by Libby

Some Thoughts on Fullness + Thanksgiving Recipe Ideas!

Happy Wednesday! How is your week going so far? We went to one of my friends from high school’s wedding on Saturday and then church + celebrating Alec’s bday with my side of the family on Sunday. It also went from 60s/70s/sunny to 20s/30s/snowy/cold rain in the past week… I suppose it is goodbye to fall!

Can you believe it is already Thanksgiving next week? We have plans to spend the week in Iowa with Alec’s side of the family. I always enjoy getting away for a few days and seeing family (+ meeting our newest nephew!).

How do you feel about Thanksgiving? I know for some of my clients and for many people in general, Thanksgiving can be a source of stress, anxiety, and discomfort. For anyone struggling in their relationship with food, the holidays can be a tough time to navigate. (On top of any usual family and/or disruption of routine stressors!)

In the spirit of the upcoming holiday, I wanted to share a brief post today on some thoughts regarding FULLNESS. (Plus some fun Thanksgiving recipes!)

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by Libby

Everyday Eats 11.9.22

Hello everyone! How is your week going so far? I am feeling a bit worn out this week with two recent weekends away. Both very enjoyable and worth it, but being away from home always tends to wear me out. It seems like this fall really crept up on me with a lot of weekend plans!

The first weekend was up north to Charlevoix/Petoskey area for camping with Alec.

I was thinking a few weeks out that we should cancel the trip and book a hotel or Air BnB instead because I was worried it was going to be really cold and/or rainy for camping in mid-October in northern Michigan. Would not be fun! BUT we ended up having amazing weather (60s/70s and sunny!) and perfect timing for peak fall colors!

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by Libby

5 Strategies to Help Prevent Binge Eating

Do you ever struggle with feeling out-of-control around food? Do you find that you have patterns of days where you restrict your food intake and consciously try to eat “healthy,” followed by days of feeling chaotic around food and like you’ve “blown it” when it comes to eating and nutrition? If so, you are not alone. Experiences of binge eating, overeating, and/or feeling out-of-control around food in general can lead to feelings of guilt and shame that are difficult to manage and can lead to a spiral of even more chaotic eating in the future.

First things first, let’s define binge eating. Binge eating is characterized by the following: (1) eating an amount of food in a given period of time (for example, within an hour) that is objectively and considerably more than most people would eat during a similar timeframe and under similar circumstances; AND (2) a sense that you are out-of-control in regards to the eating episode. Binge eating episodes often involve eating much more quickly than usual, eating past a comfortable level of fullness, eating large quantities of food even though you aren’t physically hungry, eating alone due to shame/embarrassment regarding what and how much you are eating, and feeling guilty/disgusted with oneself afterwards.

Maybe you do struggle with actual clinical-level binge eating as described above. OR if not, maybe you struggle from time to time with feeling out-of-control around food, or chaotic and mindless in your eating. Either way, feeling this way is tough and worthy of getting help.

Whether you experience aspects of binge eating disorder or any degree of chaotic/out-of-control feelings around food, there are strategies you can begin to incorporate TODAY to help normalize feelings + thoughts around food, helping you to be more present and engaged in your everyday life. Let’s learn more!

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by Libby

Everyday Eats 10.26.22

Hello everyone! How is your week going? The fall colors have been amazing and I am sad we are at/past peak fall in that regard. We didn’t have the best spring/summer here in Michigan weather-wise which is making it hard to feel ready for the colder months ahead!!  *Sigh.*

What have you been enjoying in the kitchen lately?? I have been making a lot of simple egg dishes, eating plenty of honeycrisp apples (why we bother we other apple varieties I am not sure when HC are clearly superior…), and starting to get into some warmer and cozier meals.

More details on what has been happening in the kitchen!

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by Libby

Ways to Increase Iron Intake + Absorption

Today I thought I’d do a blog post discussing a bit about IRON. Iron is a common micronutrient deficiency in the populations I work with and it can take a little intentionality to be consuming adequate amounts of iron in your diet on a regular basis (and in ways that promote optimal absorption – more on that later).

