by admin | May 28, 2019 | Body Acceptance, Body Image, Intuitive Eating, Nurtured Mama, parenting, Podcast, Role Model, Support for Moms
Busy Mom's Starter Guide to Making Peace with Food
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We all want our kiddos to feel comfortable in their bodies, but we can’t always protect them from the cultural messaging and outside voices implying that there is a right and wrong way to eat. And for those of us who struggle with eating and body image disorders ourselves, there is the added worry that we might pass these issues on to our children. So, what can we do to raise body positive children with the confidence and autonomy to practice intuitive eating?
Karen Diaz is a registered dietitian certified in intuitive eating. She earned her BS in Dietetics from James Madison University in 2001 and completed her internship at the Cornell Campus of New York—Presbyterian Hospital in 2003. Karen spent several years working as a clinical dietician in the nutrition department at The Renfrew Center, one of the leading centers for eating disorder treatment on the East Coast, before creating The Free Life, a platform designed to support women in overcoming eating and body image disorders. She is also the author of Within: Making Peace with Food and Body Image to Create a Healthy Family and Home.
On this episode of The Embodied & Well Mom Show, Karen joins us to discuss the challenges moms (and parents) face in judging ourselves when it comes to body image and food. She shares the two overarching themes from her book on confronting eating and body image disorders, building yourself up first—and then opening a dialogue with your children. Karen also describes the value in developing a Family Manifesto around food and learning to practice ‘appreciative looking.’ Listen in for Karen’s insight on talking to your kids about cultural messaging and learn her top strategies for raising body positive children!
Key Takeaways
What inspired Karen to specialize in eating disorders
- Addiction issues in family, friend with eating disorder
- 8 years in nutrition department at eating disorder clinic
How we judge ourselves around body image + food
- Rules make it hard to be active participant in relationship
- Remove mom-guilt that we caused child’s issues
The two overarching themes in Karen’s book Within
- Build self up so strong that diet culture crumbles at feet
- Open dialogue in home to address struggles
Karen’s Family Manifesto around food
- Set of beliefs, e.g.: food shouldn’t be reward
- Don’t judge other families for different values
The value in facilitating an open dialogue on body image
- Ask questions to let kids be heard
- Avoid bringing own worries into conversation
The concept of appreciative looking
- Look at photographs 3X, find something like
- Learn to see self in different way
Karen’s advice on shifting negative cultural messages
- YOU determine your environment
- Choose foods that taste good, feel good for you
How to educate your kids on cultural messaging
- Point out lack of size diversity
- Discuss shows with personality based on body size
Karen’s insight on talking to preteens about body image
- Proactive strategies (i.e.: write letters to parts of body)
- Don’t panic about phases, doctor’s comments
Connect with Karen
The Free Life
Karen on Facebook
Karen on Twitter
Karen on Pinterest
Within: Making Peace with Food and Body Image to Create a Healthy Family and Home by Karen Diaz RD
Connect with Lindsay
Intuitive Eating Moms
Embodied & Well Mom Show on Facebook
Lindsay on Instagram
Lindsay on Pinterest
Lindsay on Twitter
Lindsay on LinkedIn
Resources
Wendy Yalom Photography
by admin | Mar 29, 2019 | Division of Responsibility, Ellyn Satter, Emotions & Food, Feeding Disorder, Feeding Strategies, Podcast, Support for Moms
Busy Mom's Starter Guide to Making Peace with Food
Get the 5 day audio course!
Parents receive conflicting messages about feeding. We’re told that getting the right nutrients is incredibly important to our child’s health and wellbeing. Then, we’re told that we should simply offer our kids food and let them decide whether and how much to eat. So, how do we follow both sets of advice? The fact is, nutrition is the result of a trusting feeding relationship, and if you can learn to appreciate your kiddo’s presentation and respond to their cues, you can achieve a stress-free mealtime.
Grace Wong is a certified eating disorder registered dietitian with 15 years of clinical experience in mental health and pediatric nutrition. Grace works with a diverse presentation of feeding and eating disorders and supports children with co-existing conditions like ADHD, autism, sensory processing challenges, anxiety, depression, addiction and trauma. She is committed to helping clients uncover their family feeding history and establish a comfortable environment at mealtime. Grace’s practice is based in Calgary, and she does online coaching through her Facebook business page.
Today, Grace joins us to explain how she supports parents whose kids have complex feeding presentations. She discusses the concept of food acceptance, sharing her aim to get children to a place where variety is not disruptive and her approach to establishing a peaceful mealtime. Listen in for Grace’s insight on the challenges of parenting neuro-diverse kiddos and learn how to appreciate your child’s feeding presentation and build a trusting feeding relationship!
