By Jennifer Kreatsoulas, PhD, C-IAYT, Founder I vividly remember 4 years ago, my then 8-year-old daughter excitedly placing her favorite headband with the giant pink bow on her head as she finished getting ready for a birthday party. Before leaving the house, she looked in the mirror quite pleased with her reflection. She smiled at herself and joyfully listed off all the friends she would see and excitedly wondered what kind cake she would be eating. My daughter's moment in the mirror was such a gift to observe. As a mother of two girls, I often hold my breath, anxious for the moment when th ..read more

By Jennifer Kreatsoulas, PhD, C-IAYT, Founder GREAT NEWS, Y4ED COMMUNITY -- AND WITH MANY THANKS TO ALL OF YOU ... The Yoga for Eating Disorders Blog has been ranked #30 out of the top 100 blogs about eating disorders by FeedSpot! Check it out here. Thank you to all the guest contributors who have bravely shared about their journey with such honesty and have offered inspiration to so many. ? Thank you to all who read the blog and continue to come back for support, inspiration, and comfort from feeling less alone. ? I am looking forward to continuing to share quality and meaningful posts on th ..read more

By Jennifer Kreatsoulas, PhD, C-IAYT, Founder For as long as I can remember, I’ve had an imaginary clock in my mind, keeping me “on track,” whether that was when I was a student who was determined to be perfect in academics and athletics, or as a new mother who anxiously strived to keep the house and everyone in it on schedule. As I share in Chapter 4 of my book, The Courageous Path to Healing, this imaginary clock softly ticked when all the moving parts were functioning like clockwork. It thumped like a pounding headache when I felt time was closing in, like I’d never make the next checkpoin ..read more

By Carey Viejou, Guest Contributor “She’s paranoid.” There’s a story passed along in my extended family that my sister, in her very young years, replied with this answer when asked a question about me. I was an anxious child, then an anxious teen, an anxious young adult. Now in my 30s, the title of “The Anxious One” has followed me like a shadow, refusing to leave my side. It is an old story that my brain repeats like a mantra: “There is so much to be afraid of.” Problems with disordered eating started in high school, initially showing up as dull, throbbing abdominal pains. There seemed to be ..read more

By Jennifer Kreatsoulas, PhD, C-IAYT, Founder "Perfectionism is the voice of the oppressor, the enemy of the people." -Anne Lamott This quote by Anne Lamott hits me hard every time I see or hear it. How about you? In the first chapter of my book, The Courageous Path to Healing, I open up about my oppressive relationship with perfectionism back in college. I was an overachiever and obsessed with being the best in academics and sports. I was also a hard-core people pleaser. Your typical type A individual. While the drive to be perfect may have helped me to achieve great things, it was also ..read more

By Minh-Hai Alex, MS, RDN, CD, RYT, Guest Contributor Can you guess what emotion I’m feeling in these recent moments? Looking up at a row of tall eucalyptus trees while visiting my in-laws in San Diego. I had no idea the tree that supplies this familiar essential oil smell was so tall and magnificent! Seeing a group of people come together to support a homeless encampment community. Listening to a choir sing Bill Wither’s “Lean on Me.” I felt awe, which Dacher Keltner, PhD, UC Berkeley researcher describes as “the feeling of being in the presence of something vast that transcends your ..read more

By Steph Hillier (she/her), Guest Contributor I’m so tired of beating myself up for being an imperfect human. I’ve been tired now for about 5 years, maybe more. I’m not actually sure when I was sucked into the time-warp; probably around the same time as I started to use exercise to manage my stress and existential dread. Going for a run and numbing out to anything mildly uncomfortable became my go-to coping strategy. No danger there, AT ALL. Because exercise is healthy right?? Looking back, I have absolutely no idea where my energy to exercise came from (certainly wasn’t from food); or when I ..read more

By Minh-Hai Alex, MS, RDN, CD, RYT, Guest Contributor A few summers ago, our family was finishing up dinner outside, everyone done eating except my then 4-year-old son. I remember this exchange with him: Levi: Mom, what’s that feeling called? Me: What feeling? Levi: That feeling when you’re full but you don’t want to stop eating. Me: Hmmm… I don’t know… I guess we need a word for that feeling, huh? Levi: Maybe it’s…..happy? My kid’s experience as an eater without the influence of diet culture was simply a fullness in the belly, pleasure in the eating experience and desire to continue eating ..read more

By Minh-Hai Alex, MS, RDN, CD, RYT, Guest Contributor I’ve been talking to lots of clients lately about their body budget, a concept I learned from Lisa Feldman Barrett, PhD, one of the most cited researchers in the world. She writes: “Your brain runs your body using something like a budget. A financial budget tracks money as it’s earned and spent. The budget for your body tracks resources like water, salt and glucose as you gain and lose them. Each action that spends resources, such as standing up, running, and learning, is like a withdrawal from your account. Actions that replenish your res ..read more

By Jo Lamm, Guest Contributor the most beautiful thing just happened. meditating on compassion lying on my yoga mat fragrant pillow resting on my eyes fuzzy blanket keeping me warm. i offered myself compassion on the inhale, my sister compassion on the exhale. so much easier now that she has given up the bottle, no longer passing out in snow banks eyeballs rolled back into her head flirting with death. so much easier now that she is once again my best friend my ally my validation yes, yes it was that way. they willfully denied her eating disorder just as did mine. rescuing her, no, enabling he ..read more