Posts Tagged eating disorders
Posted by mmorand on September 3, 2009
Hello CEDRIC community members. I want to send you off on your long weekend experience, whatever that may be, with a quick thought to help ground and center you and to guide you in making decisions around food this weekend and beyond. At the very least it will illuminate some of your current barriers to having a peaceful relationship with food.
Whenever you are faced with a choice to eat ask yourself the following two questions:
1. Am I physically hungry?
2. Is what I’m about to eat going to support me to feel psychologically, emotionally and physically well after I eat this and tomorrow morning? If not, what will?
Grounding and Centering Exercise
Give this a whirl, see what happens. Let me know.
Love Michelle
Whether you prefer one-on-one counselling (in-person, by phone, or email), our intensive and transformative workshops, or the self-help approach, take action today to have a stress-free relationship with food. Sign up for our free newsletter today! Newsletter subscribers receive exclusive product discounts and are first in line to get on all the latest new at CEDRIC!
Tags: acceptance, anorexia, anxiety, binge eating, body image, body/mind/spirit, bulimia, CEDRIC Centre, compulsive eating, core beliefs, drill sergeant, eating disorders, exploring, grounding, growing, healing, healthy eating, nurturing, past, present, rebalancing, recovery, self care, self esteem, self love, self worth, tandem healing, triggers
Posted in: CEDRIC Centre, Relationship with Others, Relationship with Self, Tips for Natural Eating
Posted by mmorand on September 2, 2009
Hello All! I hope you had a positive and forward-moving week.
This is week two in our series on Self-Care. If you haven’t read last week’s post, click here to access The First Step to Self-Care. Last week we explored the different roles you have in your life and took a look at what you currently do in those roles vs. what you expect of yourself or what you’d like to see yourself doing based on your core values.
Next week we are going to pick up where we left off with the identification and articulation of our goals and come up with three small steps that you can take over the next little while for each of your goals to ease your transition from “here” to “there.” Any lasting change to our thinking and our behaviour comes gradually. It just doesn’t stick if we try to rush it. That’s because we don’t have the understanding or the life experiences that help us see the value in sustaining that change when we rush it rather than truly embody it. We also need to learn to make space in our daily lives for these new and different behaviours and, when we already have full-to-bursting lives where many things are falling through the cracks, it takes some time to create the space for something new without simultaneously increasing your stress level (which rather defeats the purpose of any new life enhancing behaviour, I think).
(more…)
Tags: acceptance, anorexia, anxiety, binge eating, body image, body/mind/spirit, CEDRIC Centre, compulsive eating, core beliefs, eating disorders, exploring, forgiveness, future, grounding, growing, healing, insecurity, natural eating, nurturing, past, present, promises, rebalancing, recovery, self care, self esteem, self love, self worth, triggers
Posted in: CEDRIC Centre, Relationship with Others, Relationship with Self
Posted by mmorand on August 27, 2009
Okay folks, we’re going to take a little journey together (if you’re willing). It is a journey to a place called “balance.” And we get there by walking a path called “self-care.” Say goodbye to your old patterns of behaviour. Say goodbye to harmful old relationships, places of work, and miscellaneous other people, places and things that undermine you and your sense of peace and happiness. Once you start down Self-Care Lane you won’t be needing or wanting to return. I guarantee you!
For the next month, we’re going to be putting one foot, gently but firmly, in front of the other to create a life that is balanced, peaceful, and honoring who you really are and what you truly deserve in life.
Our journey begins with you taking a few minutes to get clear on where you are now. Then we’ll take a look at where you’d like to be and fill in the spaces between step-by-step so you’ve got a clear path that leads you towards lasting change at a pace that is right for you.
(more…)
Tags: acceptance, body image, body/mind/spirit, CEDRIC Centre, compulsive eating, core beliefs, eating disorders, exploring, forgiveness, grounding, growing, healing, nurturing, past, present, rebalancing, recovery, self care, self esteem, self love, self worth, workshops
Posted in: CEDRIC Centre, Relationship with Others, Relationship with Self
Posted by mmorand on August 21, 2009
Hello! And welcome! This is Part III of an article on navigating travel and vacation time in the easiest most relaxed way when you’re still on the path to recovery from the use of food to cope (ie. overeating, restricting, purging, or that annoying diet mentality).
Part I spoke about creating a sense of peace and comfort around the variety and/or constraints of choice that vacationing can provide. In Part I, I provided you with a clear list of tools you can use to ground yourself and come back to basics regardless of what’s on the menu. I have heard from quite a few clients who have carried Part I with them on their travels this summer and have found these simple suggestions extremely helpful in remaining clear on what action to take to feel more at ease than ever before.
(more…)
Tags: acceptance, anxiety, binge eating, body image, body/mind/spirit, compulsive eating, core beliefs, drill sergeant, eating disorders, exploring, forgiveness, healing, healthy eating, nurturing, overeating, rebalancing, recovery, self care, self esteem, self love, self worth, tandem healing, triggers
Posted in: CEDRIC Centre, Relationship with Others, Relationship with Self
Posted by mmorand on August 21, 2009
If we have fallen into the behaviour of overeating, restricting or purging – in other words: If we use food to cope, we can absolutely know a few key things about ourselves that can really help us in our recovery.
