Free download!

Body image title small

7 Steps to Feeling Better About the Body You're in Right Now

Get the free download and start your journey to living well while mommin' it up today!

We won't send you spam. Unsubscribe at any time. Powered by ConvertKit
Dr. Linda Shanti’s interview for her It’s Not About the Baby Weight Summit!

Dr. Linda Shanti’s interview for her It’s Not About the Baby Weight Summit!

It’s Not About the Baby Weight Online Summit from Lindsay Stenovec on Vimeo.

SIGN UP FOR LINDA’S FREE ONLINE SUMMIT TODAY!

IT’S NOT ABOUT THE BABY WEIGHT – RECOVERY MAMA SUMMIT

During pregnancy and postpartum, your relationship with food changes and your body transforms. This shift is challenging for nearly all new moms, but if you have a history of anxiety, depression, or an eating disorder, that adds another layer of complexity to an already difficult process. So, what kind of support do you need if you are in recovery as you transition into motherhood?

Dr. Linda Shanti is a licensed clinical psychologist in private practice in San Francisco. She specializes in recovery from eating disorders, body image challenges, anxiety, postpartum depression, and new mom support. Linda is also a well-known speaker and author of the book The Recovery Mama Guide to Your Eating Disorder Recovery in Pregnancy and Postpartum. With 20 years of experience in the realm of compulsive eating, emotional eating, binge eating, bulimia, and anorexia, she is committed to helping women leverage expressive arts, mindfulness, and compassionate mirroring to support recovery in pregnancy and postpartum.

On this episode of The Embodied & Well Mom Show, Linda joins us to explain the proactive approach she took to get support during her own pregnancy, discussing the way her anxiety presented as irritability, anger, and hypervigilance. She shares her experience with both food and body image during pregnancy and postpartum and describes how she supports women in decoding the myths around ‘getting your body back.’ Listen in to understand Linda’s approach to working with new moms in recovery—and learn to quiet your overdeveloped self-critic in favor of self-compassion!

Key Takeaways

 

Linda’s proactive approach to getting support during her own pregnancy

  • Brought up history of anxiety, eating disorder at first appointment
  • Surprised by irritable depression, rage and hypervigilance

The challenge of supporting a partner with irritable depression

  • Looks like pushing away, want to be alone

Linda’s experience with food during pregnancy and postpartum

  • Disconcerting ravenous hunger
  • Nausea in first trimester (calmed by eating)

Linda’s experience with body image during pregnancy

  • Drastic hormonal shifts led to BIG feelings
  • Fun to have baby bump in middle of process
  • Very rough at end, ‘carting around boulder’

How Linda supports clients around postpartum body image

  • Work through grief process
  • Decode myths re: diet culture, getting body back

How Linda works with moms in recovery from eating disorders

  • Reframe independence as interdependence
  • Address overdeveloped self-critic
  • Reassess schedule, lower the bar on expectations

Linda’s advice for overachieving first-time moms

  • You will come back, have time to self again

Connect with Linda

 

Linda’s Website

Recovery Mama on Instagram

Recovery Mam 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

 

The Recovery Mama Guide to Your Eating Disorder Recovery in Pregnancy and Postpartum by Linda Shanti McCabe

 

How to Be a Good Enough Mother with Corinne Crossley, LMHC and Jessica Foley, LMHC, LPCC

How to Be a Good Enough Mother with Corinne Crossley, LMHC and Jessica Foley, LMHC, LPCC

We all want to be good moms, so we set the bar high. In fact, our expectations are SO elevated that we end up neglecting ourselves in order to put the baby first. But what if the moments we think of as mom fails are actually beneficial to our kiddos? What if ‘good enough mothering’ is a good thing for our families? What if—sometimes—it’s okay just to show up?

Corinne Crossley is a psychotherapist and mother of two whose practice focuses on helping people heal their relationships with their bodies. She holds a master’s in Counseling Psychology from Lesley University. Jessica Foley is a licensed mental health and professional clinical counselor whose practice centers around supporting women in developing a healthy relationship with their bodies. She earned her master’s in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Lesley University. Together, Jessica and Corinne host the Momma Bites! Podcast to help moms eat mindfully ‘one animal cracker at a time.’

