The Emotional Eating (and Everything Else) Podcast

Body Dysmorphic Disorder is a topic we've never discussed on the podcast, and I think there's a lot of confusion about it.  Many people assume that they have body dysmorphia if they have a diagnosed eating disorder, but that's not actually the case.  So let's clarify!   On this month's podcast we're covering:  What Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD) is What it's not The diagnostic criteria for BDD How...

The new GLP-1 medications are everywhere it seems.  You can't go a day without seeing or hearing an ad for one, and there seem to be new ones hitting the market on a regular basis.  For many people, these meds are a miracle.  If you're someone who's taking them and are finding them beneficial, that's truly wonderful.  But for others, especially those struggling with food and body concerns and thos...

Very often, when people talk about emotional eating, you hear them say, "It's not about the food!"  And while I agree that that's very often the case, the advice that often follows that statement is not particularly helpful.  Usually, it's things like "just find something else to do when you want to eat."   But if it's not about the food, then what  is it about?? On  this week's podcast , we're br...

On this week's podcast, we're talking about parts who engage in extreme exercise.  And by extreme, I mean parts who:   are very rigid about exercise (i.e. we must go a certain number of times per week and/or we must exercise for a certain length of time --"no excuses) won't take no for an answer when another part--or Self--wants to take a break force you to exercise even when you're sick or injure...

The Heal Your Love-Hate Relationship with Food Workbook is out!  And this podcast is, in essence, its companion.  In this episode, I walk you through the goals of the workbook and explain how IFS and Intuitive Eating are THE APPROACHES that will help you to truly heal your relationship with food.  We discuss each chapter of the workbook, and I flesh out the concepts in ways I wasn't able to in the...

Have you ever found yourself thinking that ignoring your hunger is THE THING that makes you special?  Or maybe it's your ability to eat very little during the day.  Or maintain a very thin body.   Very often, folx who severely restrict their food intake (and especially for those in very thin bodies) have a part or parts who truly believe that their ability to eat so little or to be so thin, is the...

I thought this would be a good time of year to do an episode on all or nothing thinking.  With the new year starting, it's easy to get caught up in goals, resolutions, intentions, etc.  And there's nothing at all wrong with that, if it appeals to you.   But I think what sometimes (or often) happens, is that we set goals that are  wildly  beyond what we're doing now.  For example, going from not do...

In this episode, we're talking about Rebellious Parts.  I think most if not all of us have rebellious parts, and those parts could be rebelling in a variety of ways.  But since we're focused on food and body concerns, we're going to look at the parts who rebel by eating or by saying "no" to extreme diets and exercise.   Rebellious parts often get a bad rap.  They may be binge eating parts or parts...

It's  episode 100  of the Emotional Eating (and Everything Else) Podcast--I can't even believe it!  And to celebrate, I thought I'd invite two amazing women who I've had the honor of working with come into the show and share their experience with IFS.   Kali and Amanda are two former clients who graciously agreed to talk about their struggles with food and their bodies and how IFS and Intuitive Ea...

I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that at some point in your life, you've tried to change what you're eating.  Perhaps because you started a diet.  Or you were trying to "eat healthier."  Or maybe you were trying to move toward a more Self-led or Intuitive Eating approach to food (where you're really tuning into your body and feeding your body in ways that work well for it). Regardless of wh...

On the last podcast, we talked about "blocking parts." And by blocking, I meant parts that tend to come up when you're trying to get to know another part. Like when you're headed for the kitchen and a part of you says, "I should get to know the part that's leading me to the kitchen right now" but another part comes up and says, "Nope!  I don't want to get to know that part. I'll do it next time." ...

Let me ask you this:  have you ever noticed yourself heading for the kitchen to get some food, knowing you aren't hungry, and when you start to check in with the part who's leading you there, you hear something like, "Oh don't do that crazy IFS stuff--just eat the food."  Or, "Ugh--who cares why we're heading to food--just eat it!"  Or even, "Life is so stressful right now--just eat!  We deserve i...