- First, we can absolutely know for certain that we struggle with insecurities about our abilities; our intellect; our lovability; our acceptability and our appearance.
- Second, we can absolutely know for certain that those insecurities are borne of old stories; messages we were told or that we interpreted from other people’s body language or treatment of us and that those old stories are shaping our perception of ourselves today.
- Next, we can absolutely know for certain that these old stories that trigger you to feel insecure trigger an emotion we call “anxiety.”
- And without a doubt you can know that it is the anxiety you feel, that arises from these old stories about what’s wrong with you, that triggers you to focus on your body and on food in a way that is critical, undermining and stifling of your energy and creativity in life.
Without exception you can know these 4 things are true about yourself if you use food to cope. (ie. eat when you’re not hungry; eat more than you’re hungry for; or don’t allow yourself to eat when you are hungry).
(more…)
Tags: acceptance, anxiety, body image, body/mind/spirit, compulsive eating, core beliefs, drill sergeant, eating disorders, exploring, forgiveness, future, grounding, healing, insecurity, nurturing, rebalancing, recovery, self care, self esteem, self love, self worth
Posted in: CEDRIC Centre, Relationship with Others, Relationship with Self
Posted by mmorand on August 7, 2009
Hello All!
It’s been a very busy time here at CEDRIC and in my own life. Thankfully both pieces seem to be settling down and August looks to be a time of catching up, relaxing and settling in. Here, here!
I’m very much enjoying my patio, with its all day sunshine and watching my young son bouncing merrily on his trampoline.
I was sifting through a journal from this time last year and recognized that many of the goals I had for my life last year have been realized and that the others are well on their way to manifesting. It occurred to me in that moment how incredibly lucky that makes me, and then it occurred to me that it wasn’t luck at all. It was the practice of first trusting that I was deserving of and could create the life of my dreams; then came the piece of conceptualizing that dream existence; then came the process of identifying the steps I needed to take to get from point A to point B.
Trust in the big picture
All along the theme is trust. Trusting my deservedness, trusting my capabilities, trusting the key people in my life, trusting that, regardless of how things seem in the moment, they always, always, work out for the best. I don’t know whether you’re a spiritual person, a religious person or neither. The good news is it doesn’t matter. You don’t have to believe in a higher power or God or anything greater than yourself (although you certainly can) in order to be able to look back at your life so far and see that the events and circumstances you felt maybe “shouldn’t” have been happening then led you to the place you are now.
Out of adversity comes strength. That has been shown to me time and time again. The greatest gift of my personal growth this past decade has been the development of a profound sense of trust that regardless of how things appear in any given moment, they are unfolding exactly as they should. And if I look for the gains, the positives in each situation, I will find them, just as surely as I will find the downside if I seek it.
It is our choice, as beings with free will, to focus on what is working or on what isn’t; to attach to how we think things should be or to let go and be open to the silver lining in every situation. It is so easy to get hooked on how things should look and then get angry, sad, hurt, frustrated, scared, etc. when things don’t go as planned. It is far, far easier and far more strengthening to recognize when you’re holding on to things looking a certain way and to just let go and trust that something even better than you had imagined is coming your way.
Again, you don’t have to look very far to see the truth of this. Most of us can recall a circumstance – say, the loss of a job or a relationship that we wouldn’t have chosen at the time and that we truly felt shouldn’t be happening or was just downright “wrong.” In hindsight though, wouldn’t you say that “it” worked out for the best; that the loss of that connection or career opened new avenues that led to people and places you wouldn’t now trade for the world?
It’s a challenge in the moment to let go and trust in the bigger picture. In fact, it would be truthful to say it is “the” challenge of our lives. And the more we learn to recognize when we’re holding on and to instead, allow ourselves to just let go and trust, the easier, more peaceful, more fun, more amazing and beautiful life gets.
I challenge you to recognize some of the things in your present life that you’re resisting letting go of or resisting accepting and see what happens if you just challenge yourself to say, “Well, this is what’s happening. It may scare me. It may not be what I expected or wanted. But I know things always unfold in a way that leads me to bigger and better things. Can I just relax and open myself to this experience as best I can?”
If you can repeat this mantra when you catch yourself resisting change, you will find a sense of strength and peace, even in the face of a greatest challenge, that carries you through. We are human, we have feelings. That’s healthy and normal. It’s what we do with those feelings that makes the difference. Do we stuff them and tell ourselves we shouldn’t have them or that what’s happening in our lives shouldn’t be happening? Or do we recognize them for the indicators they are and look beneath them for the situation or story that is triggering them? The first scenario leads to the use of food to cope. The second scenario leads to freedom.
