Treat Yourself with Loving Appreciation

We are given one body to carry us from birth to death during our lifetime and it is up to us to determine how we will care for that one precious vessel. With the demands of work, raising children, family life, and a whole host of other commitments, it is so easy to lose sight of the importance of taking care of our bodies and ourselves.  

There was a period of time in my life when I didn't pay any attention to my body at all. In fact, I was unsuspectingly abusing it. I worked long hours, exercised vigorously (thinking that I was actually taking care of myself), and I ate what seemed like a healthy diet. But I really wasn't listening to my body nor was taking time to appreciate it.  And when it started to complain loudly to me, I responded with irritation or anger: "why are you (my body) causing me pain", or "why are you putting on weight", or "why aren't you strong and sexy anymore"? I felt that my body was betraying me. After all, I thought I was doing all the right things to care for it.


It took me a number of years to turn that belief around and it's still an on-going learning process. I realize now that our bodies are sacred beautiful vehicles and homes to our souls. It is because we have a body, that we are able to experience pleasure and pain, to see, hear, smell, touch, feel and sense or intuit our internal and external worlds. It is because we have a body that we can make love, laugh, cry, sing and speak. But do we really appreciate our bodies?  Do we ignore our body's wisdom when it says it is time to eat, time for sleep, time to slow down, time to move?  So often, our mind overrides our body's messages and denies the needs that it is trying to communicate.


Some people are challenged with serious physical or emotional/mental
conditions that can make it even more difficult to love and appreciate their bodies. I'm sure you have noticed how some individuals accept their challenges, and even consistently feel gratitude, while others find themselves feeling frustrated and victimized by the circumstances in their lives. There comes a point where we must choose how we are going to respond to the challenges this life presents.

Having worked through major challenges around loving and accepting my body as well as other conditions, I understand that rising to meet the obstacles in life with love and appreciation is not an easy road to take. What I learned for myself is that the journey of coming to terms with my body and all the stories I had going about it is the real gift. Once I really got that, I developed appreciation for and a loving relationship with my body that I didn't know was possible.  

Now I see my body as a gift and that it is an honor and a privilege to care for it as exquisitely and attentively as possible. Am I perfect?  Of course not! And when I don't get the rest I need, or enough exercise or the right kind of nutrition my body lets me know. Sometimes it complains loudly, sometimes it gives me a gentle nudge. 

And you know what is beautiful?  When I bring things back into balance and care for my body the way it deserves to be cared for, it responds accordingly. You see the body is always paying attention to what we say and think and do. The body is a living, breathing creation that never lies. I may not always know why I am not always feeling on top of my game but those are moments when I need to stop and listen closely or seek out professional help if I can't figure it out myself. 

Following are a number of suggestions that you can do to practice loving-kindness and develop a deep appreciation for your body. Start with one or two that speak to you and gradually integrate more into your practice. You might even come up with some of your own that work better for you. I'd love to hear from you and find out what worked for you and what sort of results you had.

1) Be nurtured by nature. 
Time spent in nature can be profoundly healing and revitalizing. Actually placing your bare feet on the earth for 15 minutes everyday can balance emotional and spiritual energies and increase a sense of connection to the web of life.

Try taking a break outside everyday, no matter the weather. Observe the ebb and flow of the seasons and remind yourself that just as you are, you are a perfect manifestation of mother nature. 

2) Greet the day with intention.
Each morning take a moment to say something nice to and about your body. If you notice that your first thoughts upon waking tend toward the negative, you might try doing this as soon as you wake up, before you even open your eyes or get out of bed.

3) Bathe yourself with loving-kindness.

Once a week - or whenever you feel the need - take a ritual bath. Fill the tub and consider adding rose oil, which is associated with balancing the heart and often used to soothe anxiety and depression. Light candles and play soft music if you desire. 

As you bathe each part of your body, reflect on how strong and wondrous it is. If it is injured or damaged send love to it. Think of everything each part of your body does to keep you alive, to give birth, to carry you from place to place. Honor your body as a divine vessel and appreciate all that it is capable of. 

