One of my favorite parts about blogging is connecting with my readers. I get some really great emails from some pretty great people. Just this week, one of my readers sent me an email about an article she had read- one that I missed. I'm so glad she brought it to my attention. It's pretty alarming.

The front page of USA Today's lifetime section boasted the following stats-

"USA Today Snapshot: Medical providers rank parent-child health discussions by importance:

Weight= 90%

Safe Sex= 73%

Cigarette Smoking= 73%

Drug Use= 72%

Alcohol= 68%"


Maybe there wouldn't be as many STD's and teen pregnancies if safe sex discussions were prioritized as highly as weight. These stats are really reflective of the culture at large- weight is important, and it really, really matters. It is important to be healthy yes, and it is important that we know how to care for ourselves and for our bodies. There is certainly a place for good health. However, it is a little shocking to see that medical providers value weight discussions over safe sex, drug use, alcohol and cigarette smoking! This is a good reality check, right in time for Fat Talk Free Week which is approaching right around the corner.


I read a really amazing blog post the other day that I tweeted- (I just recently jumped back on the twitter wagon again- if you're interested, you can follow me here for ED related articles, info, quotes, etc. I don't get too crazy with twitter, but it's been fun to connect). Anyways- here is the link to the blog I mentioned. Below is an excerpt:


I think that one of the most damaging and erroneous messages that we are given by society is that unless you’re thin, you will never be enough.  Sure you won a Grammy for your first CD and an Oscar for your first film, but are you thin?  I understand that you are the governor of a state and that people want you to run for President, but are you thin? You’re thin now so we expect you to maintain that obsessively so that you are never not thin.  You eat nourishing foods and move your body regularly, but are you thin? You’re a great mother but are you thin?  You’re a successful business person but are you thin? You’re 4 years old but are you thin? You’re 90 years old but are you thin? You cured cancer but are you thin?

Enough.

You are already enough.  Your intrinsic value is already beyond measure.  And you will not be more valuable if there is less of you or less valuable if there is more of you.


Isn't that great? I love that. To read more follow this link. Hope everyone is having a great weekend! :)

World Mental Health Day!

Today, Monday, October 10, marks World Mental Health Day. The World Health Organization (WHO) created this day as an opportunity to increase awareness about mental health, especially as the lack of attention that mental illness receives around the world interferes with people being properly treated. Psych Central, a great psychology resource online, has encouraged bloggers to get involved and promote understanding and awareness via a blogging party! I'm all for a blogging party, especially on a Monday:) Fun times.


Back in May, I wrote about National Mental Health Counseling Week and shared some stats with you. According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), 1 in 4 American adults ages 18 and up suffer from a diagnosable mental illness in any given year- 26.2% of the country's population, to be exact. What this means is that it is likely that either you or someone that you know and love dearly has been touched by mental illness. Beyond the US, statistics from the World Health Organization (here) indicate that the resources available to treat people all over the world are inadequate. That goes for the US as well as abroad.


In the field of eating disorders, many strides are being made daily as it relates to education and raising awareness. If you look back, even recently in the media, Yoplait Yogurt pulling ads that were triggering and insensitive to viewers was a huge step in acknowledging the complexity of eating disorders, and that dieting can and does trigger EDs in some people.  Communities all over the country have been participating in National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA) Walks to raise awareness and funds to support continued research. You can read a re-cap of the Raleigh NEDA Walk here. 


The conversations that are happening today are so important, because change comes out of awareness, dialogue and then action. Just like recovery from an eating disorder, awareness is not enough to bring about change. One doesn't choose an eating disorder, but one must choose to recover from the eating disorder. Action is required for healing to take place, and often this is the toughest part! In thinking about World Mental Health Day, whether you or someone you know has struggled with an eating disorder, anxiety, depression, obsessive compulsive disorder, bipolar disorder, or another illness, what action might you take to raise awareness today? 


To check out the blogging party going on today over at Psych Central, follow this link!

Gratitude and Girls on the Run!!!

I often write about gratitude on my blog because it is something that I believe is a very important and crucial practice... so I was really excited when I found out that one of the lessons for this week's Girls on the Run practice was all about gratitude!! I have alluded in recent posts to my volunteer commitment, and I couldn't be more excited about it. Along with two other coaches, I am leading a group of 16 girls (3rd-5th graders) two times a week through a character building curriculum that is designed to promote self-esteem, self-respect and confidence.  Volunteering is something that I value for the way it promotes self-esteem, a sense of self and of course service to others:), and while I have had to make some adjustments in order to fit these weekly practices into my schedule, it has been beyond worth the sacrifice! These girls are fabulous in so many ways, and remind me how important it is for us to encourage and support girls from a young age in order to protect them from the messages that they pick up around them concerning what it means to be a girl, what it means to be beautiful, etc..


On Tuesday, we discussed how important it is to reflect on the things that we are grateful for in our lives, and why its so important to live with an attitude of gratitude. No matter how old you are or what you have lived through and experienced, this is one lesson that always seems to be relevant :)
Some things the girls were thankful for:

• Family, Friends, Pets
• Lunch and Recess at School :-)
• Doctors and Dentists
• Clothes
• The list may have been more extensive (and funny), but for the sake of this post, I won't include all of it! 

Some things that I am 
grateful for:

Life!! Stephanie, my new friend and fellow coach, is pregnant & the girls wanted to see if they could feel her baby kick. We're all so blessed to be alive. I know that I take that for granted- and when I remember how fortunate I am to be alive, I start to appreciate things around me more, the people around me and the moments in my life that might otherwise pass me by.