If you’d like to be able to choose the second scenario over the first and to develop a deep sense of trust in your ability to navigate life with dignity and grace, rather than with food and body image focus, I welcome the opportunity to work with you and support you to achieve that goal.
It is possible.
Whether you prefer one-on-one counselling (in-person, by phone, or email), our intensive and transformative workshops, or the self-help approach, take action today to have a stress-free relationship with food. Life is far too short to waste one more day.
Love Michelle
Tags: acceptance, body/mind/spirit, core beliefs, drill sergeant, eating disorders, exploring, forgiveness, future, grounding, growing, healing, nurturing, past, present, promises, recovery, self care, self esteem, self love, tandem healing, workshops
Posted in: CEDRIC Centre, Relationship with Others, Relationship with Self
Posted by mmorand on July 22, 2009
Life is beautiful. It is complex and it has many twists and turns, but it has a quality of freedom and the opportunity for constant self-creationism that, with the right mindset, allows each of us to feel exuberant, passionate, alive and fulfilled whether we are accepting a Nobel prize, giving birth, beginning or ending a relationship, washing the dishes or stuck in rush-hour traffic. But what about someone who doesn’t have the “right” mindset? What about someone who, however it came to be, doesn’t see the world as their oyster of creation but instead sees themselves as undeserving of what they desire; who sees themselves as “not good enough”? How do they navigate the stress of accepting an award, having a child, ending a relationship or that inevitable traffic jam?
Mostly likely they’ve developed patterns of thinking, feeling and behaving called “coping strategies” that allow them to feel some degree of safety and security in their world. Coping strategies take many forms. One primary coping strategy that many people in our society develop is a preoccupation with appearance and with their relationship with food, either in a restricting or overeating way.
(more…)
Tags: acceptance, body image, body/mind/spirit, CEDRIC Centre, control, core beliefs, drill sergeant, eating disorders, exploring, forgiveness, grounding, growing, healing, insecurity, nurturing, rebalancing, recovery, self care, self esteem, self love, self worth, tandem healing, workshops
Posted in: CEDRIC Centre, Relationship with Others, Relationship with Self, workshops
Posted by mmorand on July 9, 2009
Traveling with an eating disorder packs a triple whammy for the already beleaguered spirit in desperate need of true rest and relaxation. Whether you struggle with dieting, overeating, purging or a general dissatisfaction with your physical form that prevents you from settling peacefully into the moment, a vacation can be a stress-filled experience that makes you want to just stay at home instead with the covers pulled high.
In this 3-part article, I will not deal with the obvious stress of the obligatory attempts at dieting in anticipation of any vacation that requires the baring of any skin above the elbow or knee. That is a topic for another day. Instead, I will address the 3 key ways in which traveling can challenge the tenuous grip most disordered eaters have on their relationship with food and weight: limitations/abundance of choice; change in routine; and the emotional impact of traveling. As I explore each of these confounding circumstances I will provide you with some suggestions on how to approach them in the most simple and life-enhancing way so you can relax and enjoy your well-earned vacation. (more…)
Tags: acceptance, body image, CEDRIC Centre, community, core beliefs, drill sergeant, eating disorders, exploring, forgiveness, future, grounding, growing, healing, natural eating, nurturing, past, present, rebalancing, self esteem, self love, self worth, triggers
Posted in: CEDRIC Centre, Relationship with Others, Relationship with Self
Posted by mmorand on July 7, 2009
Your rate of recovery from your stressful relationship with food depends on your readiness for change. For example, I have worked with many people who have struggled for years, even decades with overeating, restricting and/or purging, and within 5 or 6 sessions, they are transformed, feeling clear, purposeful and trusting in their ability to no longer use food to cope. Yet others may take a few months or a year or two to get to the same place. And that’s perfectly fine.
There is no right or wrong way to move through the healing process. It’s a completely personal experience and the length of the healing journey depends on many factors but the most important thing for us all is this:
(more…)
Tags: acceptance, anorexia, anxiety, binge eating, body image, body/mind/spirit, bulimia, CEDRIC Centre, control, core beliefs, drill sergeant, eating disorders, exploring, forgiveness, grounding, growing, healing, insecurity, natural eating, nurturing, overeating, past, present, promises, self care, self esteem, self love, self worth, tandem healing, triggers, workshops
Posted in: CEDRIC Centre, Relationship with Others, Relationship with Self, workshops
Posted by Cedric on June 26, 2009
For thousands of years many cultures have held a belief in a very powerful philosophy, the gist of which is: we create our thoughts, and our thoughts create our life as we know it. Because our thoughts are our very own creation, we alone have the power to change them and therefore to change our entire experience of life as we know it.
(more…)
Tags: acceptance, anorexia, anxiety, binge eating, CEDRIC Centre, core beliefs, eating disorders, exploring, forgiveness, future, grounding, healing, insecurity, nurturing, overeating, past, present, rebalancing, self esteem, self worth, workshops
Posted in: CEDRIC Centre, Relationship with Self, workshops
Page 14 of 16 «...101213141516
