Thank you for your patience during our break from writing here on the blog. Some bigger projects and life have filled our time—but I’m so glad to be back with you today!
Over the years, we’ve learned to “befriend” the barriers people carry around disordered eating and recovery. After all, when did begging, commanding, judging, or lecturing ever help anyone change?
The Power of Being Heard
When looking back at my early years of recovery, being told “something was for my own good” or shaming and criticizing myself never moved me forward.
What helped instead was being heard. Do you relate to this? That is why it has become second nature for us as human beings to easily not “take the bait” when people beg us to help them lose weight. The only thing these parts of us are programmed to see is that weight loss is the savior of all problems. All they know how to do is diet, for example, to ease some deeper wounding and pain.
Making Space for Supportive Eating
A mantra we have given in the past to everyone is “let’s be radically compassionate, curious, and courageous” because that is what is going to make room inside for more choices to eat supportively (a mix of nutrition insights and body-led needs and preferences).
The 8 C’s of Internal Family System
Let us add to and expand on our first-step ingredients that will benefit you in your quest for truly holistic health, having food just be food again. It starts with the 8 C’s that are foundational to the IFS (Internal Family Systems) approach to healing internal and creative conflicts.
Basically you have you, the you that wants to get better, eat without obsession, etc. Then you have the “you’s” inside who don’t want to get better for all kinds of reasons, beliefs, and suppressed emotions. Understanding and healing these dilemmas is the key to living an embodied recovery, not just performing it and then having another life stressor come along and relapse happen
How we approach our insides looks like this:
Calm, curious, courageous, compassionate, connectedness, clarity, confidence, and creativity.
In this video, we’ll let you in on how these dialogues can go, why judging how you might be reacting to external or internal triggers just tightens up the desire to keep doing the manipulative behaviors, or blocks you from eating how you dream to. How this way of interacting with yourself will improve how we reason with our diet-obsessed world as well.
A Courageous Commitment to Growth
Definitely a disclaimer… We believe this is vulnerable, delicate, gutsy, and honorable work. We have seen this in our own healing and that of 100’s of others. It’s okay that it might not be for you and you prefer a different approach to stop restricting or binging. It’s not a quick fix.
Take It Slow—and Celebrate Every Step
If you decide to try this on your own, please go slow. Remember to congratulate yourself on what you learned, and keep trying at the pace that is good for you. Have something pleasurable, connecting, and nourishing to go to after you spend time inside.
Sometimes (I have experienced this), there were places in me that needed more support. Doing this with someone can bring huge breakthroughs that we can’t always access on our own. Please reach out so we can help! www.tracybrownrd.com/get-started
All of our best, Tracy and team,
