Defining Self-Acceptance… Or At Least My Definition

My client, whom we’ll call Sally, was telling me how she’s been reading up on all sorts of positive body image blogs. You know, blogs that encourage you to love yourself and accept yourself as you are right now. And that was just all too far from reality for her to be able to swallow. […]

Product Showcase: Building Your Anti-Dieting Community

Image Source In this Product Showcase I provide you with four resources to build your anti-diet community. And if you are trying to get off the dieting train, you know it takes fortitutde and a lot of positive reinforcement in this toxic and obsessed culture we live in. I review the book “The Gluten Lie” […]

Guest Post: The Little Book of Confidence

Here is another fantastic post by Christina Ypsilantis, Simmons Dietetic Intern.  Do you ever have times when you need a little boost to your day?  Sometimes a cup of coffee may help, some yoga, or even a brisk walk to clear your head.  While those can all be effective ways to get rid of the […]

Crushing on Brene Brown

I first read Brene Brown’s book “The Gifts of Imperfection” nearly two years ago after watching her landmark TED talk. Both the talk and the book affected me in ways that no other work had before. Her research and message has changed me as a person and as a clinician. I actually wrote a bit […]

Lessons From Nemo: Fasting and Feasting

This past weekend, we had a major storm out here in New England. In fact, I’ve never seen so much snow at once! As I was watching Facebook, my inbox, and news reports I was intrigued with everyone’s efforts to prepare for the upcoming deluge. In fact, I found it incredibly interesting. Many people headed […]

Recipe for Joy and Meaning

 Have you ever read a book that has truly transformed you? A book that has transformed your world view, your priorities, and your purpose? There have been a few of those books in my life time. Professionally, the first time this happened was when I read the book “Intuitive Eating.” That book  profoundly influenced the […]

#ENDED Twitter Chat with Dr Deah Recap

Thank you to all the participants for our Twitter Chat last night! We helped to ring in a body positive summer by participating with Dr Deah-Expressive Arts Therapist and Health at Every Size Expert . Missed the chat? We saved a recap here for you!  Q1. What does the term expressive therapy mean? What are […]

Mindfulness: The Art & Science of Changing Your Brain

What do you think about when you hear the word “mindfulness?” To be honest, I used to think “nope, not for me!”. Breath in, breath out, follow my breath. Ugh! I honestly couldn’t see the point and every time I tried it seemed like a miserable failure.  And then I attended a workshop by the […]

#endED Twitter Chat with Michelle May

If I said it once, I’ll say it again: I am STOKED about tomorrow night’s twitter chat. We have the pleasure of chatting with Michelle May, author of “Eat What You Love, Love What You Eat: Break the Eat, Repent, Repeat Cycle” and creator of “Amy I Hungry?”. Michelle is a motivational speaker and guru of […]

Sunny Sea Gold and “Food: The Good Girl’s Drug”

In March I attended the BEDA conference and had the pleasure of hearing from and meeting Sunny Sea Gold. Sunny currently works for Redbook, has written a book for girls struggling with binge eating “Food: The Good Girl’s Drug”, maintains her blog, has recovered from her BED herself, and is a rock star “recovery warrior.” […]

Intuitive Eating and Eating Disorder Recovery

I was recently asked by Nina V, owner of the website www.helpforeatingdisorder.com, to write an article on Intuitive Eating and eating disorder recovery. I recently completed my training to become a certified Intuitive Eating Coach and was thrilled to share my thoughts. Enjoy. Intuitive Eating is a phrase that is famous among many people hoping […]

#endED Twitter Chat Re-Cap with Harriet Brown

Last week Harriet Brown was our guest expert for our monthly #endED Twitter Chat. She taught us a lot about family based treatment for anorexia and the important roles that families play in supporting their loved one through recovery from an eating disorder. (If you want to learn more about her story, this is a […]

#endED Twitter Chat with Harriet Brown

Our next #endED Twitter chat is Wed, April 20th with Harriet Brown. We’ll discuss myths and facts about anorexia nervosa, family-based treatment, and ways in which families can positively affect eating disorder recovery. Check out the Facebook Event Page for more details, including how to participate in a twitter chat if you’ve never done so […]

Connecting to Ourselves: Hungers

This past week I had the privilege of attending a conference with the phenomenal speaker Anita Johnston, Ph.D. and author of Eating in the Light of the Moon. Dr. Johnston talked a lot about deciphering our true hunger by using imagery and metaphors. One thing in particular that really stood out to me was when she […]

#endED Twitter Chat with Evelyn Tribole Re-Cap

In 2004 I was living in Southern California and completing my dietetic internship. I was one of the very few assigned to spend a couple of months working at a residential treatment facility for eating disorders. Not only did I learn that I was passionate about treating eating disorders, but I discovered the book “Intuitive […]

Measurement of Health: Our Neck?