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Break Free from Abusive Eating™  

This new, powerful 8-week program is designed to set you free from the prison of food and weight obsession.  In this one-on-one intensive,  we will explore what lies beneath your deepest cravings and figure out  what triggers you to eat unconsciously and compulsively.  You will learn to treat yourself with Love and Kindness and develop a healthy relationship with food and your body so you can live a joyous and empowered life!

For more information about this program or any of my other services, please contact me at 415-464-9662 or by email: info@rachellegoeringnp.com

The Healing Power of Presence

One important component of healing from abusive and emotional eating is learning to stay in the present moment and becoming fully aware of what you are experiencing emotionally, physically, and mentally.  


There is usually some driving force that we are unconsciously aware of that sends us running to refrigerator, or the candy drawer for another piece of chocolate. Some overwhelming thought, feeling, or memory is invoked from deep within our subconscious and before we know it, we are reacting to it by trying to numb out with food. The truth is, food can never heal an uncomfortable emotion or feeling, nor will it erase a painful memory, or fill an empty heart.  

What food can provide us is sustenance and a direct connection to the abundance of the Earth. Food also brings friends and family together and is a means of creative expression for those who love to cook. 

The next time you sit down to eat, try this one simple act: put down your eating utensil between bites while you chew your food. Do not take another bite of food until your mouth is empty.  Observe what your mind is saying to you while you slow down and eat. You may feel impatient, anxious, and annoyed. Your mind might be saying "this is stupid". But as this way of mindful eating becomes a habit, you will begin to notice something new emerging in your relationship to food: appreciation, pleasure, and satisfaction. 

Even the simplest snack can be a joyful experience when what you eat is chosen mindfully and you are fully present while eating it. To practice this further, try this simple exercise taken from the book Savor by Thich Nhat Hanh and Lilian Cheung:

"Are You Really Appreciating the Apple? An Apple Meditation" (PDF). 

Next month's newsletter will focus on the body and how to exquisitely care for your precious vessel from a loving kindness perspective. I will also share ways to inhabit your body and appreciate its inherent magnificence!

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Receive more articles like this one plus news and updates about my services, retreats and holistic programs with my monthly e-newsletter - sign up here. 

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Break Free from Abusive Eating™  

This new, powerful 8-week program is designed to set you free from the prison of food and weight obsession.  In this one-on-one intensive,  we will explore what lies beneath your deepest cravings and figure out  what triggers you to eat unconsciously and compulsively.  You will learn to treat yourself with Love and Kindness and develop a healthy relationship with food and your body so you can live a joyous and empowered life!

For more information about this program or any of my other services, please contact me at 415-464-9662 or by email: info@rachellegoeringnp.com.

The Sacred Art of Mindful Eating

If you have ever continued to eat even when you were full or ignored your body's signals that it was time to eat, obsessed over your weight, or felt guilt or shame around your body, then you have engaged in mindless eating. These behaviors inhibit your ability to listen to and understand the messages your body is sending you and often this disconnect arises out of a dieting mindset. 

Chronic dieting encourages the split between your body and mind making behaviors like mindless eating highly likely if not inevitable. What's more, chronic dieting and obsession with your body and weight has a truly devastating effect on your self-worth because it severs your relationship with your Soul, the unifying force that balances mind and body.

Division between your body, your mind, and your soul keeps you locked into the ego and its often faulty messages. You begin to think that your thoughts and your ego's interpretation of your feelings are truth, believing whatever your ego is telling you. It's a no-win, no-way-out situation that creates an endless cycle of misery and pain, preventing you from living joyously and passionately. 

The only way to re-establish the connection between your mind, body, and soul is to begin the practice of mindfulness. For chronic dieters, overeaters and under-eaters alike, years of mindless eating have robbed you from living a Soulful and balanced life. The behavior of mindless eating is not the underlying problem itself, but it is a symptom of deeper, more complex issues that exist in your psyche and body. Learning to eat mindfully, then, can be the first step on your journey to living a more soulful, spiritual, and passionate life.

