In The News...

Hope everyone had a great weekend and enjoyed an extra hour of sleep! Things in my world have been a little busy-- but I have been working on some posts that I am eager to share. Check back this week for more!!   


In the meantime, below are a few eating disorder headlines that have been in the news recently. You can follow the links below to read more...                                                                                               

1. In young children (ages 5-12), eating disorders are more common than diabetes (source)

2. Men struggle with binge eating, too.. (source)

3. Eating Disorders and Insurance- The Fight! (source)

4. Edreferral.com, a leading source for eating disorder professional referrals, is now available as an app and can be accessed on your smartphone. (source)

Happy Halloween!

Today's scary Halloween tale comes to us care of Ricky's Costume Shop. This isn't new news, but I thought I would take the opportunity to share, considering the holiday. You can check out the gruesome story here about a disturbing Halloween costume--Anna Rexia. 


The moral of this ghostly tale? We know we still have more work to do on the education front when it comes to eating disorders. The good news? Ricky's responded quickly, pulled the costume off the market and apologized... 


Hope you all enjoy your day- be safe! :-)

Bzzzzzzz

"I'm not smart enough." "I can't do this." "She is so much better than I am." "I wish I were prettier." "I feel so fat." 


Have you ever had thoughts like these??

I'm pretty sure we can all relate to having had thoughts similar to these at one time or another. For some of us, these negative thoughts can be a bit more persistent. In light of the recent celebration that was Fat Talk Free Week, a lesson that came up a few weeks ago at Girls on the Run, and a great article I read yesterday on fat talk, another post on conquering negativity and self-defeating thoughts seemed appropriate.

Girls on the Run is one of the things that I look forward to each week. I love the chance to spend time with these determined, smart, silly girls in my group! One of my favorite Girls on the Run lessons we have done so far this season was one a few weeks ago that educated the girls about negative self-talk. We spent some time talking about negative thoughts, and then learned/practiced how to re-frame them. This is something that I often do with my clients! The really fun part was that the girls came up with a noise to use whenever they hear someone fat-talking, or using negative words about themselves (or others) while with the group. They couldn't decide if they liked making 'quacking' noises or 'buzzing' noises better- ducks or bees :). So we let them use both. Imagine 15 8-12 year olds, bzzzz-ing and quacking at the top of their lungs, practicing how to respond to negative self-talk while loving every minute of it. It was fun. 

What I love about this idea of responding to negativity with noise is the intentionality of it. So often, people ask how they are ever going to change their thinking patterns... the negative thoughts can feel so overwhelming. This is true- they can feel very overwhelming, especially considering that our thoughts impact how we feel about ourselves, and how we feel about ourselves impacts how we act and behave! Our thoughts create a ripple effect. Because thoughts are automatic, we tend to feel discouraged when these little negative thoughts pop up- especially when we are trying so hard to be positive! The first step though is to become aware of these thoughts as they pop up, so that you might be able to replace them with more positive, encouraging and most of all, truthful thoughts! This idea of responding with noise is a great idea because it is very purposeful, and it is something that is memorable. While you don't have to 'bzzz' at yourself (you can if you want to though!), maybe you can brainstorm and pick an intentional way of responding to your negative thoughts, so that you have a greater awareness of them and can act to re-frame and make them more positive! Some people like to write their negative thoughts down, and re-frame them via journaling. Then when those negative thoughts appear, they can use their 'go-to' re-framed positive thought(s), and replace! The important thing is that you find a method that works for you. Most of all- don't get discouraged. Working to change negative thoughts takes time. Change doesn't happen overnight. Be patient with the process, and if you are having trouble managing the negative thoughts, consider seeking counseling!

Love Your Body Day!

Guess what today is?? It's Love Your Body Day!! (hosted by the NOW Foundation- National Organization for Women). I read something this morning that really impacted me, and I felt like it was important to share, especially in light of today's Body Holiday:). End Fat Talk posted this on their facebook page today: 


We asked Muffy Davis, Athlete and Inspirational Speaker, Stanford, what advice she would offer to other women about liking themselves inside and out. Here's what she said:

"My mom told me when I was 16, right after I became paralyzed, some advice that has helped me throughout my life. She told me that I am not my legs, who I am and my value as a person is not determined by my physical body but by my spirit. And she told me that while my body may be broken, my spirit was perfect and whole! That was one of the most important bits of advice she has passed on to me and I would love to share that with every woman. WE are much more than our physical shells, our spirits are perfect and ready to shine!"


Muffy's attitude and spirit are exactly what we celebrate today. We are not defined by our physical bodies, and yet, when I read this, I can't help but be reminded how often I take my body for granted! Our bodies serve many very important functions, and I think the media images that we see betray our belief that our bodies are not just for appearances sake. In honor of this day, make a list- either on a piece of paper, or just a mental one- of the top 5 things you are thankful that your body can do. Rather than beating yourself up over what you would like to change about your body, focus on the positive, and focus on what you love! And don't forget-- this is something that you can do everyday, not just on Love Your Body Day :).

This post is part of the 2011 Love Your Body Day Blog Carnival, which you can check out by following this link.

Are You A Life-Giver??

As I mentioned in my last post, Fat Talk Free Week is upon us! It officially began yesterday. I have posted in the past about FTFW (here, here, here, here, here and here- haha) and believe this week provides a special opportunity to bring awareness to the importance of eliminating fat talk!! For those of you who are new to FTFW, here is a video which provides a little bit more info.

If you skip over the video (it's worth watching, I promise!!), what you need to know first is what fat talk is! Fat talk consists of comments that focus on our bodies, ourselves or others in a negative light. In fact, fat talk can even transcend body talk and can really be any old negative comment you make about yourself. Examples of fat talk: "I feel fat"... "I need to lose __ #of pounds" ... "She should not be wearing that" ... "You look good, have you lost weight?"... "My butt looks huge." ... Sound familiar?? 


When I was at church on Sunday, the pastor was talking about how we can choose to be people who give life to others. That really resonated with me, and I believe that when we interact with people, we have an opportunity to encourage and inspire-- which are things that give life! We can be life-givers with our words and our actions. In light of Fat Talk Free Week, I was thinking about how we have the power to be life-givers by choosing our words carefully and filling others with encouraging and positive thoughts (life!) instead of negative ones- whether those thoughts deal with our bodies or other things. I know that I want to be someone who gives life to others, that after someone has spent time with me, he or she feels encouraged, refreshed, uplifted. I don't want to be negative in a way that causes other people to question or doubt themselves because of the comments I might be making about me or my body. I think women often bond by bashing their bodies to each other-- this only fuels negative feelings and actions, and it doesn't produce a spirit of encouragement! 

The point? Try to eliminate fat talk from your dialogue- whether its an internal dialogue or in your daily conversations with others. Choose to be a life-giver, choose to be someone who makes others feel more alive and full after having spent time around you, simply because of your attitude and how you use your words. If you are interested in signing Fat Talk Free Week's pledge, follow this link.