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Identify rigid dietary rules and design experiments to test what happens when you break them.
Eating disorders are maintained by strict rules about what, when, and how much to eat. This worksheet helps you identify a specific rule, predict what will happen if you break it, and then test it. Most people discover the feared outcome doesn't happen.
Use in Stage 3 of CBT-E when addressing dietary rules and rigid food rules. Appropriate once regular eating is established and the client can identify specific dietary rules they follow (e.g., avoiding certain food groups, calorie limits, time-based rules).
Frame as a scientific experiment to test what actually happens when a dietary rule is broken, compared to what the eating disorder predicts. Emphasise that this is collaborative and the client has full control over which rules to test and when.
Start with lower-anxiety dietary rules before progressing to more feared ones. For clients with purging behaviour, ensure safety planning is in place before testing rules around 'forbidden' foods. Grade the difficulty collaboratively.
Do not use if the client is medically unstable or if breaking dietary rules could trigger dangerous compensatory behaviours without adequate safety planning. Ensure the therapeutic relationship is strong enough to support potential distress.
Predict outcomes before the experiment — what does the eating disorder say will happen versus what the client thinks might actually happen? Record the actual outcome and compare. Most clients discover their feared consequences are significantly overestimated.
Suitable for clients working with eating disorder, dietary rules, cbt-e, behavioural experiment, food rules. This tool can be used as a standalone worksheet or as part of a structured homework plan.
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