Embrace where you are now. In this very moment make the commitment to break free from your patterns of mindless eating and all the negative thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that go along with it. Allow yourself to take one step at a time. Your journey to mindful eating is a spiritual path. And everything that arises on this journey is worth paying attention to. There is no failure here, only information that will help you to more deeply understand who you are and what you need in order to be in balance. 

What is Mindful Eating?

Mindfulness is about relaxing and tapping into your body's infinite wisdom. Mindful eating is paying attention to all the thoughts, feelings, patterns, physical sensations, and emotions that arise around hunger, food, and eating. It is to master control of your mind. It is to know your hunger and to determine if it is true physical hunger or emotional hunger. It is not about developing strict disciplinary rules. 

Learning to eat mindfully is a process. Most people find that they need help to change their old patterns. I highly recommend working with a group or professional who is well versed in the practice of mindfulness and mindful eating. After years of facing my own struggles with mindless dieting and obsessive thinking around weight and body image, I found that the practice of mindful eating was the most profound step to developing a loving relationship with my body and realigning myself with my life's purpose. How ironic that my life's purpose is to help others heal from abusive eating and learn to love and live in their bodies and to reconnect to their Soul!

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Receive more articles like this one plus news and updates about my services, retreats and holistic programs with my monthly e-newsletter - sign up here. 

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Break Free from Abusive Eating™  

This new, powerful 8-week program is designed to set you free from the prison of food and weight obsession.  In this one-on-one intensive,  we will explore what lies beneath your deepest cravings and figure out  what triggers you to eat unconsciously and compulsively.  You will learn to treat yourself with Love and Kindness and develop a healthy relationship with food and your body so you can live a joyous and empowered life!

For more information about this program or any of my other services, please contact me at 415-464-9662 or by email: info@rachellegoeringnp.com.

Nurture Yourself with Pleasure

A very warm summer greeting to you all!  I just finished my morning swim and am  filled with gratitude for the opportunity to begin my day with an activity that brings me so much pleasure! I realized when I allow myself to experience pleasure in all areas of my life, I don't limit myself to the pleasure that I get from food.  There's nothing wrong with getting pleasure from food but it should be only one of many ways to bring pleasure into our lives. 

Summer is a natural time to seek pleasure and fun. What are some of ways that you can bring more pleasure and fun into your life this summer?  With the longer days and warm evenings, try a walk or hike in nature, or an impromptu picnic while watching the sunset, or maybe take in one of the many summer evening concerts, or just hang out with friends on a sun-drenched patio. Whatever you do, take time, slow down, feel the earth beneath your feet and let nature nourish you.

This month I'm excited to share an article from guest writer Regina Powers called How Energy Medicine Can Help Heal Unhealthy Eating Behaviors. Regina is a holistic nurse practitioner, colleague, and friend who writes about energy medicine and the role it can play in healing unhealthy eating patterns. Read Regina's article here.

In this month's featured article I expand in greater detail on healing your abusive eating patterns and why an integrated, holistic approach is essential to transforming your relationship with food and healing the abusive eating that has caused you so much pain and suffering.

With Love and Kindness and to a wonderfully pleasurable summer,

Rachelle Goering, M.A., N.P.

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Receive more articles like this one plus news and updates about my services, retreats and holistic programs with my monthly e-newsletter - sign up here. 
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Break Free from Abusive Eating™  

This new, powerful 8-week program is designed to set you free from the prison of food and weight obsession.  In this one-on-one intensive, we will explore what lies beneath your deepest cravings and figure out what triggers you to eat unconsciously and compulsively.  You will learn to treat yourself with Love and Kindness and develop a healthy relationship with food and your body so you can live a joyous and empowered life!

For more information about this program or any of my other services, please contact me at 415-464-9662 or by email: info@rachellegoeringnp.com.