In this post we will be thinking about:

    • Why is iron important and who is at increased risk for iron-deficiency anemia (IDA)?
    • What are common symptoms of iron-deficiency anemia?
    • What are some ways I can increase both my iron intake and my ability to effectively absorb the iron I do consume?

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by Libby

Increasing Satisfaction in Eating

Hello everyone! Today we are talking about SATISFACTION in eating. A lot of what I think about when it comes to having a healthy relationship with food connects back to satisfaction. Satisfaction can be thought of on a physical level (are you adequately nourished and responding to your hunger/fullness cues?) and also a more psychological/emotional level (are you regularly eating foods you enjoy and not feeling deprived?).

So often it seems that satisfaction gets left out when thinking about nutrition and eating. YES food is fuel for our bodies. YES it is important to eat plenty of fruits and veggies. HOWEVER, are you also seeking to pursue enjoyment in your daily eating experience, feeling appropriately satiated throughout the day, and regularly eating foods you find pleasurable?

As I have written about before, the array of health benefits we can get from food have to do with much more than their physical/nutritional benefits. For optimal health, it is important take into account not only the nutritional content of what we are eating, but also our emotional and mental well-being – aka our relationship with food.

When we seek satisfaction, listening to our bodies, and a healthy relationship with food as the foundation for our eating, meeting our nutritional needs tends to fall into place without our constant micromanaging. You may be wondering: how can I grow in experiencing greater satisfaction in eating? (*and thus improve my physical, nutritional, mental, and emotional health??*) Let’s explore this idea with the following ideas!

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by Libby

Everyday Eats 9.28.22

Hello everyone! It is now officially fall, (unquestionably) the best time of year! I have been soaking up the season so far mainly by enjoying the sunrises and sunsets, watching college football on Saturdays, and cooking + baking a variety of fall recipes. It has been a rather hot September here in Michigan, but it seems to finally be cooling off a bit! There have been a number of interesting sunrises I have seen this month such as the one shown below.

On to discussing some recent eats!

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by Libby

A Few Things That Helped Me in Recovery

Recovering from an eating disorder was the hardest thing I have ever done in my life. I don’t even think there is a particularly close second?? There is a reason recovery rates for anorexia are generally estimated to be below 50% (and I would argue probably considerably lower, depending on one’s definition of “recovery”), and that it is the mental illness with the highest mortality rate. Not only is it a severe mental illness, but unlike other mental illnesses, the sufferer is literally physically starving themself to death as a result of the internal mental and biological processes gone astray. To make matters worse, the person generally doesn’t realize they are even sick (at least not initially or for a while), and the “anorexia brain” causes the person to not want to get better and to maintain the eating disorder at all costs (again, at least initially).

IT IS A TERRIBLE THING, LET ME TELL YOU! And I have tremendous compassion for anyone reading this post who is suffering or who knows someone who is.

From my own experience and considering the experiences of other people I have talked to or read from, the downward spiral into full-blown anorexia is usually very sharp and sudden. While I have a lot more insight now, when I broadly look back on my experience, it is like I was walking…walking…walking…going about my life, and then suddenly it was like I fell off a cliff and was helplessly consumed by this devastating thing in my mind I had no control over and didn’t even realize was there. Anorexia, from my experience, was like this out-of-body, dissociative experience of devastation taking place inside my mind with drastic physical consequences. While the downfall into anorexia is often sudden, the full climb out is long and challenging, taking a tremendous amount of motivation and perseverance.

However, I believe that full recovery is possible for anyone, no matter how serious the illness or how long it has been a problem in your life.

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by Libby

Everyday Eats 9.14.22

Hi everyone! We recently got back from our trip to West Virginia over Labor Day Weekend. It was SUCH a nice time away! I am quite sad that it is over. I am also pretty much convinced that West Virginia is the most underrated state in the U.S…beautiful mountains + forests + waterfalls, scenic driving, hikes, not very crowded…what more could one want? WV is the only state entirely within a mountain range, so all the driving was constant beauty! Shoutout to Alec for handling the mountain driving like a pro. I would’ve been done for without him!

A few highlights from the trip:

Long Point Trail in New River Gorge with an amazing view of the New River Gorge Bridge at the end of the hike.

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