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Eating Away the Pain: The Connection between Trauma and Binge Eating

From a very young age we starting learning about the world around us and adjust to our environment for survival. From the way we act, think, behave, react and interact with others. Our learning comes out in practices, health habits, past times, spirituality and lifestyle choices. All of us are culturally connected to the things we eat whether we prefer rice and beans or oxtail and peas. We are additionally influenced by life events. For years scientists have recognized a link between Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and the development of eating disorders, i.e. binge eating. Trauma is an actual or perceived life threatening even  often leads to a stress reaction (anxiety, fear, depression, anger). Often times in order to deal with that anxiety people turn to food, alcohol or other substances to mask, avoid or "stuff" the pain. Research shows that 1 in 4 people who binge eat  have PTSD Symptoms of PTSD and Binge Eatin g 1. Stressful memories, flash backs and trigg...

7 Motivating Steps to Setting Goals in 2017

 This is a two part blog to follow up on my last post  Cravings and Why Willpower is not enough . It is proven that the only long lasting technique that proves success in any goal or resolution is to develop a habit that feeds your goal daily. Progression towards your success is a process. It is like growing a plant, you have to water it and give it enough sunlight to later bare the results of your work. So think about what your goal is and how overtime with effort that can transform into something of substance for you. Willpower is fleeting and unreliable. If that is our only source of drive, you will most likely give in before the middle of  2017. Whether your goal is to lose weight or start reading everyday, think of the steps you would need to take for example reading for 10 minutes before bed. Here are 7 steps I take with my clients in coaching them to reach their goals using the SMART technique! Step 1: Write your goals! Writing it down is kind of like a contra...

Cravings and Why Willpower is Not Enough!

Websters dictionary defines willpower as "energetic determination." Whenever I ask someone where willpower comes from they say something like "internal strength." It is the desire to control your impulses. It that internal drive that some of us seem to have more of than others. To me this is a not very well defined term yet it is that one thing that everyone wants and believes will move them forward in all of their goals. I need to find the "willpower," the "motivation;" like it will fall out of the air straight into your lap. The truth about willpower!  The truth is will power is considered by some researchers to be a limited and fast reduced resource. The term they use is "willpower depletion." Saying "no" takes a mental toll on you and that is where this "internal strength," comes from. Willpower is like a muscle that after continued use can reach this point of depletion where we give into our cravings or ...

"Fat Shaming" Yourself

I was scrolling though my social media today and noticed many women who are posting selfies "fat shaming" themselves. I saw women writing things like "under this fat," "I hate my body," "fluffy," "this isn't healthy." It saddened me to the reality of women today with the unrealistic expectations society places on a standard of beauty which pushes women into dieting or extreme exercise. 50% of commercials targeting a women audience mention physical attractiveness not to forget a profiting diet and beauty industry that is getting rich off  pills and waist trainers by exploiting these women's struggles. This leads to mental health concerns including low self esteem, body image issues, depression, anxiety,  and eating disorder, just to name a few. I decided to do some research and found  women experience an average of 13 negative thoughts about themselves daily, while 97% of women admit to having a "I hate my body," th...