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Binge Eating Disorder Recovery & Trauma Healing

Intuitive Eating Counseling in Northern Virginia

Intuitive Eating is a non-dieting approach based on the work of Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch. Diets increase your preoccupation with food (When is my next snack? When is my next meal?). Diets create a sense of deprivation (increase in labeling foods as good versus bad instead of all foods being neutral). I view dieting as a gateway to disordered eating. As with binge eating, we often see this restrict-binge cycle play out.  I consider Intuitive Eating to be the finish line with Binge Eating Recovery and not the starting line.

Three Ways to Adopt Intuitive Eating:

  • Giving Yourself Unconditional Permission to Eat
  • Eating for Physical Rather Than Emotional Reasons
  • Relying on Internal Hunger and Satiety Cues

Five Ways to Increase Your Satisfaction with Eating:

  • Asking Yourself What You Want to Eat
  • Discovering the Pleasure in Food (Taste, Texture, Aroma, and Appearance)
  • Making the Eating Experience More Enjoyable (Slowly Savoring Each Bite)
  • Not Settling (If You Don’t Love It, Then Don’t Eat It)
  • Checking in with yourself to notice if the food still tastes good. Most importantly, eating foods that you truly love brings Joy and Pleasure

The Ten Principles of Intuitive Eating:

  • Principle 1: Reject the Diet Mentality
  • Principle 2: Honor Your Hunger
  • Principle 3: Make Peace with Food
  • Principle 4: Challenge the Food Police
  • Principle 5: Discover the Satisfaction Factor
  • Principle 6: Feel Your Fullness
  • Principle 7: Cope with Your Emotions with Kindness
  • Principle 8: Respect Your Body
  • Principle 9: Movement—Feel the Difference
  • Principle 10: Honor Your Health with Gentle Nutrition
Source: Tribole, E. & Resch, E. Intuitive Eating A Revolutionary Anti-Diet Approach 4th Edition (2020). St. Martin’s Publishing Group. New York, New York. pgs: 302-304

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Get in touch with me to learn more about my group support services, self-paced learning courses, individual therapy sessions, and CEDS consultation services. I look forward to listening to your needs and discussing solutions to address them.