faulker053

These past weeks  more people appear to be struggling with their eating. I don't know if statistics support it, and I haven't done a study. It's simply what I'm noticing. So I thought it might be valuable to share what I'm hearing. Because if they're feeling and thinking these thoughts, you just might be, too.  And I'm hoping that regardless of your type of eating struggle that you'll feel a bit more supported after reading this post. These are not simply holiday eating concerns. Rather, it appears that preexisting concerns get heightened during this time of year. Setting the record straight The holiday season may not be the happiest time of the year as the Christmas songs may suggest . There are the common stresses--there's much to get done in limited time, like shopping, meal planning and cooking, perhaps accompanied by a bit of financial concern. Most often these fall on the woman of the house, adding to her usual responsibilities, it seems. You m...

That’s what they’re thinking, isn’t it? And likely you believe it too. Whether you’re fat or thin, healthy or unhealthy, fit or not, we need to place blame. It’s too hard for us to accept what’s not in our hands to control. We blame your weight on your eating and your diseases—even when there may be no link; we unfairly blame the parents for their child’s eating disorder; and we yearn to believe that it was your actions that caused your disease. Here are just a few examples of this I’ve recently encountered: "You’re too fat and of course you must eat poorly. And you’re lazy, too. Shouldn’t you be moving that 350 plus pound body around better—faster, longer, more gracefully? Your knee problems, your reflux, your high blood pressure—they’re all caused by you, don’t you think?" It doesn’t matter that you were an overweight baby and a chunky child—cute then, but not for the adult you. No, it bothers us to see people outside the “perfect” range.  The first question they ask is “W...

Yes, that's a 44 oz individual serving of soda! I never recommend soda to my patients or my family members. And I cringe when I walk into fast food restaurants (only to use the bathroom, of course) or a movie theater and see single serving cups in the range of 32-44 ounces. It’s obscene. That volume of sugar devoid of other nutrients, consumed at a single sitting is crazy. Our society has a distorted sense of what normal portions are—not just for beverages, but for food as well. The only place I’ve been able to find a true juice glass, a 4 or 6-ounce size, has been at antique stores. Really . So I support NYC’s Mayor Bloomberg’s recent ban on the sale of supersized sodas, right? Not at all. While the mayor is desperately trying to change a growing trend of overconsumption and obesity, his new policy restricting the sale of sodas larger than 16 oz is absurd on so many levels. While I take my freedom for granted, having never lived anywhere that restricted my personal choices, incl...

It Doesn't Have to be All or Nothing I heard on the radio that the odds of winning this lottery, this multi, multi million dollar lottery, are less than the odds of getting struck by lightening. Imagine if... Yet in my office Patty talked about how winning this bundle of money would change her life, how she wouldn't be able to stay in the same place she's at. People would expect things from her, and in many ways it would add some stress.  She spoke as if this change could happen, as if it were real enough to taste. What would happen if you had a life-changing relationship with food? If you had fully recovered from your anorexia, your bulimia, your binge eating disorder? If you had healthily lost weight to a normal range?  In some ways, this is so thrilling, so liberating, so refreshing.  Like winning millions, it may certainly change things for better. You're likely to feel better, physically and psychologically. It may resolve some stress, allowing you to feel lighte...