Fun!

How cute are these two? Olivia and Adeline are two of our Girls on the Run and got a little sassy with the camera. (Don't worry, parents signed photo releases at the beginning of the season!!) I'm so thankful for laughter and fun to lighten things up. While laughter may not always be the best medicine, I think it comes pretty close :-)

Challenges! Ok- so this one might sound a little odd. But I believe that the challenging times we go through shape us in important ways, teach us about our inner strength and beauty, and provide us opportunities to develop character. Challenges aren't easy, which is why they're called challenges:) But without the challenges, we might not appreciate the fun, carefree times as much without them! Whatever challenges you face today, remember that you are not alone, that you are strong, and are alive- practicing gratitude can help you to get through the tough moments.

I am so thankful for the opportunity that I've had over the last 4 weeks to work with such amazing girls, and look forward to the next 8 weeks!! If you are interested in learning more about Girls on the Run, or are interested in finding out more about volunteer opportunities if you live in or around Raleigh NC, follow this link. Girls on the Run was founded by Molly Barker in Charlotte, NC, but there are chapters all over the country. To find one in your neighborhood, follow this link. 


Below is a little video that I thought would be fun to leave you with- this isn't my Girls on the Run team, but this clip features different teams from a few years back. It's very sweet- you should check it out! :)

Summer Reading Check-In... :-)

Me :)

Happy October!! Now that Fall is here, this might be a good time for me to check back in with my (nerd alert!) summer reading list, which can be found here. I didn't end up reading all of the books on my list (yet)- I still have 2 that I haven't read and a bunch of new ones... thanks to Borders and their going out of business sale. Because you may or may not be interested in my book reviews of all of these books, I thought I would just jot a few key points down- if you are interested in hearing more, shoot me an email!

• Brave Girl Eating by Harriet Brown was fabulous. A must-read for parents or family members who have raised/lived with someone who has struggled with an eating disorder. It was an extremely quick read- took 2 days, and tears were shed. It's full of anguish- but abounding with hope. It depicts the experience so accurately and honestly.
• Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich- an analysis of this book is more appropriate for another blog, not mine:)- but another must-read. It is a social commentary (written back in 2001), and one that I enjoyed for how it challenged my thinking.
• I loved Cinderella Ate My Daughter by Peggy Orenstein, which I wrote about here and here. If you have a daughter, want to have a daughter, are a girl or are interested in girl culture, it is worth picking up. I have been telling everyone I know to read it.
• The two books I have yet to start are Life Inside the Thin Cage by Constance Rhodes, and Rock What You've Got by Katherine Schwarzenegger. They both look great- and I'm excited to get started with both... one of these days.
• The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein, took me awhile to get through- I'm not sure why, but it didn't captivate me quite like I've heard others report. Still an entertaining book, written uniquely from the perspective of a dog. Haha.
• Love, love, loved the Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin- highly recommend it.
• Goodbye Ed, Hello Me by Jenni Schaefer- a great book about life in recovery from an eating disorder, and a follow-up to Schaefer's Life Without Ed.
• I picked up a few of Geneen Roth's books- Women, Food and God; Breaking Free From Emotional Eating; and When Food is Love- and while her books tend to be very similar, I think they have a lot of value. I hadn't read any of these before, and wanted to see if they might be a helpful resource for clients! I will write more on her books in another post. My favorite book that she has written is called When You Eat at the Refrigerator, Pull Up a Chair- it is also on my list of things to blog about:).
• I read a memoir called Designated Fat Girl by Jennifer Joyner- her journey through gastric bypass surgery. It's a book that highlights binge eating disorder- and is a very heartfelt, emotional story. Will be writing more about this book, gastric bypass surgery and lap band surgery in the future.

While I could probably go on for awhile, I won't :) I would encourage you to check out some of these books if any of these topics appeal to you- if you are looking for something that is not on my list (that is related to topics I discuss on my blog), let me know and I might be able to direct you to an appropriate resource addressing the particular topic. And, if you have read any books recently that you recommend, please let me know! My reading doesn't end just because the summer did. :)

Odds and Ends

September is drawing to a close, and Fall has officially arrived. I can hardly contain my excitement over Fall this year. I'm not exactly sure why that is, but it might have a little something to do with pumpkins, scarves, and the NC State Fair- it all just makes me a little giddy. 


Anyways- I wanted to quickly post a few random odds and ends before the start of the weekend... 

• First- Forbes magazine highlighted eating disorders as an issue that faces executive, working women in an article that you can find by following this link. Eating disorders don't discriminate and I really respect Forbes for addressing such an important issue that affects many women in their 30's and up. People tend to think of eating disorders as generally affecting teenagers and adolescents, however, women of all ages are being impacted by eating disorders.

• Tomorrow marks the first day that entries will be accepted into the International Association of Eating Disorder Professional's body image art contest: Imagine Me Beyond What You See. It was designed to promote a healthy awareness and acceptance of body images. If you are interested in finding out more about the parameters of the contest, follow this link. When I visited Eating Recovery Center in Denver in March, I saw entry #6 from last year displayed (click here to see it), and it is a beautiful piece of art! 

• Today marks the final day of National Friendship Month!! Give your friends a big hug today or next time you see them and thank them for how special they are to you! A special shout-out to my childhood best friend who has a birthday today- happy happy birthday Nicole! 

Hope everyone has a great weekend! :)