Anyone who knows me well, knows that I think measuring things like weight and BMI isn’t all that useful.  I just don’t feel that the information tells us a whole lot about our health. I believe that it gives us a sliver of information, not the whole picture.  I believe that focusing on behavior is […]

Orthorexia: Can healthy eating be a disease?!

Yesterday, I received several emails with a link to this article on a condition called “Orthorexia.”  Most people read the article and wondered if it was serious, wondered if it wasn’t some sort of exaggeration or joke.   And while I admit, reading about it online may seem strange or even ridiculous, it is a […]

Book Review: Goodbye Ed, Hello Me

I just finished reading “Good-bye Ed, Hello Me” by Jenni Schaefer and I am a HUGE fan.  Jenni wrote about being “in recovery” in her first book “Life Without Ed” (which is also a phenomenal book that I highly recommend).  But in this follow-up book, she talks about what life is like and what life […]

Improving Body Image

Many of the clients that I see for individual nutrition counseling struggle with their body image.  I was scoping out some resources and came across a couple I thought were worthy of sharing.  I hope they may be of use to you or someone you know. 1.) The Body Image Workbook: An 8 Step Program […]

National Nutrition Month

In case you didn’t know, it’s National Nutrition Month.  A time to celebrate delicious and nutritious eating all month long!  The American Dietetic Association has provided a Good Nutrition Reading List that you may find helpful.  I’m currently reading “The Rules of Normal Eating” and am lovin’ it! Here’s to happy eating and happy reading. […]

Healthy Weight Week

You might not know it, but this week has been officially named “Healthy Weight Week.”  As a dietitian in Cambridge who specializes in the treatment of eating disorders and works predominantly with women who struggle with their weight and body image issues, I’m pretty sensitive to the topic of weight. It’s been my experience that […]

2010 Food Trends

Marion Nestle, author of “Food Politics,” “Safe Food,” and “What to Eat” and professor in the nutrition, food studies and public health department at New York University was recently interviewed by the San Fracisco Chronicle about her food prediction trends for 2010.  I highly recommend checking out Nestle’s blog for a ton of really reliable/non-biased […]

Media Literacy vs. Thin is In

I recently blogged about Ralph Lauren and the fashion industry’s constant stream of messages and images which negatively affect women’s self-esteem and feelings of self-worth. And unfortunately, the glorification of a thin body is so pervasive in our society; it’s becoming more and more difficult to question its validity. I’m currently in the middle of […]

Food Rules

Today, theNew York Times magazine is all about food. One of the articles, written by Michael Pollan caught my eye. It’s about food rules.  Basically, his premise is that culture might have more to teach us than the government or trained nutritionists.  Pollan says “If we can’t rely on the marketers or the government or […]

Holly Clegg’s Cookbook “Eating Well Through Cancer”

I have an absolute love for reading and buying cookbooks.  Everytime I get a new one, my husband wonders if I don’t already have enough recipes to choose from…I reassure him that you can never have too many cookbooks.  And one of my very favorite cookbooks is one I received while teaching a nutrition class […]

Diet & Health Care Reform

While the excitement surrounding the election of our 44th President of the United States is slowly dying down, the buzz on politics certainly hasn’t diminished in my neck of the woods.  While the economy is certainly the most talked about topic, I’ve been happy to hear both President Obama and his wife address issues of […]

The Feeding Relationship: Parents & Children

I just got back from serving on a health panel at my church here in Cambridge.  I thoroughly enjoyed talking about my topic of choice (food and nutrition) for two hours.  While there was a wide variety of questions that I addressed, a common theme focused on the feeding relationship between parents and children.  While […]

Grocery Shopping Part I: Preparation

Ever since I was a little girl, I loved to grocery shop.  I’d join my Mom on weekly visits to Basha’s grocery store.  The spray of water descending on the heads of lettuce in the produce section, perfectly lined rows of canned chili and sliced peaches, and brightly lit displays of giant glazed donuts in […]