Intuitive Eating
Intuitive eating may feel like a foreign concept.
Perhaps you grew up with problematic messages (explicit or not) about food and your body (many people did).
Maybe you are a parent and want to make sure you don’t pass these beliefs onto your kids. You want them to have a healthy sense of self and feel peace around their food choices.
Perhaps you are an active, strong person, but your body doesn’t look like social media says it “should,” and this bothers you… despite your greatest efforts.
Maybe you work out extra hard if you’ve “overeaten.” Counting calories might come a little too naturally to you. Maybe you have all of that memorized.
Or you find yourself eating more than you intend to when you’re feeling emotional. What if you had other ways of coping that helped you just as well but without the regret.
For some, food was (or still is) the only thing that is in your control. This is a common reason people end up struggling with food; you’re not alone, and there are so many things we can do in therapy to change this.
All of these struggles are incredibly well-suited to the Intuitive Eating approach. Intuitive Eating helps us restore (or create for the first time) a healthy relationship with food, our bodies, and movement. It is not a diet. And it is not an excuse to eat whatever you want all of the time with no regard to nutrition, either.
I love these concepts so much that I became a Certified Intuitive Eating Counselor in 2019. Many of the professionals who get certified are dietitians or nutritionists; what I uniquely bring to this arena is a deeper understanding about mental health and trauma.
For clients who come to me to work on intuitive eating, we will probably start by talking about food or how you feel about your body, but we don’t stop there. I want to get to know you holistically and find the root cause of your struggles with food/body image. Often, we carry trauma with us related to this. A “harmless” comment about our bodies or how much we’re eating as children can stay with us, as can things your caregivers (or other influences) said or did: counting calories, criticizing their appearance, or hopping from one diet to the next.
Together, we will work to craft a healthy, peaceful relationship with food and your body. My approach will be tailored to you based on your specific goals.
But–what are my goals for you? I want you to be able to eat without worrying, to look at your body with gratitude, to enjoy movement, and to be free to spend your time and energy on other things!
What are the principles of Intuitive Eating?
Reject diet culture
Challenge the “food police”
Honor your hunger
Handle emotions with kindness
Make peace with food
Respect your body
Discover the satisfaction factor
Movement— feel the difference
Honor your health with gentle nutrition
Feel your fullness