One Size Does Not Fit All: A Holistic Approach to Break Free from Abusive Eating™

Most weight loss programs take one of two approaches: focusing on what you can or cannot eat, or advocating giving up dieting once and for all and focus on healing the underlying reasons why you eat emotionally.  Which approach is right?  I say both are!

Abusive eating, like most addictive and destructive behaviors, evolved over a period of time.  It started out slowly and built gradually so it likely didn't even seem like there was a problem; maybe for many years. But over time, the behaviors solidified into patterns that are now a problem affecting your soul, your mind and heart, as well as your body. In order to overcome these deeply ingrained patterns and behaviors, one needs address the issues within the body, the mind, and the Spirit. The process of unraveling can seem daunting and endless but once we begin to actually drop in and experience what is there to be worked with, it's usually not as intimidating as the thought of it is.

I remind my students that it is the journey not the end result where we experience our true nature and divine healing. This, my friends, requires us to stay in the moment and not lament about the past or worry about the future.  This is an ongoing practice where we gently bring ourselves back to the present when we find ourselves planning, worrying, regretting the past or fearing the future.

I wrote in last month's newsletter about the importance of being in your body to be able to know what it is telling you it needs, whether that be food, rest, touch, etc. 

My holistic integrated approach to healing abusive eating takes you through practical steps to be in your body.  We address:

1. Dietary guidelines that meet your body's current needs - these often change as your body's  biochemistry changes.  
2. Hormonal and blood sugar imbalances that could be triggering your emotional eating.
3. Eating guidelines adapted from my own practice to help you relearn healthy eating habits.
4. How to distinguish emotional hunger from physical hunger.
5. How to manage emotional hunger; hint: it will never be healed with food.
6. Self love and Self care practices to feed yourself with love and nourishment on a Soul level.
7. How to love and enjoy your life as it is right now.
8. Ways to bring more pleasure into your life.

I do not embrace a "one size fits all" approach.  Instead, I tailor my program to meet your individual needs. With this holistic approach to healing, your life will simmer with possibility and an abundance of gratitude as you are freed from the torture of abusive eating.

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Receive more articles like this one plus news and updates about my services, retreats and holistic programs with my monthly e-newsletter - sign up here. 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Break Free from Abusive Eating™  

This new, powerful 8-week program is designed to set you free from the prison of food and weight obsession.  In this one-on-one intensive, we will explore what lies beneath your deepest cravings and figure out what triggers you to eat unconsciously and compulsively.  You will learn to treat yourself with Love and Kindness and develop a healthy relationship with food and your body so you can live a joyous and empowered life!

For more information about this program or any of my other services, please contact me at 415-464-9662 or by email: info@rachellegoeringnp.com.

 

Coming Home: Embodied Spirituality to Break Free from Abusive Eating™

When we diet there is the promise that by eating according to some trendy food plan we will lose weight and become spontaneously happy and healthy as we watch all of our problems vanishing with the extra pounds. In reality, what each diet that we undertake teaches us, is that we can no longer trust the innate wisdom of our body and that we must follow someone else's idea of what our body needs in order to lose the weight. 

After so many years of calorie restriction and losing and regaining weight, our bodies are just as confused as our minds are.  Yo yo dieting causes metabolic imbalances and erratic fluctuations with blood sugar sending signals to our brain that are easily misinterpreted as a need for more sugary or salty foods.  The lack of amino acids found in healthy proteins, causes decline in our neurotransmitters.  Neurotransmitters, such as serotonin and dopamine, are chemicals that control our moods and give us a sense of well-being.

When we feel depressed and our blood sugar is too low, we are not likely going to make wise choices when eating.  So, it is often useful to help guide my clients when it comes to healthy eating.  But I want to stress here, that it's not just about following someone else's food guideline; it's about learning to listen to your own body and understand what it's trying to tell you. 

If we could really listen to our body, I doubt if it would say "eat that carton of ice cream" or that pizza or that bag of cookies or chips.  No, your body would probably say, "I need energy or fuel now" and "I need protein or vegetables or healthy fats". Or rest, love or water.   Sometimes my clients will tell me that they have been craving red meat and it surprises them because they rarely (if ever) eat meat.  When I hear that, I often suspect anemia or low iron levels and if I check their blood iron levels, it usually confirms that.  That's an example of listening to the body's wisdom.