Here we are, in the middle of the holiday season, and I thought it might be helpful to go back to the basics of the Emotional Eating (and Everything Else) Podcast and talk about, you guessed it, emotional eating.  Yep, it's been 94 episodes since we've focused on this topic.  Well, that's not exactly true.  We've focused on specific aspects of emotional eating, but we haven't discussed it in broad...

This week's episode features Dr. Jeanne Catanzaro , who's a bit of an IFS rockstar.  Jeanne  has been one of the strongest voices in the IFS community in regard to food and body concerns, and I'm so thrilled to have her on the podcast! Just a little about her:  Jeanne is a clinical psychologist who has specialized in the treatment of disordered eating and trauma for over twenty-five years. She tra...

Well, it's fall here in New England, which means cooler weather, absolutely beautiful trees, and apple cider!  (And for those of you who love it, pumpkin spice!)  It also means lots and lots of raking is in my future!   And it also means sweater weather!!!!  Yay!!!  So many of my parts love sweater weather.  Throwing on a big cable-knit sweater just feels so cozy.  And I just love fall colors (esp...

On today's episode, I'm so excited to be joined by Amy Pershing to talk about Binge Eating Disorder (BED).  Amy is essentially THE expert on treating BED with IFS, and I'm so thankful that she's sharing her wisdom with us!  We've been trying for months to record an episode, and we finally did it! Just a little about her, Amy Pershing, LMSW, ACSW, CCTP-II, is the Founding Director of Bodywise, the...

If you're someone who's done your own IFS work, you were likely encouraged to check in with a part that you met during your session on your own regularly throughout the week.  And you may have thought, how in the world do I do that?  Hopefully, the therapist or coach you're working with helped you with that process.  But if they didn't, you're in luck!  It's the topic of this week's podcast! While...

On this week's podcast episode we're talking about anxiety, one of the most common things that lead our parts to food.  Very often, parts in our system use food to calm our anxious parts.  I think this happens for a couple of reasons.  First, food can be a great distraction when we're feeling anxious.  And second, food actually calms us down.  Research has shown that food (especially carbs) elevat...

What's the first thing that comes to your mind when I say the word acceptance?  As in accepting who you are and accepting your body, right here, right now? For many if not most people, the thought of acceptance brings up parts saying, "No!  I won't give up!"  Or, "I can't acceptance myself the way I am--I'm not good enough." Yeah....acceptance is really hard....Which is why we're discussing it on...

On this weeks' podcast episode, we're talking about restriction. This is a topic that I know I've mentioned a number of times on the show, but I've never talked about it in depth. And given how common it is, it's about time that I do. What comes to mind when you think about the word "restriction" (as it relates to food)?  For me, I tend to think about the diagnosis of anorexia.  I picture someone...

On this week's podcast, we're talking about something that I haven't talked much about at all on the show:  sexuality.  Thankfully, since this is not my speciality, I'm joined by Esther Hooley, a psychologist who presented a really informative workshop that I attended a few months ago on sexuality and eating concerns.   Esther is a psychologist in Waco, TX and practices telehealth across the U.S. ...

On my last podcast episode, Heidi Andersen and I had a fantastic discussion about embodiment and how vital it is to be in your body in order to heal your relationship with it.  (If you didn't listen to it yet, check it out here !)   After Heidi and I recorded that episode, I told her she had an open invitation to come back onto the show and expand on anything that we had just discussed. This invit...

On this week's episode, I'm speaking with Certified Body Trust® Specialist Heidi Andersen about the topic of embodiment, something that she sees as vital to the healing of food and body issues.  And in case you're not quite sure how to define embodiment, Heidi describes it as: The ability to land safely in our body in the present moment, just how we are. How lovely is that??  Can you image how you...

I'll get right to it and be honest.  Part of this week's podcast topic--GLP-1 medication--is not something I've really wanted to talk about.  These are the medications that we're all hearing about nonstop--the ones that Oprah talked about in her recent special.  I haven't wanted to give them much air time, because we hear about them so much everywhere else, and also because I don't really think my...

I have a question for you.  What do you know about your early years?  Like from birth to age two?  And what do you know about your mom's pregnancy with you?   If you're like me, not a whole lot. Turns out, though, this is really good information to have.  According to this week's podcast guest, Colleen West, these early years and your experiences within have an incredible influence on the developm...