Celebrating International No Diet Day!! [May 6, 2022]

May 6, 2022 Body Image

I Have TWO Reasons to Celebrate today, which is International No Diet Day.

It’s just never going to get old that a worldwide celebration of NOT DIETING also falls on my birthday.

So, you better believe I have two very solid reasons to celebrate.

But I also want to share, in case you didn’t know, that May is also Mental Health Awareness Month. So many important things happening all at one time!

Celebrating International No Diet Day on May 6, 2022

In that spirit, I want to invite you to join me in pushing back against diet culture and honoring your own mental health needs.

There is literally no wrong way to do this but here are a couple of ideas:

  • Hit up your local bakery and “join me” in eating something special, perhaps outside of your typical routine. I plan to head to my personal favorite, Flour Bakery, for my free slice of birthday pie!
  • If you are a mental health worker, access the Ten Percent Happier App FOR FREE, for one year!! I’ve recently been binge listening to this podcast and have found a lot of value in many of the episodes. I really love that Dan Harris is honoring our work with free access to the app – very cool.
  • Find 5 people in your social media feed who are bringing you down and hit delete!!
  • If you love the ocean but can’t get there easily, take 5 minutes to virtually listen to ocean waves.
  • Support the work of small business creators who are spreading the anti-diet message. Purchase stock photography from Lindley Ashline or get some new cute swag from the Nalgona Positivity Pride Etsy shop.
  • Do absolutely nothing for at least an hour today.
  • Take your medication as prescribed.
  • Donate at least one piece of clothing that only fits your body as a result of dieting. Buh-bye!!

Right now, so many external forces are continuously working against your well-being. Let’s band together to show ourselves some extra love today. As one of my supervisees wisely said, “some days a delicious latté can go a really long way.”

What’s your dose of anti-diet, pro-mental health going to be today?

Connecting to the Wisdom of your Body

So often, we live our lives in our minds, totally disconnected from our bodies. The wisdom and information that our bodies have to offer is totally subjugated to the judgments and ideas of our busy and often critical minds. This common pattern leads to choices that are disconnected from our inner compass and fuels the notion that we must rely on rules and even other people’s rules to live our lives!

Download this free meditation, it is an invitation to take time to practice (and it is a practice!) to listen in and respond to the information our body is sending us.