Diets teach us to stay in our heads and not be in our bodies.  Diets basically cut us off at the neck; it is our head or mind that dictates what and when and how we should eat.  But learning to be in our bodies and tapping into its wisdom is a much more profound and empowered way of living. 

How do we get into our bodies?  What does that really mean?  In my course, Break Free from Abusive Eating™, I teach different techniques to help us move back into harmony with our bodies, to listen to our bodies, to feel the feelings and signals that our bodies are giving us and help interpret what those signals mean.  It is a re-learning. 

Listening to your body and honoring your body is more than simply choosing the right kinds or amounts of foods.  It's about self love and self care.  Your body is your temple; it is more than a physical structure that needs to be fed, clothed and rested.  Without a body, we wouldn't have the capacity to experience the world in the ways that we do - to smell, see and taste, to hear, to listen to our inner knowing, to sense a deep and profound wisdom.

One of the practices that Raphael shared with us at the workshop on Embodied Spirituality, was using dance to get back into our bodies.  He would improvise the most beautiful music as we danced and moved to it.  His music sent us soaring yet kept us fully alive and present in our bodies. 

The following quote from Kutira and Raphael sums it up nicely:

The embodiment of our spirituality is a homecoming to deepen our sense of being and activates the unique signature of our inner wisdom of body and mind.

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Receive more articles like this one plus news and updates about my services, retreats and holistic programs with my monthly e-newsletter - sign up here. 

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Break Free from Abusive Eating™  

This new, powerful 8-week program is designed to set you free from the prison of food and weight obsession.  In this one-on-one intensive, we will explore what lies beneath your deepest cravings and figure out what triggers you to eat unconsciously and compulsively.  You will learn to treat yourself with Love and Kindness and develop a healthy relationship with food and your body so you can live a joyous and empowered life!

For more information about this program or any of my other services, please contact me at 415-464-9662 or by email: info@rachellegoeringnp.com.

Kindness and Compassion to Heal Abusive Eating™

In my work helping people break free from Abusive Eating™ and other destructive, health and vitality-robbing behaviors, I find that there are commonly underlying feelings of unworthiness, or being unlovable and not good enough. These feelings frequently arise from being abused in some way: physically, sexually, or emotionally.  

Identifying with the negative feelings that being abused creates, and believing them to be true, leads to engaging in destructive behaviors like Abusive Eating™ and the negative self-talk that perpetuates it. When we criticize or judge ourselves, reinforcing the idea that we are somehow wrong and undeserving, self-hatred and despair flourish, taking over our perception of reality. 

All of this harshness and negativity at some point becomes too much to bear so we do whatever we can to distance ourselves from those thoughts and feelings as quickly as possible. Often that means a quick right turn to food because for a brief moment in time, we get a break from the mind and the relentless scolding of the inner critic.

Food will distract and it will soothe, but it doesn't make us feel better about ourselves.  In fact, it will make us feel worse: physically from overfilling the body with food it didn't want or need, and emotionally because now we feel bad about overeating and the feelings of being unlovable or scared or worthless are still there.   

The only real remedy to stopping this insanity is to start with compassion and kindness toward yourself. Compassion for all the pain and suffering you have been through. Compassion for all the times you abused yourself with food - because if you could have done something other than eat to manage those feelings and stories, you would have. Compassion for the innocent inner child who is still suffering, and compassion for the adult self who just stuffed food into her mouth mindlessly. This is the beginning of turning years of self-hatred and abuse into self-love and self-care. Start with compassion and kindness toward yourself.

What happens to your body when you send even one thought of kindness or compassion to yourself?  Try it now and notice as your body begins to relax, soften and open. Your external world might not change, but your inner world does immediately.  Over time, one thought of kindness or one compassionate embrace of your self leads to another and another and before you know it, as you relax and let go, you experience a direct connection to the joy and sweetness in life.  Now you are connected to the source of love, peace and stillness that reside in you. And that, my friends, can never be robbed from you again. 

