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Do You Want to Feel Special and Loved this Valentine’s Day?

– Posted in: adjusting expectations compassion embracing emotions emotional eating forgiveness gratitude holiday eating holiday overeating holiday overindulging hope hopelessness hurts Inner Nurturing loneliness and overeating losses and disappointments overeating, dieting, weight loss self connection self-acceptance self-compassion self-defeating thinking self-love self-worth stress and overeating stress eating sugar addiction sugar cravings Valentine's Day

Today is Valentine’s Day, a day to celebrate the great romantic love in your life, if you have one. Truthfully, every day is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate those you love. I’d like to encourage you to consider celebrating self-love today as well. Because, truly, that’s where it all begins. How can you be kind to

Can Mindfulness Curb Overeating?

– Posted in: compassion depression embracing emotions emotional eating hope hurts identifying emotions and needs Inner Nurturing loneliness and overeating losses and disappointments Making lifestyle changes mindful eating mindfulness overeating, dieting, weight loss overwhelm reducing stress resolving emotional eating self-compassion self-defeating thinking self-doubt self-love stress and overeating stress eating weight loss

Mindfulness, according to Jon Kabat-Zinn, author of Mindfulness for Beginners, is “awareness, cultivated by paying attention in a sustained and particular way: on purpose, in the present moment, and non-judgmentally. Mindfulness can be traced to Buddhist origins and the practice commonly referred to as “mindful eating” is an offshoot, involving slowing down and paying attention

Are You Taking Things Too Personally?

– Posted in: adjusting expectations embracing emotions emotional eating hurts loneliness and overeating losses and disappointments overeating, dieting, weight loss painful childhood memories recovery resolving emotional eating self-defeating thinking self-love self-worth stress and overeating unrealistic expectations weight loss worthiness

I could tell when I entered the waiting room of my office that Samantha was having a bad day. She appeared depressed--she sat slumped in the chair and she was visibly upset. Her mascara was running and she looked like she had been crying. Unlike times when she was more upbeat, she was not distracting herself with her phone

Is Your Eating an Act of Rebellion?

– Posted in: compassion depression despair disappointment embracing emotions emotional eating forgiveness grief grieving hurts identifying emotions and needs loneliness and overeating losses and disappointments old pain overeating, dieting, weight loss painful childhood memories perfectionism rebellion reducing stress resentments resolving emotional eating self connection self-acceptance self-compassion self-love self-worth stress eating trauma Uncategorized unmourned losses weight loss worthiness wounds from childhood

Shirley, a 37-year-old wife and mother, looks forward to her nightly binges.They are the only time she feels totally free and in control of her life. She resents the fact that her husband doesn’t earn more money and that she has to work full-time while raising their three-year old. She’d like to have another child before time runs out, but can’t

Are you eating to rebel against someone or something?

– Posted in: disappointment emotional eating forgiveness greiving grieving hurts losses and disappointments old pain overeating, dieting, weight loss painful childhood memories rebellion resentments resolving emotional eating unmourned losses

Do you find that you sometimes grab food (and eat even though you're not hungry) because you're angry at someone or about something?  Or maybe because you're resenting some situation and feeling powerless to change it? You're mad or frustrated at these times and you certainly need something. In the moment, the food tastes good, calms you down and

The emotional eater’s expectations: are they realistic?

– Posted in: adjusting expectations depression emotional eating greiving hurts losses and disappointments old pain old pain overeating, dieting, weight loss reducing stress stress and overeating stress eating unmourned losses wounds from childhood

After spending Saturday afternoon with a close friend, Jackie came home and baked a batch of chocolate chip cookies.  The time spent with her friend Carol did not feel nourishing.  The two dishes of ice cream and the plate of hot, fresh baked cookies did. Just baking the cookies felt more nourishing than spending time with Carol. Jackie knew that an afternoon with Carol meant

Hope is everything

– Posted in: dieting emotional eating flexibility greiving grief grieving hurts losses and disappointments losses and disappointments old pain old pain overeating, dieting, weight loss painful childhood memories reducing stress stress and overeating stress eating trauma Uncategorized unmourned losses unmourned losses weight loss wounds from childhood

The Random House College Dictionary defines hope as "the feeling that what is desired is also possible or that events may turn out for the best."   It's certainly easy to have hope when everything is going your way--you just landed a great job, met the man/woman of your dreams, lost a lot of weight or won the lottery. 

Are losses and disappointments sending you to the refrigerator?

– Posted in: emotional eating greiving hurts losses and disappointments old pain overeating, dieting, weight loss painful childhood memories reducing stress unmourned losses weight loss wounds from childhood

Most of us don't like to spend much time thinking about our losses and disappointments or painful childhood experiences.  Yet, without much effort, they are brought to the forefront of our minds when something in our environment triggers thoughts of them.  We see a happy couple and  think  "Oh, yeah, I had a loving relationship with Jack,