5 Ways to Support Your Eating Disorder Recovery During Passover
Blog Post by Allison Gasca-Backman, MSW, LCSW and Jenna Albert, MPH, RDN
Passover is a holiday centered around tradition, storytelling, and food.
It can also be a time when eating disorder thoughts, Diet Culture messages, and complicated feelings about family or faith become louder, especially in Jewish spaces where Diet Culture is still present.
If you are navigating eating disorder recovery as a Jewish person during Passover, you are not alone in finding this time of year challenging.
Here are five ways to support yourself through Passover in a way that honors both your recovery and your lived experience.
1. Prepare for Comments About Your Body or Food
Family gatherings can include comments about food and bodies. And the experience of avoiding chametz (or food that is leavened, like bread) for eight days, even when it's chosen and meaningful, can stir up real feelings of deprivation. And when people feel deprived, they talk about it. Food and body commentary tends to spike around Passover precisely because everyone at the table is navigating the same restrictions together, which makes it a constant topic of conversation. Well-meaning relatives and friends may not realize how loaded their observations can be. You may hear comments like:
"Honestly, cutting out bread for a week does wonders. I feel so much less bloated by the end of Passover."
"I always lose a few pounds during Passover. You just can't snack mindlessly when everything requires planning."
"Think about it — you're eliminating an entire category of carbs for eight days. That's basically a reset."
"My doctor says cutting gluten is great for inflammation. I mean, it's not why we do it, but I'll take it."
For those in eating disorder recovery, hearing food restriction framed as a benefit can be destabilizing. Preparing yourself to hear these comments before you sit down at the seder can make them feel less jarring when they come up.
If you can, plan ahead for how you want to respond. This might look like:
Changing the subject
Setting a gentle boundary (“I’m not talking about chametz or my food choices right now”)
Or simply reminding yourself internally: this is about them, not me
You are allowed to protect your peace, even at the Seder table.
2. Notice the Restriction → Binge Cycle (Especially with “Passover Foods”)
Passover can bring a sense of restriction or deprivation, whether observation is rooted in religious traditions or internalized food rules. This can sometimes lead to feeling out of control around foods like matzah desserts or other holiday-specific foods, especially if they are framed as “limited” or “special,” or if they serve as “replacements” for the “real thing.”
This might look like thoughts of, “I wish I could eat regular chocolate cake, but it’s off-limits this week. This chocolate matzah is the only sweet treat I’m allowed, but it just isn’t hitting the spot the same way that chocolate cake would. I’ll just keep eating more of it, and maybe I’ll feel satisfied.”
It is not a lack of willpower. It is a biological and psychological response to restriction.
If you notice this pattern, try shifting the focus from control to consistency:
Eating enough throughout the day
Allowing foods without labeling them as “last chance”
Reminding yourself that no single food needs urgency or scarcity
And giving yourself permission to observe the holiday in whatever way honors your recovery
Your body is responding in a way that makes sense. The goal is to create more steadiness, not more shame.
3. Have a Plan for Support During (Not Just Before or After)
Many people think about white-knuckling through the Seder to make it to the end, but not how to support themselves during the Seder.
Consider:
Taking breaks if the meal feels long or overwhelming
Texting a supportive friend
Stepping outside or into another room if needed
Finding a trusted person at the seder who “gets it,” and with whom you can make eye contact when you hear about someone’s vegan matzah brei for the 27th time
You may even enjoy putting together a mental (or actual) “Diet Culture Bingo” board, where you can make a mental note to yourself every time somebody says the thing or does the thing. This helps to lighten the mood around some of those irritating and triggering comments. Support does not have to be big or visible to others. Small moments of grounding can make a meaningful difference.
4. Make Space for Mixed Feelings About Faith and Tradition
Passover can bring up complex emotions, especially if your relationship with Judaism or religious practice feels unclear, strained, or evolving.
You might notice:
Disconnection from the rituals
Frustration with food-related traditions
Uncertainty about what these practices mean to you now
All of that is allowed. You do not have to have your beliefs fully figured out to participate, question, adapt, or step back. Recovery often includes making space for your full identity, including the parts that feel uncertain.
5. Define Freedom in a Way That Actually Supports You
Passover is a story about liberation. But freedom in recovery is not about doing everything “perfectly” or proving anything to anyone.
It might look like:
Setting a boundary around body talk
Eating enough, even when it feels hard
Letting go of “last supper” or “I’ll start over after Passover” thinking
Staying connected to your body in small ways
Freedom can be gradual. It can be invisible to others. It can be unfinished. And it still counts.
You Don’t Have to Navigate This Alone
Passover can feel complicated when you are healing your relationship with food, your body, and your identity. It can also be an opportunity to reflect on the meaning of the holiday and move through it with more intention, support, and self-compassion.
If you are looking for a space to explore this with others, we are offering a virtual peer support group for in-the-moment support and processing during Passover on Tuesday, April 7, 2026 from 12–1pm EST. This space is for Jewish adults navigating eating disorder recovery and healing from Diet Culture. All flavors of Judaism are welcome. Open to participants in all 50 states.
Interested? Learn more about Allison’s work at www.browndogtherapyandwellness.com or Jenna’s work at www.jennaalbertnutrition.com. Reach out to jenna@jennaalbertnutrition.com or allison@browndogtherapyandwellness.com for more information, or complete the Google form to be contacted for more information: https://forms.gle/eoa9XhUshJfdqhJQA.
Allison Gasca-Backman, MSW, LCSW
Therapist, Rock Recovery
About the Author: Allison Gasca-Backman, MSW, LCSW is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in Virginia and Maryland, and an approved supervisor in the state of Virginia. She joined the Rock Recovery team in December of 2024 on a contract basis, after opening her own private practice and subsequently realizing that she missed working with collaborative treatment teams. Allison loves to support individuals on their journey to healing, especially in helping them build compassion for themselves. Allison leads groups from a trauma-informed, anti-oppressive lens, focusing on ways that Diet Culture and other structural systems in society contribute to certain types of bodies being prioritized over others. She is trained in EMDR and DBT and often uses a blend of these modalities, along with nervous system regulation strategies, in her groups and individual sessions.
Jenna Albert, MPH, RDN
Founder, Jenna Albert Nutrition
About the Author: Jenna Albert, MPH, RDN is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and has been working in private practice since 2020. Jenna received her Masters in Public Health in Nutritional Sciences at the University of Michigan in 2019, where she also completed her Dietetic Internship. She has supervised practice experiences in residential, partial hospitalization (PHP), intensive outpatient (IOP), and outpatient care levels of care for eating disorders. Jenna is passionate about providing nutrition care to all bodies, and incorporates a Health at Every Size® approach and intuitive eating framework in her work with clients. Jenna grew up in a Reform Jewish household and continues to observe today. She enjoys working with her clients to explore religious and cultural traditions and how they can be supportive of eating disorder and disordered eating recovery.