Key Takeaways
How Grace supports parents whose kids eat differently
- Don’t treat child as ‘problem’
- Learn story, family feeding history
- Identify cause of current challenges
- Move child closer to natural trajectory
The tenets of division of responsibility in feeding
- Parents responsible for when, what and where
- Children responsible for whether, how much
The concept of responsive eating
- Relationship rather than set of rules
- Read child’s cues, respond appropriately
Grace’s insight on the idea of food acceptance
- Limited diet grows with experience
- Get to a place where variety not disruptive
The conflicting message parents receive re: feeding
- Nutrition important, necessary for wellbeing
- Offer children food and let them decide
How Grace works to establish a peaceful mealtime
- Collect story and identify stressors
- Give child autonomy to choose or remove
- Address concerns (e.g.: anxiety, appetite)
- Make meals safe + comfortable
The challenges of parenting neuro-diverse children
- Shaming or judgment from friends, family
- Kids employ masking to appear normal
- Increases anxiety, creates more aversion
Grace’s advice on appreciating your child’s presentation
- Develop trusting feeding relationship
- Outcome = nutrition, peace with food
Connect with Grace
Grace on Facebook
Connect with Lindsay
Intuitive Eating Moms
Embodied & Well Mom Show on Facebook
Lindsay on Instagram
Lindsay on Pinterest
Lindsay on Twitter
Lindsay on LinkedIn
Resources
Ellen Satter’s Division of Responsibility
Dr. Katja Rowell
by admin | Mar 4, 2019 | Child Feeding, Community, Feeding Strategies, Nurtured Mama, Podcast, Self Care, stress management, Support for Moms
Busy Mom's Starter Guide to Making Peace with Food
Get the 5 day audio course!
If you have a child with a newly diagnosed food allergy, you are likely consumed with learning as much as you can to keep your kiddo safe and healthy. This may also mean that you are neglecting your own self-care in order to take on the extra responsibility of eliminating allergens from your home and meeting with daycare providers and school administrators to develop a plan for your child. What can you do to take care of yourself during this challenging time?
Diana Rice, RD, is a nationally recognized nutrition professional and family health expert. She is passionate about communicating effective and evidence-based strategies that incorporate good nutrition into the challenges of modern-day life. Prior to launching her consultancy, Diana served as the Associate Director of Nutrition Communications at The Monday Campaigns, where she spearheaded the Kids Cook Monday initiative. Now she focuses on perinatal, infant and child nutrition, and food allergies, working directly with families to implement practical strategies for improved health. Diana is also a frequent contributor to national media publications, including Parents, The Huffington Post, and Everyday Health, among many others.
Today, Diana joins us to describe how a child’s food allergy diagnosis impacts the entire family. She shares the professional advice around introducing allergens early and often, explaining the ‘mom guilt’ she felt for not doing everything she could to reduce her own child’s risk. Diana also walks us through the steps she took to manage her daughter’s allergy to peanuts and tree nuts and offers advice for parents on reaching out for the support you need. Listen in for Diana’s insight into why food allergies are so much more complex than simply eliminating a particular food from your diet—and learn how to advocate for your child AND take care of yourself as an allergy mom!
Key Takeaways
Diana’s transition to motherhood
- Smooth process with first daughter (support network)
- Relocated when second daughter just 3 weeks old
- Started to slack on self-care, developed anxiety
Diana’s second daughter’s health issues
- Introduced potential allergens ‘early and often’
- Diagnosis of allergy to peanuts and tree nuts
How Diana responded to her daughter’s food allergies
- Eliminate foods manufactured on shared lines
- Meetings with daycare providers, school
- Research around brands with dedicated facilities
The professional advice around introducing allergens
- Prompted by study of Israeli kids in UK and Israel
- Introduce potential allergens early to reduce risk
Diana’s mom guilt around her daughter’s allergies
- Couldn’t say ‘did everything I could’
- Tell self that your best is enough
The responsibility of managing a child’s food allergies
- Challenge usually falls to mom
- Focus on child’s needs AND own self-care
Diana’s insight on navigating your child’s food allergies
- Recognize that diagnosis affects whole family
- Get support you need (e.g.: therapist, dietician)
Diana’s advice for parents of children with allergies
- Identify anxiety triggers (i.e.: grocery shopping)
- Connect with other allergy parents
- Set aside time to dig through info
- Talk through concerns with partner
How parents of kids without allergies can provide support
- Understand risks of cross-contamination
- Respect school policies re: outside food
- Cultivate empathy for families with food allergies
- Don’t give child food without parent permission
- Celebrate with non-food alternatives (e.g.: stickers)
Diana’s top tip for food allergy moms
- There’s no shame in being ‘that mom’
- You deserve to advocate for family’s health
Connect with Diana
Diana’s Website
Diana’s Facebook Group – Self-Care for Allergy Moms
Diana on Instagram
Diana on Twitter
Diana on Pinterest
Diana on Facebook
Connect with Lindsay
Intuitive Eating Moms
Nutrition Instincts – San Diego Nutrition Therapy
Embodied & Well Mom Show on Facebook
Lindsay on Instagram
Lindsay on Pinterest
Lindsay on Twitter
Lindsay on LinkedIn
Resources
Born to Eat: Whole, Healthy Foods from Baby’s First Bite by Wendy Jo Peterson and Leslie Schilling
Peanut Allergy Study in Israel vs. the UK
Diana’s Halloween Food Allergy Article
https://www.healthychildren.org/English/healthy-living/nutrition/Pages/Food-Allergies-in-Children.aspx
https://www.aap.org/en-us/about-the-aap/aap-press-room/aap-press-room-media-center/Pages/Food-Allergies-Babies-at-High-Risk.aspx
https://www.aap.org/en-us/about-the-aap/aap-press-room/Pages/Approximately-8-Percent-of-Children-are-Diagnosed-with-Food-Allergies.aspx
by admin | Oct 5, 2018 | Child Feeding, Division of Responsibility, Ellyn Satter, Nurtured Mama, parenting, Podcast, Role Model, Support for Moms
Busy Mom's Starter Guide to Making Peace with Food
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We’d greatly appreciate a podcast rating and review so that we can reach more mamas and families!
