended to help you through the difficult times of recovery, we wanted to provide you with a distress tolerance tool—the pages for you to colour.  The stories of those who have recovered, we hope, will provide you with reassurance and inspiration.”—from the INTRODUCTION In Mindful Colouring, psychologist Dr. Michèle Laliberté of the Eating Disorders Clinic at St. Joseph’s Healthcare in Hamilton, Ont., and art therapist Sharon Trottier have created a book that is at one and the same time a collection of recovery stories from disordered eating, a colouring book filled with pictures inspired by those recovery stories, and a source of encouragement for those facing such challenges themselves. The book is divided into fifteen recovery themes; each theme opens with a therapist’s perspective contributed by Michèle, followed by patients’ own perspectives and recovery stories, reflections from Sharon, and line drawings by Sharon inspired by the patients’ stories and suggestions. At the end of the book is a place where readers can set down their own stories and drawings.  3