This month, I am hiding out in a small town in BC called Oosoyos, to escape severe seasonal allergies. I am still working full-time, but all over the telephone for the month of June. If you are already a client, please know that I will still be accessible via telephone and will check my messages Monday-Friday and also by email. And if you do opt for a phone session, I pay for the call and have an assistant to run payments through. Believe me, I don’t do this by choice, but out of sheer necessity. If you got my e-zines last year, you’ll remember that I spent June 2013 in Albuquerque, New Mexico for the same reason. This year, my […]
Listening to the wisdom of your body
You must clean the sink (I go to wipe sink)… OWWWWCH! (back spasms and I am immobilized standing in the kitchen standing helplessly in front of the sink) Holy crap! I can’t even move right now…well, maybe if I just try to stretch my arm to the sink… OWWWWWWWCH! (new wave of back spasms and now tears fall down my cheeks from the pain) This was me recently during another one of my “back attacks”- I figure I have one about every 2-3 months. They are excruciatingly painful and stop me dead in my tracks, no matter how busy I am or how much I have to do- this pisses me off like you wouldn’t believe. After all, I am […]
More to Love
Allow me to introduce you to a wonderful colleague and cyberspace friend of mine, an artist extraordinaire who is using her talents to help girls and women feel good about their bodies. Elizabeth is a teacher, a mother, and an artist whose personal experiences and scribblings in a journal have evolved into a book, a blog and a belief that even one minute spent hating our own bodies is a sin, a shame and a personal disaster. She believes: In health and happiness at all sizes That we should love, respect and admire all the amazing sizes, shapes, colors and ages that women come in That women should be measured by the lives we lead, not by the size we […]
Dangling Over the Precipice of 40
Although I’m not quite sure how it happened, I turned 39 this year. This came as a huge shock as I remember my 20s so vividly- as if they were yesterday. It seems to me that once you hit 20, the process of ageing accelerates exponentially until you’ve barely gotten used to the decade you’re currently in and no sooner-whoosh! – It disappears in a flash of lightening and you’re propelled (or catapulted as it often feels) into the next decade kicking and screaming all the way. Even with all of the blessings that have come in my 30s (i.e., material comfort, wisdom, grounding, and a great marriage), I am completely bewildered at how I could possibly be turning 40 […]
Eating Disorders in Midlife
I am seeing more and more women ages 30+ in my practise who are struggling with disordered eating. Many people think that eating disorders are only for teens and women in their twenties, but research shows this is absolutely false. In fact, the following statistics will most likely shock you. I was lucky enough to attend a fabulous presentation recently called “The Weight-Bearing Years: Eating Disorders and Body Image Despair In Adult Women” given by Margo Maine, PhD, & Ann Kearney-Cook, PhD. Here are some very sobering statistics these two experts give on midlife women and eating disorders: In 2003, 1/3 of inpatient admissions to a specialized treatment center for eating disorders were over 30 years old. 43 million adult […]
Napping – A True Sanity-Saver
Life can get hectic, absurd, and sometimes just downright crazy. If you are saying to yourself in your head, “Stop this train- I want to get off!,” chances are that you’re probably in need of some rest and good ‘ol self care. Of all the tools I offer my clients, I can think of no more simple nor effective technique to briefly slow the world around you down and finding some sanity and peace than by shutting off the phone, computer, door, and the lights, curling up on the sofa or bed and having a nap. There’s a reason toddlers take naps everyday! Those of you who have had children understand what I’m talking about- just try to maintain your […]
Mindful Eating Roadblocks (part 3)
Roadblock #3: Eating Things You Don’t Want How often have you had the experience of pigging out on something and once you’d consumed a lot of it, realized you didn’t even like it? I know I have. Eating things we don’t really want is part of the “mindless eating” phenomenon that is so prevalent in our society. We can easily fall into this trap, what I recently heard someone refer to as a “snackcident”, when we’re not paying attention to what and how we are eating. Also, many of us learned as children that it was a sin to not eat everything on our plates, and some were even forced to eat everything they were given so that they could […]
Mindful Eating Roadblocks (part 2)
Roadblock #2: Eating Without Enjoyment This is a topic that is dear to my heart. You see, my mother, Marion Kane, is a food writer. In fact, she was the Food Editor of two major Canadian newspapers for a total of 17 years. So while most kids spent their evenings playing outside, I was busy dining in the finest restaurants of Toronto ordering lots of dishes to help my mum in her “tasting” ceremony which would either make said restaurant into the latest “hot spot” or else put it out of business within two weeks. My mother, unlike me, doesn’t appear to struggle with what to eat, how much to eat, or knowing when she’s full. But still, I have […]