 

Today, Jessica and Corinne join us to explain how they came to work with moms and share the common struggles among their client base. They discuss how guilt and perfectionism lead moms to neglect themselves—especially when it comes to eating. Jessica introduces the concept of ‘good enough mothering’ and Corinne offers insight around giving yourself permission to do less. Listen in for advice on reassessing your basic needs and learn how failing in manageable ways can actually benefit your kids!

 

Key Takeaways

 

Jessica’s path to working with moms

  • Focus on women (mental, reproductive health)
  • First mom client struggled with mood disruption
  • Trained with The Postpartum Stress Center

 

Corinne’s path to working with moms

  • First client struggled with binge eating disorder
  • Becoming mom changed experience of work
  • Focus on how take care of bodies as parents

 

What issues moms are struggling with most

  • Guilt and perfectionism
  • Postpartum anxiety
  • Body image

 

How these common struggles show up

  • Moms neglect selves (eating first to go)
  • See eating as something we must earn
  • Use food to supplement other needs

 

Jessica & Corrine’s advice for moms with self-care challenges

  • Reassess basics and get support
  • Cultivate self-compassion
  • Set intention for self-care
  • Give self permission to do LESS

 

The idea of ‘good enough mothering’

  • Coined by researcher DW Winnicott
  • Benefits to manageable failure
  • Sometimes okay to just show up

 

How to adjust your expectations based on the circumstances

  • What’s good enough in this moment?
  • No ‘perfect,’ just what’s right for you
  • Foster flexibility in thinking
  • Pay attention to what’s good

 

The benefits around failing in manageable ways

  • Promotes independence and trust
  • Kids have different perception of ‘failure’

 

Check out Momma Bites!

Show Notes

Intuitive Eating Moms Club

 

Connect with Jessica & Corinne

Momma Bites!

Mindful Eating Moms on Twitter

Mindful Eating Moms on Instagram

Mindful Eating Moms on Facebook

Corinne’s Website

Jessica’s Website

Jessica on Twitter

Jessica on Facebook

Jessica on Instagram

 

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

 

Lindsay on Momma Bites

Karen Kleiman

Postpartum Stress Center

Boston OBGYN

Dr. Linda Shanti

Winnicott Research Study

Harlow Monkey Study

Present Over Perfect: Leaving Behind Frantic for a Simpler, More Soulful Way of Living by Shauna Niequist

‘A Normal Day’ Video

 

Realistic Postpartum Meal Prep Plan

Realistic Postpartum Meal Prep Plan

 

Realistic Postpartum Meal Planning

Note: Some links contained in this article are affiliate links and I have clearly indicated which are affiliate links in the article itself.

graphic advertising special discounts on meal planning software

Let’s be real. The idea of prepping meals ahead of time before baby comes is much easier said than done. I don’t know about you but when I’m in those final weeks of pregnancy the last thing my body wants me to do is to stand in the kitchen for hours cooking. Cue pain in feet, legs, hips, back…no good. However, once your sweet baby is earth-side you’re going to wish you had at least planned a bit since there isn’t a ton of time to cook between feedings, diaper changes, snuggles and your own personal recovery. I’m currently 38 weeks pregnant with my 2nd child so I figure this is perfect timing to develop a REALISTIC postpartum meal prep plan that will not only benefit my family but hopefully yours too.

This is what I came up with…

Make ahead and freeze:

Although my husband and I have planned ahead to figure out how to have him home for a bit longer this time (3 weeks vs. 6 days) I know that I will inevitably find myself alone with a baby (and likely a  toddler) and need food that is ready to eat and extremely easy to prep (bonus if it can be consumed with one hand). However, I also know that I’m just not that mom (or dietitian) who has the energy or motivation to prep 21 postpartum meals at the end of my pregnancy. So I had to prioritize. I chose to focus on a couple of breakfast items, a killer snack option and then purchase several ready-made frozen foods to have on hand. 

