You might need therapy for food or body issues if:
- You struggle with how you feel about your body shape or size, and it prevents you from living fully
- You have a strict relationship with food that has lots of rules
- You struggle to “control” yourself around certain foods
- You have a lot of shame around your body or how you eat
- You relationship with food or your body is causing you to become unhealthy or anxiety-inducing
So many of my clients don’t realize they struggle with food until we really start talking about it. So many of us have stories about the food rules we were told growing up and how we often still implement these rules today. Food rules are rampant in today’s diet-culture and have been normalized to the point we just accept them as the truth. The real truth is: food is morally neutral. It shouldn’t be something loaded with shame.
Many of us are very aware of our struggles with our bodies though because it’s more visible, and often more talked about. Children are shamed from a young age about how their bodies look and move, and many times we learn from parents or family members who have their own unhealthy relationships with their own bodies.
Therapy for food and body image is SLOW and HARD work. You need to be open to totally blowing up what you know and believe about food, and to re-evaluate how to care for and respect your body.
How I Can Help
My approach to food and body issues is a bit radical- I’ve been trained to reject diet-culture, unlearn medical myths, and embrace the principles of intuitive eating and the Health At Every Size movement.
Intuitive Eating is a term that has been co-opted by the internet recently, and is pretty misunderstood, so click the link to learn more. We are all born as intuitive eaters, and real healing is found when we reconnect with our bodies, decrease shame, and embrace the permission to eat.
I know there are medical issues that do impact the way we need to eat and how our bodies are impacted by food and movement, and I encourage all clients to seek medical care if needed, and will often recommend clients work with a dietician as well.