The struggle is real when it comes to keeping the whole family happy at mealtime. How do you make sure everyone is eating without turning into a short-order cook? How do you encourage kids to eat without pressuring them? What is the best way—realistically—to get kids involved in meal prep?
Lauren Sharifi is a registered dietician and nutritionist with a passion for helping families make eating fun, simple and nourishing. In addition to being the mom of a toddler, she serves as a nutrition coach in private practice in the Boston area, offering nutrition counseling, medical nutrition therapy and meal planning services. Lauren’s food philosophy aligns with intuitive eating principles, and she takes a Health at Every Size approach to nutrition. She also teaches children’s cooking classes at Kids’ Test Kitchen and shares easy-to-make, family-friendly recipes on her blog, Bite of Health Nutrition.
Today, Lauren joins us to explain how the transition to motherhood helped her find her niche as a dietician and share her new focus on families, kids and intuitive eating. She offers advice around age-appropriate ways to get kids involved in meal prep and encouraging kids to eat without provoking anxiety—in the parent or child! Listen in for Lauren’s insight on leveraging ‘division of responsibility’ to make sure everyone is eating at mealtime and learn how to navigate the most common family meal challenges.
Key Takeaways
Lauren’s transition to motherhood
- Harder, more rewarding than expected
- Helped find career niche as dietician
The evolution of Lauren’s career
- Shift from hospital to working one-on-one
- Feeding son + intuitive eating research
- Private practice to focus on families/kids
How to get kids involved in meal prep
- Play with bowl, spoon when very young
- Pick night to get involved (i.e.: pour, mix)
- Add more responsibilities for older kids
- Small steps (e.g.: exposure to equipment)
Lauren’s insight on considering preferences
- Each family member picks meal
- Prep one food each person will eat
- Structured choices at grocery store
Lauren’s advice on encouraging kids to eat
- Be there and eat with child
- Cook different way, add sauce
- Different ways to get nutrients
What to do if kids are hungry just before a meal
- Eaten in past hour or two—wait
- Three hours or more, offer fruit/vegies
Connect with Lauren
Bite of Health Nutrition
Bite of Health on Facebook
Lauren on Instagram
Lauren on Twitter
Connect with Lindsay
Intuitive Eating Moms
Embodied & Well Mom Show on Facebook
Lindsay on Instagram
Lindsay on Pinterest
Lindsay on Twitter
Lindsay on LinkedIn
Resources
Kids’ Test Kitchen
Ellyn Satter Institute
Division of Responsibility
Books by Ellyn Satter
Intuitive Eating Moms Club
Social Blurbs
The struggle is real when it comes to keeping the whole #family happy at #mealtime. How do you make sure everyone is #eating without turning into a short-order cook? How do you encourage #kids to eat without pressuring them? What is the best way—realistically—to get kids involved in #mealprep? Listen in as RD Lauren Sharifi of @BiteofHealthNutrition explains how to navigate the most common family #meal challenges!
Lindsay’s Links:
https://www.intuitiveeatingmoms.com (my new website url)
Get your all-access pass to the Intuitive Eating for Moms Starter Series here –> https://www.intuitiveeatingmoms.com/intuitive-eating-for-moms/
Free facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/nurturedmamacommunity/
BRAND NEW: Uplevel your intuitive eating and motherhood journey by joining the Intuitive Eating Moms Club. Non-diet wellness made simple for moms. Learn more about it here–> http://www.intuitiveeatingmoms.club