Currently in my freezer:

Freezer Friendly Breakfast Sandwiches by Emily Kyle, MS, RDN*

Freezer Breakfast Burritos by Jessica Penner, RD*

*(I slightly modified both of these to suit our needs and you can easily do the same!)

Smashed Tuna Sandwiches by Elizabeth Ward, MS, RD

The patties are in the freezer.

5 Ingredient Energy Bites by Chef Savvy 

These energy bites are so yummy and easy to make! Recovering from delivery and nursing can make you super hungry so these little suckers do just the trick when I’m in need of a nourishing snack that will leave me full and satisfied!

Freezer meals I purchased from Trader Joe’s:

  • Family Style Meat Lasagna (will pair with pre-mixed salad like the Broccoli and Kale Slaw Salad at TJ’s)
  • Tempura chicken, brown rice, edamame, pineapple and broccoli
  • Frozen pizza (Yup! No shame in my frozen pizza game)
  • Pad thai single meals
  • 3 x chicken burritos
  • 2 x grass-fed ground beef (to include in instant pot recipe mentioned below)

Instant Pot Recipes

I LOVE my Instant Pot (affiliate link). It’s been a lifesaver during dinner prep with my toddler so I know it will be the gift that keeps on giving when I have a toddler AND an infant making their demands while I try to get food on the table. Here are the recipes that we’ll have set up on Plan to Eat. More on Plan to Eat towards the end of this article.

Creamy Beef Pasta Shells

Oh my gah this pasta dish is SOOO easy and I’m telling you it is RESTAURANT QUALITY. You can also modify it in a thousand ways – you could do a non-creamy version or throw some zucchini and eggplant in there. The options are endless.

Instant Pot Classic Beef Chili

If it ever rains in San Diego this season, we’ll be whippin’ this sucker up for sure!

Instant Pot Artichoke Chicken Orzo

This one takes a tad more time than the others but it’s worth it!

Pressure Cooker Chicken Black Bean & Rice Burrito Bowls

We either top this with chopped bell pepper, cabbage, avocado and sour cream and include a side of chips OR use the filling to make burritos. This is great as a make-ahead and freeze meal, too!

Snacks to purchase ahead of time to stay on top of your and your children’s needs (if this isn’t your first rodeo):

  • KIND Bars (affiliate link)
  • Lara Bars (affiliate link)
  • Trader Joe’s Almond Butter Granola (OMGGGEEEE this ish is a-ma-zing)
  • Just Mango Dried Mango from Trader Joe’s (In addition to fruit leather and dried fruit bars I’m actually planning to include these as a snack early on in labor).
  • Omega-3 Trek Mix from Trader Joe’s or this Omega-3 Deluxe Mix (affiliate link)
  • Whole wheat crackers
  • Cheese sticks
  • Yogurt
  • Peanut Butter Pretzels from Trader Joe’s
  • Plantain chips from Trader Joe’s
  • Fresh fruit

Finally, the most important part of this entire meal planning process is our regular use of Plan to Eat – a software program that will seriously change your life (PROUD affiliate link). This program allows me to:

  1. Upload recipes from online or manually enter them so that they’re all in one place
  2. Create menus that I can save and re-use
  3. Generate shopping lists with the single click of a button!

Do you know what that means for postpartum meal planning? Once I make the menus, it’s done! I can generate and send that list off to my husband or another family member. I can even ask someone to use it to load into a grocery delivery system.

Use my referral link for a free 30-day trial. You can also request to be my “friend” and get access to all of my recipes and saved menus!

Even better? I have a FREE TRAINING that will teach you how to maximize the use of Plan to Eat! You’ll also be subscribed to my list

I combine my skills as a dietitian, meal planner for the masses, and experience as a mom, to help you use Plan to Eat like a pro! Once you’re on my list, you’ll also get plenty of resources for living well without being a slave to the scale.

Pin It on Pinterest