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Receive more articles like this one plus news and updates about my services, retreats and holistic programs with my monthly e-newsletter - sign up here. 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Break Free from Abusive Eating™  

This new, powerful 8-week program is designed to set you free from the prison of food and weight obsession.  In this one-on-one intensive, we will explore what lies beneath your deepest cravings and figure out what triggers you to eat unconsciously and compulsively.  You will learn to treat yourself with Love and Kindness and develop a healthy relationship with food and your body so you can live a joyous and empowered life!

For more information about this program or any of my other services, please contact me at 415-464-9662 or by email: info@rachellegoeringnp.com.

Break Free From Abusive Eating™

A Holistic Approach to Feeding Yourself With Love.

Abusive Eating is a physical, emotional and spiritual problem that can be progressive and debilitating.  It is an act of violence against yourself.  In order to recover and live a life free from pain and suffering associated with this affliction, you need a multifaceted approach to healing.  The destructive behaviors associated with Abusive Eating can be caused by many biochemical and hormonal imbalances in the body and brain, making it extremely difficult to maintain healthy eating and exercise habits. We address all areas necessary to regain your health and reclaim your joy! 

Abusive eating encompasses a wide spectrum of behaviors and feelings.  For one person it can mean compulsive eating which results in obesity and depression. For another, it might be constantly thinking about your weight or the size of your thighs or waist, while monitoring every bite you eat and judging yourself for gaining a pound or two.  Some women feel that no matter how much they tell themselves they are not going to give in to that piece of chocolate or almonds in the pantry, they do any way, and then feel angry and judgmental for being so weak. 

What all of these behaviors have in common is that each person ends up feeling more defeated, angry, depressed and hopeless after each episode.  They say over and over again, I’m going to stop this and then before they know it, they are doing same behaviors again and again.  They soon lose respect for themselves and joy and passion vanishes from their lives.

The Way Out

When treated correctly and compassionately, you can be free from Abusive Eating and enjoy a full recovery where you experience a normal, healthy relationship with food, exercise, your body and Spirit.

In my Break Free™ program, I help you to uncover the motivating seed that fuels your abusive eating behaviors.  There are always good reasons why you use food to comfort, to soothe, to escape, to nurture, to quiet the mind.  At some point, using food in this way probably did help you survive and get through very painful situations or challenges.  Now, food no longer provides that for you, yet the patterns of eating used to bring joy or deaden the pain still exist.  Somewhere in your psyche, there is a belief that if you use food you will feel better or at least, won’t hurt so much. 

Try this one step—agree to not deprive yourself of any type or group of food for the next 7 days.  But that you will eat with complete attention to your food and your eating—even any snacking or grazing even it’s at 2 AM!

Follow these guidelines:

• Eat only when sitting down at the table
• Eat with no distractions—that means no TV or reading, (soft comforting music is OK).
• Slow down—put our fork down between bites.  With finger food, do not put another chip or nut into your mouth until the present bite is completely chewed and swallowed.
• Set the table and eat off of a plate—not from a bag or carton or table cloth.

Try this for one week and consider journaling your thoughts, insights or feelings that arise.  I would love to hear from any of you if you to choose to share your thoughts.  You can email me at info@rachellegoeringnp.com.

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Receive more articles like this one plus news and updates about my services, retreats and holistic programs with my monthly e-newsletter - sign up here. 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Break Free from Abusive Eating™  

This new, powerful 8-week program is designed to set you free from the prison of food and weight obsession.  In this one-on-one intensive, we will explore what lies beneath your deepest cravings and figure out what triggers you to eat unconsciously and compulsively.  You will learn to treat yourself with Love and Kindness and develop a healthy relationship with food and your body so you can live a joyous and empowered life!

For more information about this program or any of my other services, please contact me at 415-464-9662 or by email: info@rachellegoeringnp.com.