About
My name is Heather Kilgore and I am here to help!
Eating disorder thinking affects multiple areas of your life and development.
It takes courage to recover.
It takes courage to learn new skills.
Recovery is a difficult task.
Dealing with urges, overcoming discouragement, facing fear foods, adjusting to a new body image and regaining passion for life; all of these can feel overwhelming.
During this tough time, a key piece is knowing you have support in your corner.
Your Answers are Within
Working with an Eating Disorder Recovery and Life Coach you learn to go within and find your true self that has been hiding under the struggle.
As you apply new tools to your life, you learn to trust your intuition, face your fears and what is holding you back.
Your life becomes more manageable and you become more connected, freer and joyous. You learn to understand yourself better, leave judgement behind and change your patterns of thinking.
The World Becomes a New Place
You start to discover other things beside your food and weight struggles – things like dreams, desires, and goals.
You work with tools that help these unfold and you start uncovering your values and you learn to listen to what is in your heart.
You create a vision for your life, so you can start living in ways that bring you joy.
As you make action plans to move into a more fulfilling life, you keep using the emotional tools you have been practicing. You learn to believe in yourself again and discover what is possible.
About My Own Recovery
I know the challenges you face in the eating disorder recovery process, and I know there is a better way.
I’m a strong advocate for recovery. I struggled with bulimia for over 18 years, and I’ve been in recovery since 1991.
My story began when I started restricting food my senior year in high school. Even though I was already thin, I believed I had to “be thinner to fit in”.
It helped me feel in control.
When I got to college, I remember reading an article about this disease called bulimia and thought…
“What a great way to eat all I want and not gain weight.”
From the first time I binged and purged, I was hooked.
Although I “looked fine” on the outside, I suffered from daily bouts of binging and purging, poor body image issues, shame, and secrecy that go with an eating disorder.
I secretly fluctuated between restricting and binging and purging throughout college, living in Europe and into my career in corporate America. It negatively impacted everything I did, who I was as a person, my relationships and completely undermined my self-confidence.
I finally got the courage to go to inpatient rehab after my Mom died. I was scared to death, but I was ready to face the fact that I could not do it alone.
I was sick and tired of being sick and tired.
I innocently thought I would go to rehab, and I would come out normal/recovered after my stay.
Little did I know that the hard work had just begun, and it would be a long journey.
Throughout my recovery, I experienced inpatient rehab, living in a halfway house for 2 ½ years, working a program through Over Eaters Anonymous, and therapy.
I had wonderful people in my corner. The hardest challenge for me was letting go of the shame and learning how to reframe my thinking to break through the Eating Disorder mindset.
I understand how tough it can be to find balance and direction while in early recovery.
Through my own journey, I learned a lot about the importance of self-care, setting clear goals, developing a strong support network, and healthy coping skills.
I’ve developed a daily practice of meditation and affirmations that help keep me grounded.
I’m an advocate for the saying, “Change your thinking, change your life!”
It has been a long journey but totally worth it, and I wouldn’t go back!
About Heather Kilgore
After burning out of corporate America and feeling the need to do something more meaningful in my life, I went back to school at the age of 61 and earned my coaching credentials.
I quickly understood how impactful and empowering coaching could be to the recovery process.
I loved every minute of it and knew who I wanted to coach almost immediately.
I wanted to partner with women and men who are trying to discover who they are and what their purpose is outside their eating disorder. I wanted to use the insights gained in my own recovery and power of coaching to help others recover. That spoke to my heart.
My goal is to help you discover and honor your true self in the world as it is.
I earned my professional coaching certification (CPC) through IPEC (Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching), which is widely recognized as a rigorous certification program and accredited by ICF (International Coaching Federation). I am also certified as a Recovery Coach (CRC), Energy Leadership Index (ELI) Master Practitioner and in the five principles of Eating Disorder Intuitive Therapy (EDIT™).
I have my MBA from University of New Haven and my undergraduate degree from New England College.
I’ve traveled and lived in Europe and different places in the Eastern United States. My current home is in Providence Rhode Island where I live with my two sister cats and rescue dog Maddie.
I enjoy my friends, church community, tennis, working out, the outdoors and being active in the community. I also love to explore Providence and travel.
I have a strong spiritual faith that we’re all connected, and everything is working out for our highest good.
I believe that we’re all here to face and learn from life’s challenges, so we can grow and gain wisdom.
I believe we are what we think. That once we are aware of our inner critic and blocks to recovery, it empowers us to change our beliefs and to grow as a person.
I believe this is a lifelong process.